LOGINJulianna POVThe soft glow of the infirmary lanterns flickered across the polished marble floor. It smelled faintly of herbs and burned mana, the scent of healing magic and exhaustion. Lily and Lila were sitting upright now, their injuries almost healed, though burns still trailed faint red lines across their arms.“You should both still be resting,” I said, placing a blanket over Lily’s shoulders.Lila smiled weakly. “Yeah, we know.”Nimah entered with Aria and Wanda trailing behind her. Wanda’s wings glimmered faintly in the light.“How’s everyone holding up?” Aria asked, glancing around.“We’ll live,” Lila replied, brushing a strand of hair from her face. “Barely.”Before I could respond, a deep rumble echoed from above. The sound shook the windows, and dust drifted from the ceiling beams.“That… sounded like an explosion,” Lyra said, her tone sharpening.Nimah frowned opening the windows to take a look. “It came from the upper hall near the Council Chamber.”Fianna’s face drained
Kaid POVThe corridors of the Palace were quiet — too quiet for a kingdom in mourning. The smell of incense clung to the marble walls, masking the rot of fear that hung beneath.Principal Johnson and I walked side by side through the gilded doors that led to the Queen’s council chamber. Two guards bowed, sealing the doors behind us.Queen Elenara sat at the round obsidian table, her emerald crown dim beneath the candlelight. She looked older than I’d ever seen her — exhaustion softening her regal posture.“Your Majesty,” I said, bowing. “We came as requested.”“Thank you, Kaid. And thank you, Principal Johnson.” Her voice was tired. “You are guest in are kingdom so our safety is our priority. But I fear this crisis grows beyond our reach.”Johnson crossed his arms, the faint shimmer of his dragon aura flickering across his shoulders. “We’re doing everything we can, Your Majesty. But if Vaelen truly walks again, your walls won’t hold him.”Queen Elenara hands tightened around her goble
Julianna POVThe doors to the infirmary burst open so suddenly that the hinges screamed. Lila stumbled in first, her cloak in tatters and streaked with black ash. Lily followed, half-dragging her sister, her right arm bandaged and her hair clumped with soot.“Lily!” I shouted, almost falling off the bed in my hurry to reach them. “Lila!”Their auras were flickering like dying embers. I pressed my hands to Lila’s shoulders, my magic sparking weakly. “What happened? What—who did this to you?”Lily looked at me, her expression calm but hollow. “We tried to stop him,” she whispered. “We couldn’t.”Fianna’s eyes widened. “Vaelen?”Lily nodded. “He’s… too strong. Even the Oracle’s spells couldn’t restrain him.”Lyra clenched her jaw. “That’s expected. A royal-born elf who’s fused with nertherveil energy? That’s council-level power.”Fianna moved closer. “Thank goodness you’re both alive.”Lily hesitated. Her gaze dropped to the floor. “Not all of us made it.”The room fell into a hush. Even
Vaelen’s POVThe air beneath the earth was thick with mana and silence.For the first time in centuries, I felt warmth real warmth against my skin as I stepped into the chamber where she was kept. The roots of the Sacred Tree twisted like serpents, glowing faintly with ancient light. They pulsed, breathing life into the seals that held her.Elaria.My heart clenched at the sight.Her figure was barely visible beneath the web of roots, her body suspended as if asleep. She looked fragile too fragile her hair silver as frost, her skin pale and cold.So much time had passed. So much stolen from us.I knelt, brushing my hand along the living wood. It pulsed faintly at my touch.“They have taken enough from me,” I whispered, mana curling around my hand. “Now you’ll give her back.”The runes carved along the roots shimmered, golden light burning into my skin. The seals recognized me.Only royalty can unseal.I closed my eyes and began the incantation — the same words my ancestors used to bin
Lily’s POVThe tremors didn’t stop.They rolled through the floor like waves beneath our feet, shaking the walls. I steadied myself with my staff while the others tried to keep balance. Dust fell from the cracked ceiling.“What’s happening?” Caleb shouted over the rumble.I closed my eyes, feeling the surge of mana beneath us. It was dark, old, and hungry. “It’s the Druid Kingdom,” I said. “Something is stirring beneath the roots.”“The Druid Kingdom?” Julianna gasped, struggling to stand. “No… if Vaelen is heading there, he’s trying to free her—Elaria.”“Who’s Elaria?” Kaid asked.“His wife,” Scott rasped, his voice weak but clear.Lila’s expression hardened. “Vaelen was trouble enough. Freeing his wife will turn this into chaos.”“That explains the strange mana I s
Julianna’s POVI didn’t know what to say.I didn’t even know what to feel.Vaelen stood before me. For a moment, I saw not a monster, but a man.I felt… sympathy. Maybe even pity.His story echoed in my mind — the love he lost, the injustice he faced, the years of pain. But sympathy is dangerous when pointed at the wrong person.“Don’t believe him, Julie!” Scott’s voice cut through the haze, ragged and weak. Vaelen’s spectral hand tightened around his throat. Scott’s body trembled, his eyes flashing red as his instincts tried to fight back.“Stop!” I shouted. “You’re hurting him!”Vaelen didn’t even glance at me. His expression was calm—too calm. “It is your choice to believe me,” he said. “But every word I spoke is true. I was betrayed, exiled, and bound while my love suffered for eternity. Tell me, girl… would you not do the same?”His words were heavy. Too heavy.“But why?” I managed to ask, voice trembling. “W







