No one spoke for a long moment.
The chamber did not explode. It did not collapse.
It watched.
The air felt heavy, like something unseen had entered and refused to leave. Light crawled slowly across the fractured walls, not shining but searching — as if truth itself had been misplaced and the chamber was hunting for it.
Vivian stood where she had refused to move. Her body trembled with exhaustion, but her feet remained rooted. Beside her, Sebastian stood one step closer than before, close enough that even silence could not pass between them.
Dorian waited with restless anticipation, confidence flickering behind his eyes.
Alaric stood rigid, authority wrapped around him like armor that no longer fit.
The elders observed in silence.
The Ravenscrofts remained still — calm, immovable, present like a boundary no one could cross without consequence.
And at the center of them all stood Lord Cassian.
He had watched everything.
He had judged nothing.
Until now.
