The corridor outside the Great Hall of Peduviel was already crowded.
Gold banners hung from the high walls, and servants moved briskly between clusters of nobles carrying trays of wine and small plates of fruit for those waiting to enter the ceremony. The soft music from inside the hall drifted outward through the tall carved doors, mingling with the steady murmur of voices.
The Southern delegation had gathered near the entrance.
Aya's Queensguard stood a little apart from them, disciplined and quiet despite the celebratory atmosphere. Seth stood closest to the hall doors, his posture straight, eyes scanning the corridor with calm vigilance.
Behind him, Bela, Thorne, Masa, and Shin waited in a loose formation.
They had been talking quietly.
Until the murmuring in the corridor shifted. Heads turned as Aya and Killan appeared at the far end of the passage.
And the moment they did, something in the air changed.
Nolle was the first to break formation.
"Oh, there they are."
