The court was chaos. Nobles pressed against the walls, their jewels clattering as fear rippled through them like wildfire. The crystal shard still pulsed in Mirror's hand, echoing Velyr's own treacherous words again and again.
Velyr's eyes, once calm and calculating, now burned with cold fury. His lips curled into a smile that was no longer charming—it was feral.
"So… you think you've cornered me."
He raised his hand, and the torches lining the hall sputtered, then flared black. Shadows stretched, coiling like snakes around his body.
Guards rushed forward, blades drawn, but the air cracked with a surge of forbidden magic. A single word left Velyr's lips—low, ancient, venomous.
The first guard's sword shattered mid-strike. The second screamed as his armor turned molten, fusing to his skin. The rest fell back, trembling.
"This kingdom was never mine to serve," Velyr hissed, his voice carrying over the horrified silence. "It was mine to claim."
Dark tendrils whipped outward, smashing through marble pillars, sending shards of stone raining down. Nobles scrambled like frightened birds, their silk gowns streaked with dust.
Mirror tried to steady himself, stepping protectively before Myreiya. "You'll never get away with this."
Velyr's laugh was sharp, bitter, alive with promise.
"Oh, Mirror. You still don't understand. I don't escape."
His body dissolved into black flame, collapsing into a storm of serpentine shadows. The floor split, and in an instant he was gone—leaving only the stench of scorched stone and a mark burned deep into the marble. A sigil. His sigil.
The court remained silent, trembling under the echo of his final words.
"The next time you see me, Myreiya… I won't be the one unmasked."