CHAPTER 131DANTEI sat behind my desk in the private study, the heavy oak surface covered in reports, crystals, and half-empty goblets of untouched wine. Weeks of this nightmare had worn grooves into my patience. Nyra’s pregnancy announcement still echoed through the palace like a curse, and every day I watched Lucien grow darker, Rowan grow quieter, and the southern houses grow bolder.Theo entered without knocking, his face grim but triumphant. He carried a thick sealed folder and a small recording crystal.“Your Majesty,” he said, bowing quickly. “I have it. The full truth.”I leaned forward, eyes narrowing. “Speak plainly, Theo. No riddles.”Theo placed the folder on my desk and activated the crystal. A guard’s voice filled the room — shaky, broken, clearly under duress.“I… I slept with Lady Nyra,” the guard confessed on the recording. “Multiple times. The child is mine. She told me it was the only way. She said she needed a royal heir but couldn’t risk the real princes. She dru
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