The council chamber was heavy with silence. The torches along the crystalline walls flickered uneasily, as though the very fire hesitated to breathe in the same room as Aamir.
He stood calmly, shoulders broad, cloak torn but presence unshaken. Riya's words still echoed in the air: her proposal to hand him her seat as one of the six leaders.
But Aamir shook his head. His crimson eyes glowed faintly as he spoke.
"Well, the thing is… I don't need the position."
The statement cracked through the chamber like thunder.
He turned his gaze to Riya, his tone firm but respectful. "You are more worthy for it than me. You've led while I was gone. You held the resistance together when I wasn't here. A position in a council? That's not what I came back for."
Riya froze, her heart aching at his words. She had wanted to share her burden with him, to finally have him at her side—not just as a comrade, but as an equal leader. But his voice was unshakable.
