#Chapter 228: A New Era

The kingdom had reshaped itself in the ten years since the war. The walls still stood, but the way people moved inside them had changed entirely. There were hybrid-run bakeries with council grants, school notices printed in both vampire and wolf dialects, and joint patrols between vampire lieutenants and wolf guards who shared coffee and inside jokes. The truce hadn’t just survived, it had grown into a structure people depended on. Arguments now came from logistics and priorities, not fear. People debated the length of trade contracts, the placement of early-childhood programs, and how to balance holiday observances. The past didn’t dominate anymore. The present had taken over. I sat beneath the archway of the east balcony, letting the breeze play with the hem of my shirt as I watched the boys in the field below. Rowan had climbed on top of an old wine barrel, wielding a branch like a sword, shouting orders to imaginary troops. Oliver crouched near the citrus planter, scribbling no