Noel sat back against the wall, arms resting loosely on his knees. His voice was calm, but something beneath it trembled—like a thread pulled too tight.
"I knew something was off," he said. "From the moment I stepped into the Holy Capital, the air felt… wrong. Like the place was too clean on the surface."
Elena and Elyra listened in silence, their eyes steady on him.
"And then Charlotte performed that massive blessing," he continued. "Purifying the lakes and rivers around Estermont to stop the spread of the sickness. It worked. But it left her completely drained. That was the moment I knew something would happen."
He paused, eyes narrowing slightly.
"She was at her weakest… and they knew it."
That thought still made his stomach twist.
"So I started digging. Days passed. A week. Two. I asked questions. I checked records. Tried to track patterns in behavior, in the way people moved or avoided certain halls." He shook his head. "Nothing. I couldn't prove anything."
