Page 43 of Lord of the Lone Wolf (Bonded Hearts #3)
Kitsuki
H eat soaked into Kitsuki’s tired muscles as he eased deeper into the bath, tension melting from his limbs one ache at a time.
The clever Enchanter magic maintained the perfect temperature, which was a small luxury amid the harsh realities of warfare.
Steam rose from the water’s surface, filling the private bathing area of his command tent with a comforting haze.
Weeks had passed since Lieutenant Norkon had departed with the elite team of Enchanters and warriors to dismantle the Deathward Constellation.
They hadn’t received any word or confirmation of success or failure.
Logic told him that communication across enemy territory was difficult at best and impossible at worst. Yet the silence weighed upon him as another burden atop the countless others he carried as king.
His dragon stirred within him, a constant presence that had grown harder to control.
We should summon Maseo , his dragon urged. It has been too long since we saw him.
“No,” Kitsuki refused. “I have nothing to say to him.”
We have much to say , his dragon countered. Too much, perhaps.
It had been weeks of torture watching Maseo from afar as he fought alongside Valzerna’s forces.
The silver ring Kitsuki had given him glinted in the sunlight during battles, a constant reminder of the protection it offered and of the distance Kitsuki forced himself to maintain.
Each time Maseo emerged victorious from combat, Kitsuki felt both relief and a deeper ache that he refused to name.
The pup fights well , his dragon observed with pride. He has proven himself worthy.
“He has,” Kitsuki agreed. “But that changes nothing.”
His dragon growled in frustration. It changes everything. You cannot deny what we feel, what Auslin feels .
Kitsuki closed his eyes against the rising tide of emotions. “I can and I must. As a king, I have responsibilities that supersede personal desires.”
Water sloshed as he tried to find a position that might ease the tension that never left his body.
The constant warfare had taken its toll.
He wondered how his father had thrived on conquest. Tatsuki had been a warlord at heart, expanding Valzerna’s borders through strength of arms and will.
Battle had energized him by clashing with opposing forces.
Kitsuki found it exhausting. Each skirmish, each confrontation with Nasume’s forces left him drained rather than exhilarated.
He longed for the quiet halls of his castle in Tiora and days filled with governance, and not bloodshed.
Yet he knew that peace could only be achieved through Nasume’s defeat.
The wolf shifter king had made that clear.
“Your Majesty?” a voice called from beyond the privacy screen that separated the bathing area from the main quarters. “General Jaega requests an immediate audience.”
Kitsuki’s eyes snapped open, his heart quickening at the news. “He may enter.”
He rose from the bath, water sluicing from his frame. With a gesture, the moisture on his skin vanished into a wisp of steam, and he was dry. He dressed in black breeches and a silver-blue tunic, his movements efficient and precise.
He walked around the privacy screen into the main area, which served as both living quarters and command center. A large table dominated the space, covered with maps and strategic reports.
Jaega entered with weary relief. “I come bearing good news, nephew. Lieutenant Norkon has returned. He brings word of his mission.”
Before Kitsuki could respond, the tent flap opened again. Lieutenant Rylan Norkon entered, and Kitsuki’s breath caught in his throat. The raven shifter was not alone. His arm was slung over Maseo’s shoulders as they walked in together, their postures suggesting a camaraderie born of shared danger.
How dare he touch what is ours? Kitsuki’s dragon roared with possessive fury. But Kitsuki silenced his protests.
“Your Majesty,” Norkon said, releasing the half-wolf shifter to give a proper bow. Maseo followed suit, his movements more formal and hesitant. When he straightened, his gaze met Kitsuki’s before darting away, the shy contact twisting something in the dragon king’s chest.
“Lieutenant,” Kitsuki acknowledged, his voice betraying none of the turmoil within. “I see you have brought company.”
Norkon’s smile was bright, oblivious to the tension radiating from his king.
“I took the liberty of bringing Maseo along, Your Majesty. His intelligence regarding the sewer systems proved instrumental to our success. I thought he deserved to hear firsthand how his information saved countless lives.”
Maseo stepped away from Norkon’s casual embrace, creating distance between them.
The movement did not go unnoticed by Kitsuki, whose dragon rumbled with approval. Good. He does not wish for the raven’s touch.
“I am pleased to see you returned,” Kitsuki said, gesturing toward the chairs. “Please sit and tell me about your mission.”
As they settled around the table, Kitsuki found his gaze drawn to Maseo. He looked tired but unharmed, his posture straight despite the fatigue in his eyes. He had changed in the weeks since their last private conversation, carrying himself with a quiet confidence that had not been there before.
“The mission was a success, Your Majesty,” Norkon began, drawing Kitsuki’s attention back to the matter at hand. “Through considerable risk and effort, we destroyed most of the ritual sites comprising the Deathward Constellation.”
“Not all of them?” Jaega asked.
“Unfortunately, it became more difficult once Nasume’s soldiers realized what we were doing,” Norkon explained.
“They increased patrols around the remaining areas, forcing us to be more selective in our targets. However, we destroyed enough critical nodes to ensure the constellation cannot be completed.”
Relief washed through Kitsuki, easing a tension he had carried for weeks. “Were there casualties?”
“None on our side, though there were some close calls,” Norkon replied. “The healers accompanying us saved our injured warriors. We lost no one, thanks to the detailed intelligence Maseo provided about the sewer systems and guard rotations.”
Maseo blushed at the praise.
Norkon continued. “As Maseo promised, the sewers were large enough for our teams to move through undetected, with access points near each of our priority targets. Without his knowledge, we would have been discovered much sooner, and the outcome might have been very different.” He raised his hand, a shimmer of dark energy gathering around his fingers.
A leather bag materialized from the shadows, settling onto the table with a soft thud .
“The Enchanters insisted we bring these back.”
With another gesture, black stones covered in runes tumbled out, each pulsating with an eerie green light.
Jaega’s mood darkened with recognition. “Soulcages.” When Kitsuki reached out, Jaega’s hand blocked his nephew’s movement. “Do not touch them. They will extract the soul from anyone who makes direct contact.”
Kitsuki eyed them with newfound wariness. “Explain, Lieutenant.”
“The Enchanters discovered these embedded within each ritual site,” Norkon said.
“They contain bound souls that power the necromantic energy of the Deathward. We extracted these to disable the ritual sites, while the warriors destroyed the platforms. Even if they try to rebuild, there is no way for them to succeed on a scale large enough to cause problems during our invasion. The Enchanters were quite clear on that point.”
“What of the souls trapped within?” Kitsuki asked, his gaze fixed on the pulsing stones.
“The Enchanters wish to consult with their colleagues back in Tiora,” Norkon explained. “They hope someone might know how to free the souls bound within them.”
Jaega nodded. “Until then, I will keep them safe.” He used his magic to return the spilled stones back into the bag before vanishing. “They will be secure in my private cabinets in Tiora, where no one can access them without my permission.”
“I cannot overstate how valuable Maseo’s intelligence proved to be,” Norkon said, turning to smile at the half-wolf shifter. “We never would have succeeded without his detailed knowledge of Norello’s underground passages.”
Maseo’s cheeks flushed at the praise. “I am grateful I could help, though I still wish I could have done more.”
“You did the most important thing by surviving this war, which is no small feat, given the dangers we have faced.”
A frown crossed Maseo’s features. “It does not feel like enough.”
Kitsuki’s dragon yearned to reassure Maseo by telling him how valuable he was. Kitsuki suppressed the urge, maintaining his silence. His dragon had already revealed too much. He would not compound that error.
“Where does this leave us ahead of our approach to Norello?” Jaega asked, redirecting the conversation to strategic matters.
Norkon leaned back in his chair, his expression thoughtful.
“Nasume has sent the bulk of his army to the war front. The city itself is lightly defended, and the guards who remain are not his best warriors. Our mission was almost too easy in that regard.” He paused, his brow furrowing.
“What troubles me is that we never encountered the hooded shadow figure I observed during my reconnaissance. It should have interfered with our plans to destroy the necromantic sites, yet it never appeared. I cannot fathom Nasume’s game in this. ”
“It is Nasume’s arrogance,” Jaega suggested. “He does not believe he needs anyone to defend Norello because he cannot imagine losing this war and facing the full force of the Valzerna army.”
Norkon hesitated. “That may be part of it, but my fear is that Nasume is planning to use his lichen army. Unfortunately, we could do nothing about the bones in the graveyard. The Enchanters were too exhausted, and the risk was already too high when the Hollowed patrolled the area.”