Prince Rhaegor did not wait for permission.
At dawn, his banners moved.
The village lay just beyond the forest line small, quiet, barely guarded. Smoke from morning fires still curled lazily into the air when the first Aethros soldiers appeared at the edge of the fields.
There was no warning.
Rhaegor rode at the front, armor dark, expression calm. When a soldier beside him asked for orders, he gave only one.
"Burn it."
The village fell fast.
Homes collapsed into flame. Crops were trampled. Anyone who ran was cut down before they reached the tree line. There were no captives taken this time.
"This is how you end resistance," Rhaegor said as fire climbed the walls. "You remove hope."
By midday, nothing stood.
Across the border, the smoke was visible even from Nyvoria's outer towers.
Messengers arrived breathless. Survivors followed, eyes empty, voices broken. Lunara listened as the story spilled out in pieces—fire, screams, no mercy.
She felt something inside her harden.
The council chamber filled quickly.
"This was not a raid," one official said. "It was a statement."
"The spirits are angry," a priest added. "The land itself feels wounded."
King Eldrion's jaw tightened. "Then we answer."
Orders were given. Troops were mobilized. Defenses strengthened. Nyvoria would not attack but it would not bend either.
Lunara was sent back to the border that same night.
"Hold the line," the commander told her. "No matter what."
She nodded, gripping her sword as she returned to the walls. The air felt heavier now, as if the night itself remembered the fire.
On the Aethros side, Kael heard the news in silence.
Rhaegor's name spread through the camp like a challenge. Some soldiers spoke of him with fear. Others with admiration.
"This is what the king wants," one said. "Decisive victory."
Kael stared toward the smoke-stained horizon.
"This will force Nyvoria's hand," another added. "They'll have to strike back."
Kael knew that was the point.
Later, Kael confronted one of Rhaegor's officers. "There were civilians."
The man shrugged. "There always are."
That night, Kael did not sleep.
Neither did Lunara.
Between them, the land burned quietly, waiting for the next command.