Chapter 96 The Final Test Of Trust

• The festival had barely ended when the weight of reality came crashing back down. The air, which had once been filled with laughter and the sweet sounds of celebration, suddenly felt suffocating. I stood alone in my chambers, the light from the lanterns casting long, flickering shadows across the walls. The joyous sounds of the celebration from below seemed like a distant memory, as if it were happening in another life, far removed from the storm that was now brewing just beyond the palace gates.
• Blue and Grey were with me, of course, ever-present, ever-loyal, but even their usual calmness couldn’t soothe the fire that had sparked within me.
• "We’ve just started rebuilding, Amelia," Blue said softly, his voice calm but heavy with the unspoken weight of the situation. "You’ve made it clear who you are now. You’ve earned the title of Red Queen. But this…" He paused, glancing at the door as if expecting someone to burst through it. "This is different."