[7 years ago]

  FLASH! BLAAAST! Rumble—rumble, rumble…

  Dark clouds amassed like aggrieved protestors, brooding and ominous. Lightning streaked across the heavens in bold, rebellious sshes, while thunder rumbled deep belly-ughs, mog the earth beh.

  The pace of Soulnaught, usually a bea of opulend power, stood under siege by the weather.

  Its t spires and expansive courtyards, desigo awe and intimidate, were instead beleaguered by gusts that swept through archways and corridors with unruly disdain.

  Rai the stone fa?ades, as if trying to se the pace of its impending new ruler's influence.

  The ation day of King Burn.

  Ihe grand hall was a fortress against the storm’s ire, filled with the rid the powerful, their garments a tapestry of the kingdom’s wealth.

  Yet, the air was thiot just with anticipation, but with a palpable tension, as eyes turned not only towards the thro also sideways, measuring allies and adversaries alike.

  King Belezak of Edensor, a seasoned ruler with a keen sense for theatrics of power, watched the proceedings with a wry, knowing look.

  As Burn stepped forward to receive the , Belezak couldn't help but he irony: here was a man who sought to trol a kingdom, yet couldn’t and the sky.

  Look outside. The storm cshed with the ceremonial grandeur, serving as a crude reminder of nature’s indiffereo human affairs.

  Burn’s ing moment was bathed not in sunlight but in the erratic glow of lightning, casting long, sinister shadows that flickered like doubts about his future reign.

  As the settled on Burn’s head, the thundercp that followed seemed less an appuse and more a warning shot.

  Belezak mused silently, the ers of his mouth twitg upwards. The pageantry was impeccable, the alliances arayals hiddeh yers of silk and smiles, all while the sted unabated outside.

  It was, he thought, would be a perfect metaphor for Burn’s rule: tempestuous, uable, and as divided as the heavens above.

  The strong will be the wihe wiakes all.

  Despite being a younger son not born to the queen and a child of aramarital affair, he still asded to the throhe bastard of Pendragon, Caliburn Soulnon Pendragon.

  Belezak g the older brother standing not far from the ation stage. Despite seeing his younger brother rise to the throne, he looked uurbed.

  t Soulcrest Pendragon… maybe his fate was much worse than his younger brother.

  As the ation ceremony gave way to the evening's festivities, the grand ba hall of the Soulnaught pafolded as a spectacle of opulence.

  Tables den with sumptuous feasts stretched across the marbled floor, each dish more vish tha, refleg the new king's ambitions as clearly as the polished silverware.

  debras cast a warm glow over the faces of attending heir flickering lights mirr the cautiously optimistic chatter that filled the air.

  From Belezak's perspective, the ba was less a celebration and more a strategic stage for alliances and dispys of loyalty.

  He he undercurrents of poy, the subtle jockeying for favor beh the veneer of cordial toasts. The air was thick with the st of roasted meats and rich sauces, mingling with the sharper tang of political intrigue.

  Enced to indulge in both food and versation, Belezak navigated the event with a seasoned eye, engaging in dialogues that were as much about probing iions as they were about pleasantries.

  Here, amid the king of gsses and the soft strains of court musis, the game of thrones tinued unabated, each smile and handshake a measured move in the grand chessboard of royal politics.

  But suddenly…

  “King Belezak Edensworn.”

  It was a voice, deep and chilling, slig through the festive din like a bde through silk.

  Belezak turned, an eyebrow arg in surprise as he found himself fag Burn, the freshly ed king of Soulnaught.

  The setting was odd for su enter, draped in the opulence of the post-ation ba, yet here stood Burn, choosing to eh Belezak over any other monarch present.

  The air around them seemed to thi, charged with an undercurrent of tension that trasted sharply with the mirthful ctter of the hall.

  Burn’s approach was ued—strategically puzzling, even. The Wintersin Empire's Prince was here, along with the king of Inkia and other luminaries of equal reater political weight.

  Each would have been a more predictable target for a king’s charm offensive. Yet, Burn’s icy gaze was fixed on Belezak, a king of a prosperous but strategically less crucial realm.

  Belezak, ever the observer of royal theatrics, couldn't help but marvel at the audacity—or perhaps the calcuted disregard—for courtly protocol.

  His response was measured, the tone seasoned with a blend of irony and regal posure.

  "King Burn," Belezak replied, his voice smooth but edged with a hint of frost to match Burn’s. "To what do I owe the honor of this... uniquely prioritized greeting?"

  Burn's smile was thin, unreadable, the sort that could precede a toast or a duel. "King Belezak, I find the geography of our kingdoms... intriguing. Neighbors across the Sirensong O, yet worlds apart in our methods, wouldn't you say?"

  Belezak’s mind raced, pieg together the potential implications behind Burn’s cryptic words.

  The mention of geography was a veiled nod to more than just physical borders—it hi politidscapes, at the undercurrents that defihe delicate bance of power between their nations.

  "Indeed," Belezak ceded, his reply tinged with the caution of a chess pyer pting a risky but potentially game-ging move. "The waters between us do seem to reflect more than just the light of the moon tonight."

  “But seriously, though, why me? You could have greeted anyone else here. Is it some sort of safety measure because anyone else would be too difficult?” Belezak curiously—wittily asked.

  “I've already mentioned eographical proximity and our differihods, yet you still wonder why I approached you first?” Burn responded, raising an eyebrow in mild amusement.

  Belezak was now thhly puzzled.

  “Well, disregard all that I said, because, in truth, it doesn’t matter,” Burn decred, his voice dropping to a more serious tone. “In this hall, you are the only one I deem worthy of a greeting.”

  Burn turned slightly, his gaze drifting towards the door. “Too much for an icebreaker, Your Majesty?”

  Belezak blinked in fusion when Burhe hall without turning back. He didn’t even look at anyone else, as if they truly had no value.

  Belezak couldn’t help but to grin.

  “Crazy bastard.”

  ***

  Belezak Edensworn died on his trip back to Edensor after attending Burn’s ation.