“I have given my life to our people,” Heiko continued, his voice sharper now. “But this time, for the first time… I don’t want to go.”
River touched his arm gently. “Then don’t.”
He met her gaze. “I must. You know I must.”
She nodded slowly.
He exhaled, a heavy, wounded sound. Then he turned to the courier.
“Tell them I’ll leave directly to the northern border,” he said. “I need a few hours to prepare. And to say goodbye.”
The courier bowed and disappeared as quickly as he’d come.
Heiko looked at River again. The frustration hadn’t vanished—but now, there was something else there too.
Resolve.
“I’ll go,” he said softly. “But when I return… something needs to change. I will no longer walk in my cousin’s shadow. He needs to fully fulfil his role, not only the parts that he likes, a
