High-ceilinged reception hall crafted from dark polished granite and warm mahogany. High above, aetherial chandeliers hovered lazily, casting a warm violet luminescence over the polished marble floors, while massive stone hearths crackled with roaring fires to ward off the winter chill. Despite the lavish surroundings, the atmosphere inside was thick with tension—an heavy, unspoken static of high-tier combatants sizing each other up in near silence.
Four distinct groups occupied different quadrants of the vast room, representing the cardinal delegations of the empire: North, East, West, and South.
Near the eastern hearth stood the four-member squad representing the East District, a well-balanced delegation radiating the disciplined aura of veteran academy elites.
