The elders of the royal family were invited for lunch. The tradition was to get acquainted with the new luna. Lydia and the other maids had already worked hard the whole morning to introduce me to the wolf cultures.
It was not much distinct from the vampires. But the elders were the previous alpha lords of the wolves. I had to be more cautious in my demeanors in front of them.
The menacing gut feeling was not leaving since the morning. If only the Lord was here by my side. I kept sighing continuously.
"My Lady, if you keep sighing this much, you will run out of breath," Lydia said worryingly looking at me. They were so innocent I thought. I could not run out of breath.
My maids were preparing me in the moon suite again. But even the beauty of the pool, filled with enchanting flower petals and hot water, had failed to impress me like before.
"Lydia, why am I the only woman in the current royal family?" I asked, staring at her with puppy dog eyes twirling with tears. What the background of my mind implied was why I did not have a mother-in-law. I really needed someone to calm me down.
"Ah- My Lady," Lydia only smiled awkwardly. "It is because the current alpha Lord is an orphan. His father was a former Lord. But he was deceased in a conclave. And the Lady a few days after."
"What?" I was surprised to hear that. I was his wife, yet I was completely unaware of his loss. I could fathom why he would appear cold in front of the world. I was already feeling upset thinking about him.
When the elders arrived, I was there to welcome them. Edrik accompanied me. The maids had prepared me a bit differently from the other days. The heavy makeup and the expensive jewelry were not fitting my taste, yet I had no other way but to wear them.
The elders were entirely different from my expectations. I was expecting to see some old men, dressed as monks.
Lydia never informed me that the elders would be a bunch of young, handsome men, seeming barely in their thirties. The oldest one seemed like a man in his fifties. Since the wolves would also age slowly like the vampires, it made sense. But why I expected to see monks had no explanation.
Besides, unlike the vampires, the wolf bloodline was not pure. The former lords were not blood-related at all, since several pack leaders dictated over the wolf empire at different times. Clarifying the reason why Evelyn was a royal family member. Her father was an alpha Lord in the past.
The elders were remarkably majestic in their royal outfits. They were emitting the same noble aura as Xavier. I greeted them properly, as Lydia had taught me earlier.
"Is this pretty lady the new luna of the wolves?" One of the elders asked Edrik after studying me from head to toes. Though they were the former lords, I found it disrespectful as the current luna.
"Yes, Alpha Linkin," Edrik replied uninterestedly.
"My my, such a fresh and elegant beauty," the man continued smirking at me again. "I had no idea the vampire lady would be so pure and fragile looking."
Fragile? I could not help getting irritated in my mind. His remarks were infuriating. What was he expecting to see? A dead lady in a coffin?
He unexpectedly seized my hand into his and kissed the dorsal surface of my hand lightly. My face hardened. So inelegant! Even Edrik failed to hide his bitterness.
But I was always groomed to sustain my calm in the worst possible circumstances. I continued looking at the ground, keeping my gazes low. If eyes could cut, the floor would be divided into two.
"Where is Xavier?" one of the elders asked when we sat down in our assigned places in the massive hall.
The large table was set in the middle of the hall. Candles and flowers were used to beautify. Filled with all kinds of appetizing foods.
"Brother has gone to take care of the omega villages near the border. They were attacked this morning," Edrik explained.
"That boy is still as wild as ever," another elder said.
"Shouldn't the lord be here to greet us? Are those omegas more important than the elders? When is he going to act like a proper lord?" the youngest-looking elder said. He had the appearance of a man barely in his thirties. Tall, blond hair having sharp features.
"This is embarrassing how the lord involves himself with the omegas. This is unacceptable as a former lord," they started discussing among themselves. I was sitting quietly at the corner, in my assigned place.
I had no idea the elders disliked Xavier to such a point that they were not even caring if the Luna was present there. Their remarks about Xavier started to get only cruder.
Even though the assemblage was to greet the new Luna, they seemed more interested in humiliating the new Lord.
As his wife, it was offensive to sit there quietly and listen to them degrading my husband.
"Pardon," I said in the middle of their conversation. Their attention turned to me. "Since the omegas are vulnerable, isn't it reasonable for the lord to put more attention on them? He is a lord for all the wolves after all," I said, wearing a flat expression.
"Huh- so the vampire lady can talk,'' one of the elders said scornfully.
"What does the lady know about the wolf caste system ?" the blond guy asked sharply. His gaze was piercing through me.
"I don't know much about caste, but I believe in equitable distribution. One should get it according to their needs. Since the omegas are weaker, the Lord is creating no harm by giving them the attention they need," I replied calmly.
"Besides," I got up from my assigned place slowly, I gave them a chilling glare and continued, "The elders are only subject to the alpha Lord. How can the elders show the audacity of speaking ill about the Lord in his absence, in front of his Luna?"
Not to mention I was infuriated by the inelegant behavior of the former lord earlier. I uttered with so much authority that even the wolves who were serving shivered in fear.