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"You killed her."

His smile never wavered. "Quite an accusation, pet." He leaned closer, his breath cold against my ear. "There are better ways to use that pretty mouth."

Disgust fractured through me, churning my stomach. Before I could step back, Aether materialized at my side. His hand closed around my arm, yanking me behind him as he positioned himself between me and Valkan. Even through his leathers, I could see the tension coiled in his frame, ready to strike. For once, I didn't mind his interference.

Urkin stepped forward, the other Generals trailing behind him as they broke through the crowd. A heavy silence fell over the area, shattered only by the sound of their boot. Urkin's eyes went wide as they fixed on Valkan's untouched skin.

"It's not possible," he said, voice barely carrying.

"You experienced nothing?" Theron stood, his voice sharp with disbelief. "In there?"

"Just pure darkness." Valkan spread his arms wide, his smile never wavering. "Darkness that recognized its own."

"A Damphyre has never entered the Void before." Talon steppedforward, adjusting his archival robes as he studied Valkan. "We cannot know what effect it would have."

The crowd physically recoiled at the mention ofDamphyre.I watched Valkan's smile falter for just a moment before smoothing back into place.

"There are no shadows in your eyes," Vexa spat. She moved to step forward but Effie caught her arm, pulling her back.

Valkan's personal guard materialized from the crowd, taking position around him, milky eyes narrowing. Their movements were too fluid, so graceful that it sent a chill over my skin.

"The foreign-born emerged swathed in shadows," General Karis said, his calculating gaze moving between Valkan and me. "You, however, have come out exactly as you entered."

Something dark flashed across Valkan's face, cracking that carefully maintained charm.

"Do you see my skin marked by void burns?" Valkan's voice rose, carrying across the crowd with practiced authority. "Only three outcomes exist when one enters the Void. Clearly, my emergence speaks for itself."

"Prove it." Mira's voice cut through the tension as she shot to her feet.

"A simple demonstration would settle this." Rethlyn shrugged, moving to stand beside Vexa and Effie. The casualness of his stance didn't match the edge in his voice.

Valkan's eyes narrowed, though his smile remained fixed in place. "No other Kalfar has ever emerged from the Void unmarked without claiming the title of Duskbound. I will not be forced to prove myself. I remain the Lord of Draxon. It would suit you to remember that."

Lord Skaldvindr emerged from the crowd then, flanked by members of other noble houses. His dark eyes swept over the scene with careful calculation. "Lord Valkan, we request that you show us. It would put all doubts to rest immediately."

Valkan strode to Skaldvindr, closing the distance until mere inches separated them. He leaned in, whispering something I couldn't hear. Whatever it was made Skaldvindr's face drain of color before anger replaced his shock.

"My friends…" Valkan turned back to address the crowd, his voice carrying that practiced charm once more. "Have I not proven myself time and again? While other lands wither, Draxon's people thrive. While others starve, my people feast. And now you would question my worth, after I've passed your trials with unprecedented success?"

His words carried a different weight now, an underlying threat beneath the charm. I watched several Council members shift uncomfortably.

"If you are unable to prove yourself," Aether's voice cut through Valkan's rhetoric, "then crawl back to Draxon."

Valkan spun toward him, and for just a moment, that mask slipped completely. Pure hatred flashed in those milky eyes. Then his gaze found mine, and something worse replaced the hatred—a promise. A hunger that made my blood run cold.

Before anyone could react, his form rippled and twisted. Where he had stood, a massive black bird now towered, its wings blocking out what little light remained. With one powerful beat of those wings, he took to the sky.

The crowd erupted into chaos as Valkan disappeared into the clouds. Lord Sveinson immediately turned to his allies, face flushed with rage as he gestured toward where Valkan had stood. Other noble houses began shifting alliances before my eyes—those who had supported Valkan at the conference now desperately trying to distance themselves, while others seized the opportunity to denounce him openly.

Lord Skaldvindr broke away from the other nobles, approaching our group with calculated steps. His dark eyes swept over me, lingering on the shadows that still clung to my skin. "You've done well," he said, though his tone carried more assessment than praise. "The realm will remember this day."

I met his gaze. "Which part? The part where a Damphyre claimed to be chosen by the Void? Or the part where everyone just let him leave?"

Something flickered across his face—anger or fear, I couldn't tell which. But his diplomatic expression never slipped. "And what exactly were any of us supposed to do? He's a free man. What would we hold him for?"

Behind him, I watched the Skaldvindr family guards subtly repositioning themselves, creating a barrier between their Lord and Valkan's remaining supporters.

Effie pushed through the crowd then, her face tight with worry as she reached for Vexa. "I can't believe he even made it out of there." She looked toward the Void, then back to our group. "And Kenna—has anyone seen?—"