Chapter 86
Draven’s POV
The morning air was crisp, carrying the scent of damp stone and pine as I moved through the corridors. The castle was already awake, filled with the distant hum of voices, the shuffle of boots against marble, the occasional clatter of armor as warriors passed by. Normally, these sounds blended into the background—familiar, unimportant—but today, there was a shift. A weight to the air that made my skin prickle.
Conversations hushed as I passed. Eyes flickered toward me, then quickly away, like they didn’t want to be caught staring. There was something in their gazes—something I couldn’t quite name. Not fear. Not respect. Something sharper, more uncertain.
Something was wrong.
My steps quickened, my mind already racing ahead of me, piecing together the unease tha
