The midnight bell struck twelve heavy, resonant tolls from the fortress clocktower, its iron chime vibrating down through the black granite rafters of the Grand Council Pavilion. Outside, a biting alpine blizzard clawed at the towering leaded glass, but inside the circular gallery, the atmosphere was suffocatingly hot, saturated with the pungent scent of unwashed wolf fur, old wax, and the dry, bitter tang of desperate treason.I stood at the center of the judicial floor, my dark velvet mantle draped over a structured gown of midnight silk. Silver embroidery coiled around my cuffs like frozen vines, catching the flickering orange glare of the iron braziers. My long silver-white hair hung in pristine, tightly bound ceremonial plaits, framing a face carved from pure, unyielding ice.Behind my right shoulder, standing perfectly motionless in the deep shadow of an arched marble pillar, was Killian.His massive, seven-foot frame was draped in the rough leathers of his mercenary guard disgu
Zuletzt aktualisiert : 2026-09-08 Mehr lesen