The Valkyrie Returns and Slays (Raven) novel Chapter 481

er 481 Hugmuinn Passes The Note

“I am thinking of the bigger picture,” Lorne said, his voice heavy with conviction. “And that’s exactly why I won’t remove Raven from the military.

“Right now, our enemies are wary of Vyrdenia because of her and the Sirius Pack. If word gets out that Raven’s been dismissed, do you really think they’ll let an opportunity like that slip by?”

As he spoke, Lorne’s sharp gaze swept slowly across the table.

“When the time comes and they bring the fight to us on the outer battlefields… who among you plans to face them?”

The room went still. Those who had been fired up just moments ago were now silent.

None of them wanted to be the ones thrown into a warzone where survival was a coin toss.

“If none of you have the guts to fight out there,” Lorne continued coldly, “then what gives you the right to demand Raven’s removal?”

Alton frowned, about to speak again–but Lorne slammed a hand down and snapped, “Enough. You all better listen–as long as I’m still breathing, no one is kicking Raven out of this military.”

A few of the senior officials exchanged glances, clearly unwilling to back down. But when Alton subtly shook his head, they reluctantly fell silent. One by one, they filed out of the council chamber.

After they were gone, Randolph stepped forward, his face filled with gratitude. “Thank you, General Drakon. We always believed in Raven… and clearly, we didn’t place our trust in the wrong person.”

Lorne waved him off. “My phone’s under surveillance by Emperor Grant’s people. I can’t contact her directly. Once you’re back, tell her everything that happened today–and warn her about Robert.”

He sighed. “After what happened in the dungeon, Emperor Grant’s credibility should’ve been shattered. But Raven left Regalhold too quickly, and I ended up hospitalized. That gave his faction just enough room to rise from the ashes.”

Lorne’s voice lowered. “There’s a lot I want to do–but right now, not much I can do.”

“Don’t worry, General,” Randolph said solemnly. “We’ll head to the Sunset Empire right away and regroup with Raven.”

With that, he and the members of the Sirius Pack departed.

Raven had spent the entire day chasing shadows. And still–no sign of Cassian.

Just as she was preparing to expand the search radius, her phone buzzed.

The moment she read the message, a glacial chill settled around her like a storm front.

It was a distress signal–exclusive to Sirius Pack operatives.

According to the message, Randolph and his team had been ambushed the moment they arrived in Broson City.

Raven raced to their last known location and found the place ransacked, debris everywhere–and a single Sirius Pack member lying on the floor, barely clinging to life.

She rushed to his side. But the moment she saw the deep, bone–deep gash across his throat, she knew–there was no saving him.

Still, the dying man’s dim eyes lit up faintly when he saw her.

“They… took Randolph,” he rasped.

“Who did this?” Raven gently laid him flat, trying to ease his pain in his final moments.