She turned and led me outside, where a small group of villagers had gathered. The air was tense, like a storm was coming.
They all turned to look at me as I joined them, settling at Priya's side.
"The girl Alis brought back—she's Nox Quell," Priya said evenly, but the name dropped like a stone.
There was a collective gasp. A murmur of disbelief and dread swept around the circle. I watched as expressions soured, fists clenched, and I wondered if the girl was safe in the bed.
Before anyone could speak further, Corrin came sprinting up, a paper flapping from his closed fist.
"Ransom offer!" he panted. "Ransom offer for Nox Quell! Sent by the Quell Clan under a white flag."
"Ransom?" My brow furrowed. "We're not holding her hostage."
Priya rubbed her face, frustration tightening her features. Around her, the villagers looked equally weary and stunned.
"Maybe we should be," Lyric offered in a grumbling voice. The girl beside her looped an arm around her protectively.
Priya paced back and forth.
"Rebel used to talk about this," she muttered aloud. "The Quells were powerful—are powerful. Or... were. Hexa Quell's only remaining blood relative is that child."
The circle of villagers erupted in chatter.
"She's her heir," someone muttered.
"We have Hexa's heir," I heard Lyric say.
"None of us stabbed her," another added in a low tone. "I was on the front. I would have seen it."
"This reeks of an inside job," Priya muttered furiously to herself. "But why send the ransom?"
"Like the others," came another voice. The murmurs grew louder, edgier.
"What others?" I asked sharply.
There was an older woman in the circle. I hadn't noticed her until now. She didn't wait to be asked before continuing.
"The Quells have been dying off for years. Quietly. Strange accidents. Mysterious raids. Hexa's sister was killed in a battle not long ago—the battle had already been won too. Everyone thought it was some kind of freak event—until Hexa came and claimed the land for herself. People whispered Hexa planned it."
"Hexa would kill her own kin?" I felt my stomach turn. I tried to imagine the type of person who would be okay with their sister dying… being murdered.
I shuddered.
"It was a rumour," Lyric snapped. "No one knows what happens in the Quell Clan… unless you're in it." Her eyes twinkled with something vicious. "Perhaps I could have a chat with our Quell."
I shook my head slowly. "So someone wanted Nox to die in our care—to make it look like we'd done it?" I said quietly, feeling the full weight of it settle. "Then they would come in and flatten us, no one the wiser that it had been an assassination… a smokescreen using us."
"And now that you saved her..." Priya handed me the paper. "They want her back."
I scanned the note. A promise of land. Resources. Safety. Too much. Too clean. A trick.
"They'll kill her," I whispered as I turned the paper over. "Take her back and finish the job."
"Is that really our problem?" someone said darkly. "They attacked us."
I crossed my arms and addressed the circle. "And you think sacrificing a child makes us any better? We're not the Quell family, and I won't stand for it. Neither would Rebel."
Priya's gaze flicked to me. I saw the small flash of grief in her eyes. But she knew I was right.
I could see her weighing the risks. When she spoke, it was carefully. "She's the last of her line. That means power—maybe even legacy. Rebel always warned that the Quell name wasn't just a title. It's a throne."
"But she's just a kid," Corrin responded, and I saw in his face that he had understood me.
I scanned the crowd but found mostly frowns and downturned faces.
"She's a Codewright," I said, before I could stop myself.
The words hit like a firecracker.
A gasp. Silence. Then whispers.
"If she takes Hexa's place," Lyric said darkly, "she could become more dangerous."
She was staring at Nox's door, but her hand had drifted to the scars trailing across her face. The ones that took her eye.
"I was the best," she said suddenly, voice raw. "Near Elite-level. I could shoot a moving target blindfolded, or so I thought. Then they took my eye. And now... I'm nothing."
I swallowed hard, watching as a single tear traced the path of her ruined cheek.
Corrin stepped forward and gently laid a hand on her shoulder. "You were brilliant," he said. "You still are."
Lyric nodded once, sharply. "But brilliance doesn't last here. We're what they left behind. Broken pieces."
"We are not broken," I replied coolly.
Her gaze found mine again. "I'd bet my good eye they'll come for you next. You'll get an invitation to the new Cradle with the Elites," she said, the last part wistfully. "The Order of Eden."
At that, the crowd stiffened. A few flinched visibly.
"Enough," Priya said, raising her hand. "We have to think about the village. The offer on the table would sustain us. Rebel isn't here anymore. We need a plan."
I turned to her. "He gave his life protecting us. Giving Nox away like a bargaining chip—it betrays everything he stood for."
Priya looked away and I saw the flush of shame.
She wanted to do the right thing, and I could hardly blame her.
"We'll find another way, a new way," I said, trying to keep an even voice.
A beat of silence, then a voice came from who I least expected.
"Rebel would have protected her," Lyric murmured. Her fingers brushed her scar again. "Like he protected all of us."
Some of the people looked up when Lyric spoke. I realized what she'd given me was invaluable. Lyric had the respect of these people more than I ever could.
I exhaled slowly, the weight of the moment pressing down hard. "Let Nox choose her fate. She has the right to take her place if she wants. But she also has the right to walk away."
"She puts a target on us," a man growled. "So do you."
"Exactly," I said. "And I'm not giving up. You saw how today we defended ourselves. You are strong, no matter what you've been told to think. You showed them today—we aren't broken."
For a moment, no one spoke. Then Priya nodded quietly.
"You're right," she said. "Even if we need what they're offering, it's wrong to use the child like this. We will find a new way forward."
She turned to the circle. "We need to choose our new leader."
Heads nodded. The crowd was somber, but resolute.
I waited for Priya to take her place in lieu of Rebel, but she didn't. She gazed at me.
"Council," Priya called. "All in favour of naming Alis De Aura as our new leader?"
Hands went up. One by one. Then nearly all.
I stood there, stunned.
"But Priya—Rebel was your husband. You knew him best."
"I'm tired," she said simply. "Tired of fighting. Of surviving. I need time to mourn. Rebel chose you. He saw something in you."
The hands stayed raised.
My heart thudded. Alis De Aura, leader.
Not just a searcher. A voice. A guide.
I wasn't ready.
But I stepped forward anyway.