Chapter 155 The King Is Coming

Chapter 155 The King Is Coming
E L E A N O R

He’s coming toward me with a sword gripped tight in his hand. Before I can move, his free hand snaps out and grabs me by the neck, lifting me off my feet. I gasp, choking, as he hurls me sideways. My body slams into a heavy tree trunk with a force that knocks the air clean from my lungs. I can’t fight him. My body feels too weak, too broken to even stand.

Just as despair starts to swallow me whole, I see it—a bright, blazing light at the edge of the cliff, racing straight toward me. Perseus.

A bright, reckless smile is stretched across his face, and the sight of it melts something deep inside me. He’s handsome. He always is. Tears prick at my eyes as I reach out for him, my fingers straining through the empty air.

But then the earth beneath us shudders and splits apart, tearing a gaping chasm between us. I let out a choked gasp, my hope crumbling as he slowly disappears from view. My vision blurs into nothing.



I wake up with a sharp gasp, my body drenched in cold sweat. I rub my forehead, trying to push away the lingering fear. It’s been two days since the Bacchus incident, and trying to rebuild the cabinet has been nothing short of hectic. Everyone has an opinion, everyone has criticism. At least Clawford held its election—Caspian is the new Alpha now, which should ease some of the burden from my shoulders.

Or so I thought.

The nightmares haven’t stopped. Jeremiah says it’s trauma left over from the war, and I believe him. I can barely sleep a full night. My appetite is gone. I’m losing weight, and that’s not good for anyone, especially not a pregnant woman.

But I force myself to stay strong. I have to.

A faint smile touches my lips as I pick up the invitation letter sent to me by Hildegard through Severus.

“Wear pink to the party, Luna Eleanor.”

A smirk curls on my lips. I’ve always loved pink, but I stopped wearing it so much after I lost Tobias. Maybe this is her way of trying to bring that part of me back—the giddy, hopeful girl I used to be.

A few days ago, I went to see Bernadette. We didn’t talk much. We just held each other and cried for what felt like hours before exhaustion finally pulled her under. I didn’t get to see the kids—they were still napping, and I had another urgent meeting. But today, I want to make a good first impression.

I’ve gathered a small mountain of gifts, especially for Hildegard. It’s her birthday, after all. Picking out presents for her felt like shopping for my own little girl. The thought makes me rub my stomach gently as I look over the dresses my maids have laid out for me to wear after my bath and breakfast.

“One of you should be a girl,” I whisper to my swollen belly.

“Of course, Luna,” one of the maids, Irene, giggles. She’s been a lovely addition to the new staff. She only works part-time, but we’ve bonded over fashion and fabric. “A sweet little girl you can play dress-up with. And I can help too!”

“Oh, shut up,” her twin sister, Iris, hushes her with a playful scoff. “Girls can be so clingy with their fathers, you know. We definitely won’t be having any more sex marathons with a little princess around.”

My cheeks flush, but I laugh. “How can you say something like that?” I point toward a long pink ruffle skirt and a simple white blouse. “This one will do.”

“Well, we’re not all children, are we?” Iris winks as she carefully takes the outfit off the hanger.

“Once the King returns, you should try to enjoy yourselves as much as possible before the princess gets here, Luna,” Irene adds, selecting a pair of soft pink flats to match. “She’ll be your number one competition. But at least you’ll still have your body to console you. Though I suppose it’s a fair trade—especially if you have two girls and a boy. Or two boys and one girl. Less competition that way.”

“What if they’re all girls?” Iris raises an eyebrow.

Irene giggles. “Then we’ll have three Lunas running this place because you know they’ll be in charge.”

I freeze for a second, my smile fading. “You really think he’s coming back?”

“We know he is,” Iris says softly. She guides me to a chair and begins styling my hair with gentle, practiced hands.

“How can you be so sure?” My voice drops to a whisper. “Everyone else thinks I’m crazy for waiting… for believing he’s still out there.”

“I only worked with the Alpha for a short time,” Iris begins, brushing my hair with slow, steady strokes. “But my mother worked in this castle her whole life before she…” She trails off, reaching for a hairpin.

“I’m so sorry,” I say quickly.

“Oh, no—she’s not dead,” Iris laughs lightly. “She retired and opened a nursery in Dreadmere.”

“That’s lovely,” I reply, smiling faintly.

“As I was saying,” Iris continues, “I didn’t know him long, but every day I saw exactly what my mother always said he was: resilient. Brave—”

“Handsome,” Irene cuts in, laughing.

“Shut up,” Iris rolls her eyes, but she’s smiling. “What I mean is, Perseus Gray Cage is far too legendary to be taken down by dragon-shifter arrows and a fall from a cliff. You’ve heard the stories, haven’t you?”

“Yes,” I say, my lips curling into a soft grin. “The great Lycan King.”

“The one who conquers cities and brings the world to its knees,” Irene continues, pitching her voice like she’s telling an old heroic tale.

Iris nods, adding, “The destroyer. The cautionary tale. A curse. A blessing. Temptation itself—born from the sin of forbidden love. Wherever he goes—”

“He’ll always return,” I finish, the words feeling familiar and warm on my tongue.

“Nothing can bring his end,” we all chorus quietly. “Only his creator decides his fate. For Perseus Gray Cage will live to the very last of his name, until the end of time.”

“I can’t believe I forgot that,” I murmur, laughing softly.

“It was written the day he was born,” Irene says. “Spread across every territory.”

“I read it so many times I thought he was some old, bald king,” I admit, giggling.

Iris smiles warmly as she puts the final pin in my hair. “That’s just a reminder, Luna. Perseus Cage is coming back.”