"That was how the prince was kidnapped," Maera said quietly, her voice shaking. Her hands were clenched so tightly that her knuckles had gone white.
The room stayed silent. Everyone listened as she finished explaining what had happened. The more she spoke, the heavier the air became.
When she stopped, Maera looked down, her whole body trembling. The shame, the anger, the helplessness—it all clawed at her chest.
She was a royal knight, sworn to protect the prince with her life. Yet she had failed. She couldn't even lift her head.
"What's the use of being a knight," she whispered under her breath, "if I can't even protect the person I swore to?"
Azhriel's cold voice cut through the silence. "You said… a magic circle made of abyssal energy appeared inside the forest. Right under the World Tree?"
He wasn't asking.
He was confirming something.
His eyes locked on hers, sharp and calm—too calm. The kind of calm that carried weight.
