Alpha King’s Lost Luna by Aubrey Pepper

| Chapter 308 Argument CASSANDRA Thankfully, Adalyn’s proposal wasn’t as convincing to the councilors as | she’d expected. It was clear from the glint in her golden eyes and the proud expression on her beautiful face that she assumed all would accept the idea of Marco’s ascension without complaint, but that couldn’t have been further from the truth. The room dissolved into whispers and gasps at once.

One of the councilors I didn’t know the name of cleared his throat and all fell quiet.

“Pardon me for my bluntness, Lady Adalyn, but it’s absurd to announce a new Alpha King when there is no

evidence showing that the king is dead,” he pointed out, his thick dark eyebrows furrowed at her. “We have nothing of the sort before us-" “The forensic report will explain everything-" Adalyn began to say but the councilor waved her off with his hand.

“A report means nothing,” he stated boldly, and then he glanced around the room to garner attention from the other councilors. “If the Alpha King is dead, we need to see his corpse for our own eyes. From there, he will need a proper funeral so that he can be buried here in the land of Wegalla, per the tradition of every king before him.

Only after the burial can a new Alpha King be appointed.” A few other councilors nodded,

emboldened by his words.

“If he is dead, the people must witness | and then mourn,” another spoke up.

“A new king matters not to us right now.” The room suddenly filled with the voices of the councilors, and then, another one I didn’t recognize rose to his feet.

“I think Lady Adalyn is thinking about what’s best for the country,” he said loftily, and I fought the urge to roll my eyes in his direction. “Since the Alpha King’s disappearance, the country has been in chaos, chaos that has lasted for too long. Our people long for peace and prosperity-" Some disagreement interrupted him, but he simply spoke louder to drown out the complaints.

“As shocking as the proposal initially sounds, Prince Marco is old enough to take the throne,” he continued, and he pushed his spectacles up his hooked | nose. “The youngest king in Wegalla’s history was three years old, after all.

He will need guidance to be certain, but this isn’t unheard of.” I gritted my teeth and forced myself to remain as silent as I could manage.

When I turned to Asher, Karsh, and Jacoby, it was clear they shared the same dilemma. This was insane. This councilor was on the side of the Moses family, and I wondered how much they had bribed him with to agree with this insane plan.

A couple of councilors sitting beside him chimed in and started to argue with the others in his favor. Their voices filled the room and the chaos

was enough to make me want to throw my hands over my ears to drown it out.

I'd known this wouldn’t be an easy task, but I hadn’t expected some of the councilors to be as captivated by the Moses family as they were. It was as if they were under some kind of spell.

Finally, the first councilor who had spoken rose to his feet and spoke louder than the others, forcing the room to fall completely silent as all turned to look at him.

“I don’t believe this decision can be made without the presence of Lord Oliver of Lord Beta Silas,” he spoke clearly and concisely.

Though he didn’t point out directly that he thought Adalyn wasn’t qualified to make this sort of announcement, his demeanor was

clear enough, as was his facial expression.

All remained silent and when I glanced at Adalyn, I saw her face twist into a look of anger. It only lasted for the briefest of instances, but it was there all the same. She quickly recovered and her red-painted lips curled into a polite smile.

“I don’t know how else to say this,” she spoke evenly. “And I don’t want to say it twice, but I fear I must. My father wanted me to make this announcement on his behalf, which is exactly why I’m here. As for my brother, I think it’s rude to mention the need for his presence when he is currently fighting for his life. We have no idea when he will awaken, councilor.”

Adalyn then gestured at Margaret.

«Besides, we have Lady Margaret here.

I do not know who else is needed with her present.” Margaret smiled and nodded. Clearly, she thought she was some sort of authority figure and believed in Adalyn’s proposal. The truth of the matter, though, was that Margaret held no power here and she didn’t mean a thing to the councilors. My theory was proven when they simply ignored the widow of the late king and began to talk amongst themselves.

Margaret's cheeks flushed in embarrassment, and I leaned in and whispered to Asher.

“The number of councilors on Adalyn’s side equals the ones against her,” I remarked.

Asher nodded. “And the rest seem too afraid to speak up or get involved. They may not approve of this ridiculous idea, but they probably don’t want to vex the Moses family.” It was my turn to nod, and then I glanced around the room. It was an interesting observation since I had expected the Moseses would get more support. Perhaps this proposition was too radical even for them, too shocking. A boy king wasn’t exactly a sane plan.

“I don’t think Oliver would make this decision,” I whispered to Asher aftera moment. “It seems crazy even for him.” “I think so too,” Asher agreed, his gray eyes fixed on what should have been Oliver’s seat at the table. “I think

something happened to Oliver Moses, something more than mere sickness.” When he turned to face me, I simply blinked at my mate in surprise.

“Are you suggesting he’s... dead?” I whispered.

“Either dead or like Silas,” he whispered back solemnly.

A lump formed in my throat as I pondered the idea. It made a good deal of sense, though I didn’t want to accept that as truth. There was no love lost toward Oliver Moses, but who would have done something like that? It was hard to say. The man surely had his enemies.

Adalyn raised her voice again, forcing

Asher and me to pay attention once more.

“It’s a shame to see so many councilors having no sense of responsibility for the country,” she said, her lips pouting slightly. “If you don’t want to comply, I’m afraid the Moses family will have to teach you a lesson.” As she spoke, the soldiers behind her stepped forward as a threat. It was illegal to bring soldiers and other military members into a council meeting, but the Moseses had clearly taken enough power to ignore the rules.

The room fell silent as all sat tensely in their chairs.

After a minute or so, I was worried the councilors would cave and allow

Adalyn to carry on with her proposal, but before all hope was lost, Karsh stood up.

“What if the king returned?” he blurted out boldly, and as all stared at him in confusion, he continued to speak. “Since no one can prove the Alpha King is dead with any real certainty, there's a chance this alleged report is false and the king might return at any time. What then?” Adalyn offered him a chilling smile.

“Hypothetically speaking, the Alpha King would still be king if he were to return before Prince Marco’s 18th birthday, but any time after that, he would have to forfeit the crown.” She let out a soft, dramatic sigh. “But I’m afraid this idea is merely a theory. I read the report carefully, councilor,

and I can confirm it’s real and true.” Karsh clenched his jaw and then gave her a small smirk.

“How can you confirm this information?” he asked her directly.

“Since you haven’t yet been claimed by the king?”