The tension of the throne room lingered like a fading storm, the echoes of fear and battle slowly dissolving into something gentler—something fragile but sincere.
Alia’s question still hung in the space between them, heavy with strategy and expectation.
But River took a slow breath, pressing her hand protectively over her belly before she answered in a voice soft, steady, and weighted with experience beyond her years.
“For now… we rest,” River said, her gaze drifting from Alia to Heiko, then to King Paul and Queen Lana. “If there is one thing I’ve learned since coming to this household, it’s that sometimes not rushing into a decision… is a decision. We’re tired. Our minds are clouded. And decisions made in exhaustion tend to be the wrong ones.”
A hush fell across the room.
Then King
