Chapter 7 - Shadows in the Royal Banquet

The Grand Banquet Hall was a masterpiece of opulence, illuminated by thousands of floating magical candles and filled with the rich scents of roasted meats, spiced wine, and blooming night-jasmines.
Seated upon the obsidian throne beside King Cassian, Eloin wore a gown of midnight-blue silk encrusted with tiny, twinkling starlight diamonds. The silver pendant remained hidden beneath her bodice, a steady, warm pulse against her heart.
Pack leaders from across the kingdom came forward one by one to bow and offer gifts, swearing allegiance to the newly crowned queen.
"They fear you," Cassian murmured, leaning close so his lips brushed Eloin’s ear, sending a pleasant shiver down her spine. "And they respect you. In one trial, you accomplished what decades of politics could not."
"I still feel like I'm wearing someone else's clothes," Eloin whispered back with a small smile, taking a sip of the sweet berry wine from her golden chalice.
"You will grow into them," Cassian promised, his hand sliding over hers on the armrest, his fingers intertwining with hers.
Suddenly, the heavy oak doors at the far end of the hall swung open with a resounding bang.
A lone messenger in tattered royal courier leathers staggered into the hall, covered in dust and bleeding heavily from a wound in his shoulder. He collapsed onto the marble floor halfway to the throne.
"My King! My Queen!" the courier gasped, blood pooling beneath him. "The Western Border... it has fallen!"
The celebratory music cut off instantly. The hall plunged into a dead, suffocating silence.
Cassian stood up so fast his heavy chair scraped loudly against the stone. "Fallen? By whose hand? The Northern Council signed the armistice!"
"It wasn't the Council, My King," the courier coughed, his eyes rolling back in terror. "It was... the Blood Moon Coven. They used forbidden shadow magic. They are marching toward the Citadel right now, and they brought... they brought her."
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Eloin’s breath hitched. "Her?"
Before the courier could answer, a chilling, mocking laugh echoed through the cavernous banquet hall, freezing the wine in every chalice.