When The Moon Hides Her Crown novel Chapter 208

He Promised to Give Me the World, Yet the Price Was My Soul by Caden Blake 208

RYKER

Alpha Hugo and Alpha Gideon remained in the Grand Hall with the Council after everyone else had been ordered to leave. Outside the heavy doors, the crowd of Alphas began to scatter, their footsteps fading one by one. My gaze, however, stayed locked on Seraphina. She turned out to be even more brilliant than I had thought. She had thought of a way to get out of that mess with the Council before it had begun. A part of me was satisfied that she used my love token for that but that satisfaction instantly burnt in the lava building inside me thinking of the reasons behind it had not been for her benefit but for his. There was pure hatred in her eyes when they met mine. Before, she spun around to leave when Ronan reached for her wrist. “Seraphina –“he whispered enough to reach her ears.

My wolf growled, my legs ready to rip them apart but before I could do a thing she did.

She jerked her hand free with a cutting glare, her eyes flicking toward Asher for a fleeting second before she turned on her heel. As she strode past Finn, their eyes met briefly in loaded silence before she disappeared down the next corridor.

“A rage that could burn the world with a single glance,” a dry and amused voice came from behind us.

Every head turned. Healer Aran stood there, hands shoved casually into his pockets, watching the direction Seraphina had vanished. He gave a low chuckle as he started past us. “All of you have wronged him in some way and now you are all fucked,” he commented lightly, his tone almost cheerful.

My hands clenched at my sides, my wolf flaring inside me as I met Ronan’s furious stare. His face alone reminded me of the love bites I saw on her chest. That was enough to drive me crazy. He fucked her and she let him. My wolf appeared in my eyes wanting to finish what I had not been able to due to the Council’s interference but that’s when the Grand Hall doors swung open. Alpha Gideon stormed out, his fury radiating like heat. His gaze swept over the four of us, Asher, Ronan, Finn, and I, with the force of a blade.

“All of you. My office. Now!!” His voice was tight with rage, and without waiting for an answer, he turned and strode away.

I was not sure if I could stop myself from killing the Council if they appeared so I went to his office. I wished to remain at the Academy a bit longer so I had to tolerate this last time. In Alpha Gideon’s office, the air was tight with tension. Alpha Hugo sat off in a side chair, silent and grim, while Healer Aran lounged comfortably on the sofa, sipping tea as though this were an evening chat rather than a disciplinary hearing. While Alpha Gideon, he looked ready to tear the place apart. His eyes burned with restrained violence.

“Never,” he began, voice like a low growl, “In my twenty five years as an Alpha instructor have I been this furious.” He slammed his palm against the desk with a sharp crack that echoed through the room. “I, who have never had to answer to anyone, was forced to justify your actions in front of the Council!” His words thundered, his fury barely contained. “Do any of you have the slightest idea how much damage you’ve done to this Academy’s reputation?”

He began to pace, his boots striking the floor in a steady, angry rhythm as his gaze cut through each of us.

His eyes landed on Asher first. “An intruder.”

Then on Ronan. “An outlaw.”

Next was Finn. “A perjurer.”

Finally, his glare locked onto me. “And a transgressor.” His jaw flexed. “What a brilliant batch the Academy has this year.”

Silence followed, heavy and cold, until the quiet was broken by the sound of Aran taking another leisurely sip of his tea.

“Powerful Alphas,” he mused with a faint smile, “And criminals. An intriguing mix. I love it.”

Chapter 208 The Red Aura

Alpha Gideon shot a sharp glare in his direction just as Alpha Hugo’s voice boomed through the office. “Don’t think that just because you aren’t expelled, you’ve escaped the consequences of your actions!”

He slammed a stack of papers onto the desk, the sound echoing like thunder. “You’re all going to be punished severely!”

Without hesitation, Alpha Gideon seized one of the documents, scrawled his signature across it, with finality. His voice cut through the air like a whip.

“Alpha Asher,” he barked, “You are under grave suspicion of being the intruder who entered the restricted chambers. Since you insist on keeping silent, you’ve already angered the Council. From this moment onward, you are stripped from the leaderboard, your rank is now the lowest among all Alphas. Furthermore, you are expelled from your dormitory. As long as you remain in this Academy, you’ll live in isolation, away from the others.”

Asher’s jaw tightened, his expression twisting in barely contained fury as Alpha Gideon stamped his seal beside his name.

“Alpha Finn,” Alpha Gideon growled next, his tone laced with venom, “You not only gave false testimony but also concealed the truth behind Cassius‘ death! The divine powers-” he slammed his fist down again, his voice rising into a snarl “-you dared to risk the Council’s trust and your own reputation to take the place of Seth Darven and lied about being the first at the murder scene. So, you’ll bear the price of your choices. From now on, you are forbidden from speaking to Alpha Seth Darven. You too are stripped from the leaderboard and placed under investigation for Cassius’s death!”

Finn’s face went dark as Gideon’s seal struck the next sheet with a loud thud.

Then the Alpha’s blazing gaze shifted to me and Ronan.

“Alpha Ronan. Alpha Ryker.” His voice was ice and fury. “You two broke the Academy’s most sacred rule and engaged in a deadly fight that endangered everyone within these walls. You not only destroyed property, but the chaos you caused could have cost countless lives. From this moment on the both of you are stripped from the leaderboard. You are to maintain a distance of no less than one hundred meters from each other at all times. If either of you are caught fighting, scheming, or even arguing, you will be expelled on the spot.” He slammed his seal on both of our papers, then looked up again, his voice dripping with contempt. “As for your insolence before the Council, your violence, your arrogance, for turning this Academy into a battlefield, not just you two, but all four of you are hereby cut from the next trial for the Supreme Alpha throne!”

The room went still.

My mind blanked for a moment. I had just been cut from the semifinals.

Normally, I wouldn’t have given a damn about the Academy’s politics or their self–righteous rules but being treated like the rest of them, ordered around like a disobedient pup, made my wolf bristle in fury. Every muscle in my body trembled with the effort to keep him restrained. I couldn’t lash out. Not yet. Not when I still had a reason to stay in this damned place. Her.

Still, the anger coursed through my veins, burning hotter with every breath.

As we exited the office, my eyes locked with Ronan’s. He mirrored my rage perfectly but there was something else in his stare. Something that made my wolf snarl.

I turned sharply and stormed down the corridor, my wolf’s growl echoing in my head.

‘That red aura. He has that red aura!‘ my wolf roared inside me.

2

Chapter 208 The Red Aura

The thought hit like a dagger. My control snapped.

I shifted mid–stride, my bones cracking as my wolf tore free, fur bristling as I burst into the night and sprinted into the woods. The ground trembled beneath my paws, my snarl ripping through the trees. Rage consumed me, the memory of that crimson glow burned behind my eyes. Ronan’s aura…blood–red, thick with darkness, reeking of hellfire.

That same red aura. The one burned into the worst of my memories.

I howled, the sound splitting the silence of the forest. My wolf finally slowed, growling furiously when a familiar scent reached me. Percy appeared ahead, his eyes wide, his face pale as he took in my expression.

“Alpha…” he stammered, fear thick in his voice. “He–he has a red aura?” His throat bobbed as he swallowed. “But no one should have that aura…So how could Alpha Ronan-”

He went silent the moment I shifted back into my human form, my glare freezing him where he stood. He lowered his head instantly, submitting.

“Dig into Ronan Volkstane,” I ordered, my tone low and dangerous. “Find out what’s missing from the records. Find out who he really is.”

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