Lucian Mooncrest’s POV
The council chamber was already full when I arrived.
That alone told me something had shifted.
In the Royal Pack, meetings did not begin early unless the matter demanded it. Our systems ran on precision and routine, on structure refined over generations, and nothing here moved without intent. The elders sat in their designated seats, advisors arranged in quiet order, commanders standing at ease along the walls. Every face turned toward me as I stepped into the chamber, not with fear, but with expectation.
This was how the royal pack functioned.
Not through intimidation.
Not through spectacle.
But through discipline, it did not need to announce itself.
I took my place at the head of the table and rested my hands against the polished wood, grounding myself befo
