The light of the rising sun spilled through the shattered windows of the council chambers, casting long shadows over the rubble that had once been the foundation of the priests' power. The High Priestess lay at the feet of the ruined altar, her strength broken, her magic unraveling in the wake of Elena's defiance. The once unyielding pillars of the kingdom's false traditions were now little more than dust.
But as the silence stretched and the people gathered their bearings, the weight of what had just happened began to settle in. The truth had been exposed, the Inverse Mark had been severed from its curse, and a new world was within their grasp. Still, Elena couldn't help but feel the weight of everything they had lost, the sacrifices that had led them to this moment. The echoes of the pa
