Chapter 19 - The Festival of Light
Spring returned to Eldoria, bringing with it a vibrant explosion of wildflowers across the riverlands and a renewed sense of prosperity throughout the kingdom.
The capital was adorned with thousands of colorful banners and glowing lanterns for the grandest celebration the realm had seen in a century: the Festival of Light. Merchants from Valoria, the Northern Reach, and the southern river towns crowded the cobblestone streets, trading goods, sharing stories, and celebrating the unbreakable peace of the continent.
At the center of the royal courtyard, a massive festival feast was laid out upon long wooden tables laden with roasted meats, fresh fruits, and sweet wines.
King Alden and Queen Seraphina sat at the head table, laughing and talking with Lord Kaelen and General Vesper. The dark shadows of the past twenty years were completely gone from the king’s face, replaced by the warm, radiant expression of a man who had reclaimed his family and his kingdom.
And running through the crowded tables, laughing and dodging nobles and guards alike, was Lucas.
He had finally shed his stiff royal cadet leathers for a comfortable linen tunic, and his hands were full of sweet pastries that he was sharing with the children of the lower wards—children who, like him once, used to sleep beneath the stone bridges.
Captain Rowan watched him with a wide grin, shaking his head. “You know, Sire, he’s never going to act like a traditional prince, is he?”
King Alden smiled, watching his son hand a pastry to a young girl with dirt-smudged knees. “Traditional princes are boring, Captain. Eldoria doesn't need tradition right now. It needs heart.”
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As the sun began to set, painting the sky in brilliant shades of gold and crimson, the lanterns across the city were lit all at once, turning the capital into a sea of warm, twinkling light.
High above the palace towers, the great golden dragon spread its massive wings, letting out a joyful, resonant roar that echoed across the valley and melted into the evening breeze.
