Chapter 324

• Aria’s POV
• The war table stretched before us like a battlefield in miniature, a sprawl of parchment, inked borders, and crimson markers scattered across the map like spilled blood. Torches guttered along the walls, their flames hissing and bending, shadows clawing at the stone ceiling above. Every detail of the chamber whispered war—steel along the walls, armor resting at the ready, and the sharp tang of blood and oil that never seemed to leave this place.
• Aedric stood at the head of the table, broad-shouldered and unyielding, his palm pressing firmly against the lands we had already conquered. His voice, low and measured, carried the weight of command.