ALARICS POV
FOUR MONTHS LATER.
Four months of peace and mostly four months without a single major political crisis, a period of quiet stability that was, frankly, a massive relief after the tumult of Elara's return, Riven's paternity shock, and the final war fallout. The Northern Castle was humming with necessary, non-catastrophic administrative hum. And I, the King, spent most of my time managing the immense logistics of my mate, Elias, who was currently housing two very large, very aggressive Alpha pups. I sat in my private chambers, meticulously surrounded by cushions. Elias was settled on the sofa, a vision of monumental, dual-heir pregnancy. If one child created the Throne of Cushions, twins required a complex, multi-tiered siege defense. Every single soft item from the largest floor pillows to the embroidered lumbar supports had been strategically deployed to hold the sheer, challenging geometry of third-trimester Alpha pups.
