Chapter 37: Embers in the Blood
Ashbourne didn't sleep that night—not because of fear, but because of purpose.
Every forge glowed with new flame. Every alley hummed with whispered spells. The streets weren’t silent—they were alive. Alive with the promise of war. Alive with the promise of change.
We weren’t rebuilding the old.
We were creating something new.
I stood in the ritual chamber beneath the palace. Mira had led us here hours ago, through corridors forgotten by time. The stone walls were carved with runes older than the Hollow Court, buried deep enough that even the Court’s spies couldn’t touch them. Magic here felt different. Quieter. Purer. Untouched by blood or corruption.
Kael stood beside me, tense. He’d barely said a word since the meeting.
Mira, on the other hand, look
