The Holy Academy's Opening Ceremony had brought together more royalty than the hall had ever hosted at once.
Princes and princesses stood among heirs to powerful families, accompanied by relatives, attendants, and people eager to make their acquaintance. On any other evening, even a fraction of those guests would have been enough to determine where the room's attention settled.
Tonight, many of them had become secondary attractions.
The Heroes of Eden were here.
So were the awakened Apostles, the Saintess, and the Prophetess, people whose importance rested not only on blood, wealth, or the authority of a nation, but on the belief that Eden himself had chosen them.
That distinction changed the atmosphere around them.
Guests who might comfortably approach a prince hesitated before addressing an Apostle. People accustomed to speaking with kings found themselves considering every word before attempting to greet the Saintess.
