The Devil's Luna was the King's Excutioner

The crowd did not come to witness justice. They came to witness history. Rain poured over Blackthorn Square, turning the stone platform slick with crimson water. Thousands of werewolves packed the terraces surrounding the execution grounds, their voices crashing together like thunder. "Death to the Devil!" "Kill the assassin!" "Make her suffer!" Children sat on their fathers' shoulders. Merchants abandoned their stalls. Even nobles stood beneath the storm. Nobody wanted to miss the execution of the woman who had haunted kingdoms for nearly a thousand years. The Devil's Shadow. No one knew her face. No one knew her age. Some believed she was a demon. Others claimed she was Death wearing a woman's skin. Only one thing was certain. Kings feared her name. Today... She would die. At the center of the platform, a woman knelt with her hands bound behind her back by glowing silver chains carved with ancient runes. Her long black hair hid most of her face. She did not struggle. She did not beg. She did not even breathe heavily. She simply waited. A priest stepped forward, his white robes soaked by the rain. "In the presence of the Moon Goddess and the Twelve Kingdoms, Nyra of no bloodline is sentenced to death for the murder of six kings... the destruction of three royal houses... and the s*******r of more than thirty thousand soldiers." The accusations echoed across the square. The woman never looked up. The priest frowned. "Do you have any final words?" Silence. "You may confess your sins." Nothing. He sneered. "Very well." "The Devil dies without repentance." A horn sounded. The crowd erupted. Then... The palace gates opened. Every voice vanished. Alpha King Kael walked into the square. He wore black armor trimmed with silver, a dark crimson cloak trailing behind him. Rain slid down his broad shoulders as if even the storm feared to linger. He was twenty eight. The youngest Lycan King in history. The man who had conquered five kingdoms without losing a single battle. He climbed the execution platform alone. No guards. No advisors. No hesitation. A servant carried an ancient sword wrapped in black silk. Even from where the crowd stood, they could feel the weapon humming. Whispers spread instantly. "The God Blade..." "They're actually using it..." "No soul survives that blade." Kael removed the silk. The sword gleamed with pale silver light. Ancient runes ignited across its edge. One strike. Nothing could survive it. He stopped before the kneeling woman. For the first time... She raised her head. The square fell silent. Not because she was beautiful. Because she smiled. Not a desperate smile. Not a broken smile. A knowing one. As though she had already seen the ending. Kael frowned. "Tell me your real name." Her eyes held his. "If I remembered it..." Her voice was calm. "...you wouldn't be standing here." His grip tightened around the sword. "You've murdered innocent people." "No." "You expect me to believe that?" "I expect nothing from kings." The words struck harder than any insult. Around the platform, nobles exchanged uneasy glances. She should have been terrified. Instead... She looked at Kael as if he were the one about to lose everything. Kael leaned closer. "For someone facing death..." "...you seem remarkably calm." A faint laugh escaped her lips. "You think this is my first execution?" His expression hardened. "What does that mean?" She tilted her head. "You'll understand soon." For the first time that day... A chill crawled beneath Kael's skin. Something was wrong. He had interrogated murderers. Warlocks. Traitors. Nothing about this woman resembled any of them. She carried no fear. No hatred. Only... Pity. The High Priest raised both hands. "Execute the criminal." Kael lifted the God Blade. The runes blazed brighter. The sky darkened. Lightning split the clouds. Every werewolf held their breath. Nyra closed her eyes. Not in surrender. Almost... In relief. The blade fell. A flash of white light swallowed the platform. The sound of steel cutting flesh echoed across the square. Her head rolled across the wet stone. Blood spread beneath her body. The silver chains dissolved. The crowd exploded into deafening cheers. "The Devil is dead!" "The Devil is dead!" "The Devil is dead!" Kael stared at the corpse. Something twisted inside him. He had executed countless enemies. None had left him with this feeling. It felt... Wrong. As if the world itself had just made a mistake. Then... A laugh. Small. Soft. A child's laugh. It cut through the celebration like a knife. Kael turned. Near the front of the crowd stood a little girl no older than seven. Barefoot. Holding a ragged doll. She was smiling. Not at the corpse. At him. Her golden eyes glowed strangely beneath the rain. She pointed toward the execution platform. Then she giggled. "You missed." The cheers faltered. Kae l's heartbeat stopped. "What did you say?" The little girl smiled wider. "Wrong one." The wind roared. Every torch around the square extinguished at once. Darkness swallowed Blackthorn. People screamed. When the flames returned only a heartbeat later... The little girl was gone. No footprints. No scent. Nothing. Kael slowly turned back toward the platform. His blood froze. The severed head... ...was smiling.