Varos’s words still hung in the courtyard like smoke after a fire.
No one moved.
Not the guards of Urella. Not the villagers of Elias. Not even the men still gripping weapons they no longer seemed sure they should use. Every eye remained fixed on Azaliyah, still standing over the man who had exiled her only days ago, Aurora glowing at his throat, violet light spilling across the stone beneath them both.
Queen of the Fae Realms and rightful leader of Urella.
The title felt too large to fit inside a single breath.
So she gave it none.
Her face stayed cold. Her grip stayed steady. Only the pulse beating in her neck betrayed how hard her body was still running from the fight.
Camron stepped up beside her, sword hanging lazily at his side, gaze sweeping the stunned crowd with visible enj
