The noon sun had softened, but the heat of the courtyard still clung to the air. The banners of both empires fluttered lazily, and the scent of incense mixed with sweat and steel. The ceremony of swords had ended — peace was sealed, the alliance forged. Applause and ritual bows gave way to murmurs and movement as the guests prepared to leave for the banquet.
But at the center of it all stood Empress Lian An, her poise unbroken, her back straight — though every muscle beneath her robe trembled from the strain.
She had been standing since dawn, bowing, greeting, smiling through the ache that gnawed at her knees. The last three days of kneeling punishment had left her legs weak and swollen, the wounds barely healed. Every step felt like a dagger twisting in her bones.
