[Third Person].
The council chamber was already filled when the Oatrun cars arrived.
redith stepped out beside Draven, her posture upright and her chin held high. She kept her gaze straight ahead, but she could feel the weight of eyes follow her every move as they moved through the entrance.
The room grew quiet. The elders seated in a semi-circle looked up one after another. So with curiosity. So with open scepticism, while so with poorly hidden disdain.
And then, redith’s gaze landed on Wanda.
Wanda Fellowes was seated behind her father, dressed elegantly, chin lifted, and her lips curved in a faint, knowing smile.
redith did not halt in her stride, but she noticed. Of course she did. So this was not rely a council eting. It was a spectacle.
Reginald Fellowes leaned back in his seat, eyes narrowing slightly. "Well," he said dryly, "I did not know this was a family visit."
A few elders gave small, humourless chuckles, but Draven did not react.
Reginald continued with a smooth voice. "Bringing your mate here will not change the law, Alpha. As long as she is wolfless, she cannot ascend beside you."
A murmur of agreent followed. Then, another elder leaned forward. "Have you co to give us your decision, Alpha? Or shall we continue to delay your coronation indefinitely?"
Silence settled heavily in the chambers.
Draven’s jaw tightened once, then he spoke, "I have co with proof."
The chamber stilled as his golden gaze swept across every elder, pausing briefly on Reginald.
"You dared to question my mate’s qualification to stand beside . Today, you will see why she will be crowned Queen."
A ripple of unease moved through the room.
redith felt Wanda’s smirk deepen. It looked so confident, so certain.
Regardless, redith stepped forward. She bowed politely, graceful and composed.
"Honoured Elders," she began, her voice steady, neither submissive nor aggressive. "I stand before you today only because you claid that proof is the sole condition for my coronation."
She lifted her eyes calmly. "I do not seek to impress you. Nor to compete for your approval. But since you insist that without a wolf I cannot be Queen... I will satisfy your demand."
Then, she turned her head slightly to the side. Draven gave her a small nod. And in that brief mont, she saw Wanda’s arrogant, almost amused smirk.
redith t her gaze for one heartbeat, then she closed her eyes. Through the bond, her voice reached inward.
"Valmora, you know what we are about to do. Do not show them your full aura."
A low, amused response echoed back. "As if I would allow those power-hungry fossils to sense what we truly are. Rest assured, I will restrain myself."
redith inhaled once and shifted. The transformation was not violent or chaotic. It was smooth. Controlled. Absolute.
Where redith had stood monts ago now stood a magnificent white wolf. Tall and regal. Her fur shimred faintly under the council chamber lights. Her posture was proud, unyielding.
The air changed heavily. The silence that followed was suffocating.
One elder’s chair scraped loudly against the floor as he instinctively pushed back.
Another elder half-rose before rembering himself. Then, whispers erupted.
"She—"
"That’s impossible—"
"I thought she—"
At the sa ti, Reginald’s face drained of colour. His fingers tightened visibly around the armrest of his chair.
Wanda’s smirk vanished completely as her eyes widened. She leaned forward as if trying to convince herself it was an illusion.
"That... that cannot be..." she whispered under her breath.
One elder leaned toward another. "We were told she was empty—"
Randall did not move. But at the corner of his lips, the faintest trace of satisfaction flickered.
Draven stood tall beside the white wolf, utterly unsurprised. He was proud, possessive, and unshaken.
redith held the form only long enough for every doubt to fracture. Then she shifted back. Her human form stood where the wolf had been, composed, breathing steady, eyes cool.
She did not look at Wanda; instead, her gaze moved across the elders’ faces. "Now," she said evenly, "shall we proceed with fixing the coronation date?"
No one spoke for a long while as they were either too busy recovering from their shocks or blaming themselves internally.
For example, Wanda couldn’t face her father, especially after eting his furious glare head-on for the first ti. She completely avoided his gaze.
Now, her thoughts were in complete disarray as so many questions filled her head.
How co redith has a wolf?
When did redith get a wolf?
How long has redith had her wolf?
Wanda was so troubled that she could barely hide her thoughts and control her composure.
The silence after redith shifted back stretched on, long and uncomfortable. A few elders cleared their throats, while others avoided her gaze entirely.
Finally, one of the senior elders leaned forward with a cautious but steady voice. "Well... since the Luna possesses a wolf, then the primary objection has been addressed."
A few heads nodded, murmurs of reluctant agreent following.
For a brief mont, the matter looked settled. But Reginald Fellowes did not sit back. He rose slowly, too calmly.
"Possessing a wolf," he began with his hands clasped behind his back, "and being worthy to rule beside a King are not entirely the sa matter."
The room shifted again. Draven’s eyes hardened, but Reginald continued smoothly, as if he were the most reasonable man present.
"If we are to crown her Queen, then let us remove all doubt. Let her demonstrate command over her wolf."
A few elders exchanged looks, and one asked, "And how do you propose that be done?"
Reginald turned slightly, then pointed at Wanda.
"My daughter," he said evenly, "is among the finest female warriors in Stormveil. Let Luna redith duel her in wolf form."
Instantly, the chamber stirred violently. Wanda’s head snapped toward her father, then toward redith. For a split second, there was surprise, then excitent.
Her spine straightened as her lips curved. She was already calculating, already imagining redith thrown to the ground, and already picturing the humiliation.
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