Chapter 104: ¹⁰⁴: the new heir

"No she-wolf would ever come forward to accept those demands..."

Those words were what everyone in this hall was thinking. They were also the exact words I had thought when I first put those demands forward.

And yet, there was her...Athena Moonvel.

She had come forward despite everything, agreeing to every single one of those demands.

Every single one of the outrageous conditions I had deliberately put forward because I knew no woman in her right mind would willingly accept them.

Even a child would have been able to figure out that no one would agree to such demands without having some kind of motive.

And yet, I had once been foolish enough to start believing her. That was perhaps what irritated me the most.

I looked ahead, forcing myself to push those thoughts aside and ignoring the strange feelings that had begun emerging in me again whenever my mind turned toward her.

"I am aware that all of you present here are really worried about our empire." I said before pausing as I rememberd the explosion that had happened only a few days ago.

"Now that there have been situations where it is evident that there are forces who want to harm our empire, that worry for the future has increased even more."

My gaze moved toward Elder Kayden, who was still kneeling alongside Elder Vale. Both had their heads bowed, carefully keeping their expressions under control.

I took a slow breath before continuing. "And since it seems the solution to all your worries is having an heir who will become the Alpha in case something happens to me, then I want to tell you that I will announce my heir today, right here in this council meeting."

Silence fell throughout the hall. It was as though my words had completely stunned everyone into silence.

Elder Kayden, who had not dared to look directly at me until now, slowly raised his head. His eyes met mine, his expression filled with disbelief, as if he needed to confirm that he had heard me correctly.

I simply smiled at the entire council. I had expected this stunned reaction from all of them when I had made this decision earlier.

After all, I had spent years refusing to even consider taking this step. To suddenly announce that I would name my heir today was bound to shock everyone.

But whether anyone liked this decision or not, I knew taking this step was essential now. There were people after my life. The same people who had already taken my mother from me.

I had decided to go all in on this war against those unknown enemies, and I knew there were only two ways it could end - with me killing my mother’s murderers or with me being killed by them.

I couldn’t afford to be held back with anything anymore. And if I wanted the freedom to act however I needed in this fight, I had to make myself free of the responsibility that tied me to the future of this empire.

I needed to know that even if I didn’t succeed in this war with my unknown enemies, the Starlight Empire would still have someone to lead it. Only then could I fight without having to constantly worry about what would happen to my people if I fell.

"Alpha, do you already have an heir?" Elder Kayden’s panicked voice broke through my thoughts. "How were we not aware of this until now? Who is that child’s mother?! Will... will she be our Luna? Or has some she-wolf really come forward to accept the demands you put forward?"

The panic in his voice made it seem as though Elder Kayden had just lost the most valuable thing in his life.

After all, it really would have been the most valuable thing for him if he succeeded in making his daughter the Luna of this empire.

I couldn’t help but chuckle at his reaction. "Elder Kayden, there is nothing like that. I don’t have any child," I said, keeping my voice as sarcastic as possible before continuing, "Besides, didn’t you just say that no she-wolf would ever agree to those demands?"

Except there really was someone who had agreed to them. Someone who had apparently thought I was nothing more than a fool she could deceive.

"But Alpha, there could be..."

"Stop." I cut him off before he could continue, not wanting to be interrupted again. "Let me finish. I don’t want any of you interrupting me again."

"I obey, Alpha." He replied before bowing his head once more.

I looked at him without bothering to mask my distaste. He was still kneeling there in front of the entire council, trying to prove his humility toward the Alpha. But I knew better.

Behind that obedient posture was nothing more than a poor schemer who had been trying to manipulate the situation for his own benefit.

"Both of you elders, please take your seats," I said, finding their kneeling forms increasingly irritating to look at.

Both of them quickly got up, helped by their attendants, before returning to their respective seats.

I broke my gaze from them, unwilling to waste another second thinking about either of them.

"Today, I, Alpha Kael Dreven, after long consideration of the current situation and the need for our empire to have an heir after me, have decided that..."

I deliberately paused. The anticipation in the hall was almost palpable.

I got to my feet, making the entire hall follow suit as everyone waited to hear what I would say next.

I turned to my right and raised my hand toward where my brother was standing.

"If something happens to me and I don’t have an heir to my position, my brother, Louis Dreven, will be crowned the next Alpha, without any need for permission from the council."

A wave of stunned silence swept through the hall.

Louis himself looked as though he had forgotten how to react.

I moved forward and placed my arm around his shoulders. He looked at me with a completely shocked expression, clearly not having expected his name to come up at all.

"From today onwards, Louis Dreven is my heir. From today, he will wield the tally of my heir."