Chapter 61. The Coronation

The first stones were laid at dawn.

Selene stood barefoot in the clearing where Spiritshade would rise, the earth cool and yielding beneath her toes as early light stained the mist gold. Around her, the world stirred awake without fanfare or ceremony, moving instead with a quiet reverence that felt more sacred than any ritual she had ever been forced to endure.

There were no banners unfurled to mark the moment, no trumpets to announce her presence, no throngs of wolves chanting her name into the sky.

Only a small gathering remained—those who had chosen to stay when the Hollow Grounds emptied. Kael stood near the treeline, watchful and steady. Beside him was the Northwind woman, whose name Selene would later learn was Maerin, along with a scattering of packless wolves and a few travelers from distant territories who had come after hearing whispers of the Council’s