(Magnus POV)
The goblet shattered against the stone wall with a crash that echoed through my private chambers like thunder. Wine ran down the gray stones like blood, staining everything it touched with crimson streaks that reminded me of the rage boiling in my veins.
"A bastard!" I roared at the trembling messenger who had brought me the news. "Princess Sophia is carrying a bastard!"
The young man cowered against the door, his face pale as parchment. "Y-yes, Your Majesty. She... she announced it publicly in Prince Adrian's chambers. There were witnesses."
I wanted to kill someone. Anyone. The fury burning in my chest was unlike anything I had ever experienced, not even when I had discovered my wife's betrayal all those years ago. At least Elena's adultery had been private, hidden behind closed doors. This... this was public humiliation on a scale that could topple kingdoms.
"Get out," I snarled, and the messenger fled like a rabbit escaping a wolf's den.
