The entire kingdom stirred with frantic motion, as though a great storm had descended from the heavens and swept through the palace halls.
The air was heavy with dread and urgency. Every corridor echoed with the pounding of footsteps—healers clutching satchels of enchanted herbs, sorcerers weaving protective wards mid-stride, and royal guards shouting to clear the way as they escorted mages and physicians alike.
It was rare—unheard of, even—to see such a fusion of ranks running shoulder to shoulder. The sight of decorated nobles sprinting alongside common court healers, all driven by the same fear, spoke volumes of the dire state within the palace.
At the very top of the palace, in the ancient High Chamber crowned with moonlight crystals and sealed runes, a heavy silence clung like mist. The chamber had not been used in centuries—reserved only for the gravest of royal emergencies.
