章 13: The Nature of the Moon Kingdom

The Moon Kingdom was by far the strongest kingdom ever. Other kingdoms were either allies with them, or they were allies. There were no two ways about it.

The kingdom was rich with gold and other natural resources and they had strong warriors. Rumour had it that once upon a time, there was a war between the Moon Kingdom and another kingdom that had thousands of armies. The soldiers from the Moon Kingdom had only been a few hundred, but surprisingly, no soldiers from the Moon Kingdom fell in battle; rather, the soldiers from the other kingdom all died.

Since then, every other kingdom bowed to the demands of the Moon Kingdom because they knew what would become of them if they didn't. They also got richer because other kingdoms who sought their help had to do whatever they wanted, even if it was beyond them. It was simply an unequal and capitalist exchange between the two.

But what people didn't know was the true nature of the kingdom.

Eighty percent of the population were werewolves. Werewolves had extraordinary strength and could do things humans couldn't do. Some werewolves who were blessed by the Moon goddess had some kind of powers that others didn't. The strongest of all werewolves was the Alpha wolf.

It was rare to see an Alpha. You could only see one out of every two thousand people. The Alphas weren't only super strong, they commanded fear from people by simply being in the room. They are blessed with good looks and height and are also ruthless, hot-tempered, and possessive. They hated it when people questioned their dominance– it could lead to bloodshed. The pheromones they release when angry can suppress any and everyone. Only fellow Alphas can withstand it. They are born leaders. In the Moon Kingdom, only Alphas rule.

The only time a Beta managed to rule, the Kingdom fell into a state of chaos and since then, A Beta rule was abolished.

Beta wolves are the next in the hierarchy. They occupy the majority of the Moon Kingdom. They were also very strong. Not as strong as Alphas, but far stronger than humans. The King was always accompanied by a Beta, who was naturally the country's second in command. The king's Beta acts as a personal assistant and most times, acts as a middleman between the King and the people.

The last in the hierarchy is the Omega wolf.

They are also very rare to find. The omega wolves are known for their fragile nature and weakness. They were seen as equal to humans, some were even weaker than humans, which is a disgrace to werewolves.

They do not have the strength for labour, nor can they fight as warriors, so they are more or less weak and useless. They were also blessed with good looks. It wasn't difficult to recognize an omega wolf because they had an ethereal look. They were often shorter compared to the other wolves and their pheromones were capable of causing chaos. The pheromones they release, especially during their heat, drive other wolves crazy with the intention of mating with them. The urge wasn't very strong with betas, but it was very strong with Alpha wolves. That was why every omega wolf in the Moon Kingdom always took medicine to conceal it. The medicine wasn't only bitter, but it caused them excruciating pain. No one cared about how they felt about it because it was the price they had to pay for being useless. Anyone Omega who came out without taking the medicine was severely punished and sometimes killed, because that single action of theirs could cause trouble and plenty of distraction. An Omega who didn't take the medicine can be forced into heat when they encounter an Alpha. That has never ended well.

Another good thing about them was their ability to conceive quickly compared to other wolves that could take years. Because of how weak they are, they rarely shift into their wolf forms. Some may lose their lives if they try it. And it also took time for their injuries to heal compared to the others.

The humans in the Moon Kingdom were few. They lived in the outskirts of town, away from the werewolves. They had no idea that most members of the kingdom were werewolves. The humans did farming, fishing, and other jobs. They were more or less treated as slaves and labourers. Any human who disobeyed any law was never seen again. The most important law they were to obey was to make sure everyone living in that district didn't come out every night of the full moon. They didn't know why that law existed, but they obeyed it. One person who disobeyed and went outside out of curiosity was never seen again.

~~~~~

As Prince Harold looked at his dancing bride, he wondered if she would be able to survive in his kingdom. She was fierce, but could she live in the midst of wolves? Especially when he had a lot of enemies. A lot of people would try to use her against him. Some may try to get information about him through her. Some may also try to bait him by using her.

But they were wrong.

Because even if he was marrying her, that was it. Nothing was ever going to happen between them. He wasn't one to have any weaknesses or attach himself to others.

She was just going to be his wife in name, but that was as far as it would go. The last thing he wanted was for a chatty girl like her to get in his way, no matter how intriguing he found her to be.

Soon the music stopped, and his wife stopped moving around like a clown all in the name of dancing. She was panting and sweating hard like she had just done something useful.

She was going to be a lot useful as a labourer. Harold thought to himself.

There was pin-drop silence in the hall as all eyes went from her to him. He could tell everyone was waiting for him to do something crazy, just like his sister had asked. Looking at the faces of most people around him, he could see that they were eagerly anticipating his reaction.

Alicia turned to look at him with a slightly raised brow, wondering why everyone was looking at him when she was the one who had performed, and also wondering why the rude audience had failed to clap as she danced, or even after her performance.

The next thing she heard was someone hitting a table loudly before standing up.

"WHAT NONSENSE IS THIS?!" One of the men seated around prince Harold asked. He was sheathing with anger.

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