Reclaimed By My Alpha (Natalia and Andrei) novel Chapter 547

And most of all, there were no guards. No strange, mindless soldiers. Ellen’s team remained behind, many of them having taken up permanent residence in the castle. Being the only able–bodied ones, they carried weapons, but Petra explained it was just in case. No one dared to venture up here anyway, and it was peaceful.

Finally, Petra invited us for dinner. The great hall had been transformed with rugs, tapestries, and warm fires, making it feel warmer and more hospitable than the original space. There was no throne, just a long table that ran down the center.

By the time we sat down, the hall had filled with people. Many of them had various mobility tools: canes, crutches, wheelchairs. All of them wore the same style veils as Petra, their eyes shining through the slits.

They looked so… happy.

Max sat across from me, looking around with a mixture of confusion and awe. A meal of roasted mountain goat and root vegetables was served, and it was utterly delicious.

The conversation moved easily. Petra was direct and dry, which I appreciated, and she didn’t waste time on unnecessary formalities. She told me about the first two years on the summit, the work of clearing out the castle and making it safe again after the war, and most of all, the slow process of figuring out how to cater to their disabilities instead of being in constant pain.

“Many of us had to learn to talk,” she said. “That was the hardest part; harder, even, than the physical pain. Our throats had never been used properly.”

My heart ached. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry.” She waved a gnarled hand. “It only made learning all the more precious.”

It was somewhere in the middle of all of this that the tunnels came up.

One of the men further down the table mentioned something about the ancient palace below, and Petra half–turned to me.

“I could show you,” she said. “After dinner. We’ve done a lot of work down there.”

“Down where?” Max asked immediately, perking up.

“The tunnels beneath the castle,” Petra said, “They connect to the excavation tunnels. We spent about eighteen months clearing and ventilating the whole system. Fresh air shafts every fifty meters or so now. It’s safe to walk through the entire thing, although we’re still working on the palace.”

I put my fork down.

“Safe?”

“Completely,” She nodded curtly. “It’s mostly just been preserved for historical purposes. A few of our scholars have begun a library in the section of the palace that was excavated. There were many books down there that we were able to salvage thanks to Ellen’s team.”

One of Ellen’s men nodded, bristling with pride.

1 looked at Max. He was already looking at me with that look. I knew exactly what it meant.

The new entrance through the castle was in the old dungeon, which was now a cellar. I shuddered as we descended into that space, but it looked completely different now; the cells had been ripped out and replaced with shelves, and I was warm and dry.

Petra unlocked the door to the tunnels and held a torch inside so we could see. A winding staircase descended into pitch. blackness. The air smelled cold and slightly damp, but it didn’t have that tinge of sulfur like before.

Maz took a step forward like he was about to walk straight in, but I put a hand on his shoulder and gave him a look.

He sighed and turned away.

1/2

Chapter 547

+25 Bonus

After we got a good enough look, Petra relocked the door without comment.

They gave us rooms in the east wing. Mine had a window that looked out over the north face of the mountain. It was far away from the room the Winter King had once made me sleep in.

I lay there for an hour before I got up, got dressed, and went downstairs. I waited by the tunnel door with my arms folded and I waited.

It took twenty minutes for Max to show up.

His footsteps were quiet. He came around the corner and stopped dead when he saw me.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify