{Seraphina's POV continuation.}
The silence that followed Astria's outburst did not last long.
It shattered almost immediately beneath a wave of hushed voices and stunned disbelief spreading throughout the gathered fae like wildfire.
"That is impossible..."
"She is human."
"How can a human become the Fae Queen?"
"No, wait... does that mean the rumors were true?"
"The Sylvan Weave would never choose wrongly..."
Confusion twisted through the crowd, disbelief warring openly against instinctive reverence. Some stared at me with awe while others looked disturbed by the very idea. A few of the younger fae women frowned openly, their displeasure impossible to miss as their gazes dragged over me critically, almost resentfully, as though trying to understand what I possessed that they did not.
I exhaled slowly through my nose.
So this was what Kaiden had been trying to avoid.
My gaze shifted toward him just in time to see his composure finally crack.
