The journey to the castle of Goldenrealm was a blur for Penelope. The chains around her wrists were heavy, their cold metal biting into her skin, but the weight of betrayal was far more suffocating. Elijah and William had orchestrated this entire charade, and now they were dragging her and Richard before the Ancient Assembly like common criminals. The thought made her blood boil, but she forced herself to stay calm. She had to think. She had to find a way out of this.
How did it come to this? Penelope thought, her mind racing as the carriage jolted along the uneven road. She glanced at Richard, who sat across from her, his expression calm and unreadable. His hands were bound, but he carried himself with an air of quiet confidence, as if the chains were nothing more than an inconvenience.
