Chapter 50 The Crown Burns Brighter

• The scent of scorched air still clung to Kael’s skin as he stood before the shattered remains of the war tent, ash rising in lazy curls around his boots. The storm had passed—if it could even be called that—but the silence it left behind felt louder than any clash of swords.
• Elira stepped beside him, her cloak stained with soot, her eyes sharper than ever. "They’re gone," she said. "At least for now."
• Kael didn't answer. His gaze was fixed on the eastern sky where the enemy banners had once swayed like threats in the wind. They had driven them back—but not without cost.