The council chamber still echoed with murmurs of disbelief after Jasper's words. His sharp gaze had silenced them once, but the truth of Chantelle's return, and her hunger for destruction, lingered in the air like smoke from a funeral pyre.
"We cannot sit idle," Jasper said, his tone like steel against stone. "She has already drained my wife her own blood half to death. If we wait, the kingdoms will burn, one by one. She will not stop until nothing remains."
The council members exchanged wary looks. Some leaned forward with grim interest, others leaned back as though afraid to breathe too deeply. Finally, one of the eldest among them spoke:
"Your words strike fear, Lord Jasper, but fear alone cannot rouse armies. You ask us to prepare for war against a being not seen in centuries. Do you have proof?"
Jasper's eyes narrowed. "You want proof? Then open your eyes. The Duchess already leveled the ruins of Apple Kingdom to the ground. Ask your scouts—if any lived through it."
