The War God Returns: My Disabled Alpha Husband Stood Up

The heavy iron chain dragged across the capital's flagstones, its clattering a grim accompaniment to the ceremony of shame.

Kane sat in the prisoner's cart, covered in blood, the legs that had once made the entire kingdom proud dangled uselessly. The cart, as crude as a pile of scrap wood, moved slowly down the main thoroughfare, flanked by the very subjects who had once adored him.

"Traitor! Disgrace to the pack!"

"Kill him! Kill him!"

A glob of mud arced through the air, splattering across his face. He didn't react, as if it weren't his face, not his life.

General Valerius, mounted on a magnificent white wolf, rode close beside the cart. He put on a show for the crowd, calling to the guards, "Easy there, men! He was, after all… ah, he was our War God."

His voice wasn't loud, but it was clear enough for those nearby to hear. That sigh was like oil poured onto the flames of their fury.

"War God? Bah! How many of our brothers did he get killed!"

"My husband died in that battle! All because of this incompetent commander!" a woman shrieked, grabbing a rock and trying to surge forward before the guards stopped her.

Valerius gave the woman a gentle shake of his head, his face a mask of sorrow. "Calm yourself, madam. The King will give us justice."

In the cart, Kane remained silent, but his spine was ramrod straight. One might have thought it was his throne, not a prisoner's transport.

The cart finally halted before the high platform of judgment in the city square.

Kane was dragged roughly from the cart and forced to his knees in the center of the stage. His father, the old Wolf King Arthur, rose slowly from his throne, clad in solemn black royal robes.

The square fell silent. Everyone held their breath, waiting for the sentence.

"Kane," Arthur's voice was like winter ice, devoid of any warmth. "Do you admit your guilt?"

Kane didn't look up. He didn't answer.

It seemed Arthur didn't need an answer. He turned to the thousands of subjects in the square, his voice booming, echoing in every ear.

"My son, Kane, as the War God of the wolf pack, demonstrated incompetence in the final battle against the Shadow-Claw tribe, leading to the near annihilation of our Third Legion! This is a grave sin!"

He paused, his sharp gaze sweeping over the crowd.

"He lost not only the battle, but the honor of our pack! From this day forward, in my name as Wolf King, I declare that Kane is stripped of the title 'War God' and relieved of all his duties!"

Arthur drew a dagger from his belt, walked to Kane, and personally sliced off the insignia pinned to his chest—an emblem of obsidian and lava crystal, the symbol of the War God.

"You are no longer my pride," he said softly, his tone indecipherable—was it anger or disappointment? "You are a sinner of the kingdom."

The insignia hit the ground with a crack, shattering like Kane's former glory.

The crowd erupted in jeering cheers.

Amid the din on the high platform, the High Priestess Livia took a step forward. She wore a pristine white robe, her expression mournful, as if grieving for a fallen soul.

"The sinner of the crown has been punished," her voice was cool, yet it had a strange, penetrating quality that cut through the noise. "But the order of the gods must also be upheld."

Her gaze swept over the crowd, landing with precision on a pale-faced young woman—Selene.

Selene felt as if a serpent had fixed its eyes on her, a chill running through her veins.

"The Moon Goddess's light shines only upon the purest of souls," Livia's voice, amplified by her priestly power, carried clearly across the square. "And Selene, whose bloodline is tainted with ill fortune, is no longer worthy of the glory of being the Daughter of the Moon."

The words struck Selene like a bolt of lightning.

Livia held up a string of moon-white tokens, announcing, "Today, I transfer this glory to her pure and kind-hearted sister—Diana!"

Diana emerged from the crowd. Amid gasps of awe, she walked proudly to the stage and knelt before Livia. The High Priestess personally placed the tokens on her, anointing her as the new Daughter of the Moon.

Standing in the crowd, Selene watched as everything that was hers was stolen away, watched the triumphant and hypocritical smile on Diana's face, and felt the strength drain from her body.

It wasn't over. King Arthur's cold gaze turned to her again.

"A sinner for an outcast," he decreed, his tone leaving no room for argument. "I hereby announce that the ill-omened Selene shall be wed to the sinner Kane. Let them repent their sins together, in the dark!"

The square fell silent for a heartbeat, then erupted in a wave of laughter and gossip louder than any before.

"Hahaha, a sinner and an outcast, a match made in hell!"

"Now this is going to be a good show!"

Selene could no longer stand. Her knees buckled, and she collapsed to the ground. In her blurring vision, all she could see was Diana on the high platform, looking down at her, a pitying and venomous smile playing on her lips.