Chapter 396 She Didn't Need Him To Clear A Path

• Couriers reached the palace with rumors first. Then numbers. Then names.
• They stumbled through the gates, boots caked in dirt, eyes ringed in the sleepless shade of gray that told all who saw them of the effort they had taken to arrive quickly.
• Guards took statements and sent them up the stairs and by the time the first report hit the antechamber, the throne room was already filling. Nobles clustered in tight groups, faces drawn, voices low but loud enough to carry.