Yvanna shook off the shock that gripped her chest like frost. The silence that lingered after the merchant's words was tense and suffocating, but she dismissed it with a slow, steady breath. She would not falter, not today.
With a graceful wave, she dismissed the merchant and turned from the shadows of her study toward the brite light spilling through her balcony. Today was historic. Today, the Gilded Dominion would crown its queen.
Her position was stronger than ever. Corvin had dismantled the opposition, three ducal houses lay in ruin thanks to his silent, surgical campaign. The remaining political voices had either pledged their support or fallen silent in the wake of overwhelming force.
There would be no challenge. No whispered defiance. Only celebration.
Goldhaven would not simply mark this day, it would remember it for generations.
