The hall had fallen quiet.
Even the nobles in their private balconies weren't whispering anymore.
All eyes were locked on that one man in the black robe, his steps steady as he crossed the stage like he belonged there.
I froze.
It wasn't just his presence...it was the way the air bent around him.
It was like the hall itself was straining under his weight, yet no sound came from him.
No aura leaked out like the others who tried before. But that silence…it was worse.
It made my skin crawl.
Grandpa's words came rushing back to me.
"Most of them here are less than ants."
When he had said that earlier, I thought it was just his arrogance talking.
A king looking down on the weak.
But now, as I stared at this figure, I felt it in my chest. The gap. The difference.
If I was being honest… I wasn't sure if I was above the "ants" Grandpa had spoken of. I had thought I was confident even, but in front of this man?
No.
I was an ant too, I realised.
