Logan remained in the hidden chamber long after Elena and the others had climbed back toward the throne room above, needing time alone with the weight of everything they had just uncovered.
He sat among the ancient scrolls, his father's distant ancestor's declaration still resonating through his mind. *Recognized not through throne or crown, but through blood itself.* The words carried freedom he had not anticipated, but something darker settled alongside that freedom now, something he could not easily dismiss.
Elena found him there an hour later, having clearly noticed his prolonged absence and grown concerned enough to descend the hidden passage again herself.
"You should not be down here alone," she said, settling beside him carefully. "What troubles you? I expected relief, not this.
