The pressure in the war chamber was unlike anything Kael had experienced.
It wasn't simply powerful.
It was suffocating.
The torches dimmed.
The air became unbearably heavy, as though the room itself feared the young attendant standing near the doorway.
Kael's instincts screamed at him to retreat.
Yet the attendant remained perfectly composed, his hands folded behind his back.
His expression carried neither arrogance nor malice.
Only… curiosity.
"So," he said with a polite smile, "you are the one the Throne has chosen."
His voice was gentle, almost friendly.
That frightened Kael more than if he had shouted.
Osric planted his staff firmly on the floor.
"You should not be here."
The attendant inclined his head.
"And yet, here I am."
"It seems even the Royal Sanctuary has begun to forget its own rules."
A Name Refused
Kael took a cautious step forward.
"You know who I am."
"I know what you are."
"Then tell me who you are."
The attendant smiled.
"If I gave you my name today…"
"…you would spend the rest of your life fearing it."
Kael held his gaze.
"Try me."
For the first time, the attendant laughed.
Not mockingly.
Genuinely.
"You have courage."
"But courage without understanding becomes recklessness."
He glanced at Osric.
"The old Keeper has taught you well."
Osric's expression remained stern.
"I have taught him almost nothing."
"Exactly."
The attendant's smile faded.
"That is why he still has hope."
The Truth About Trials
The attendant slowly walked around the war table, his fingertips gliding across its cracked surface.
"You believe this trial is testing whether you deserve to become king."
He shook his head.
"No."
"It is testing whether you can survive becoming one."
Kael frowned.
"What's the difference?"
"A crown changes people."
"It amplifies what already exists within them."
"If a ruler is compassionate…"
"The kingdom prospers."
"If a ruler is proud…"
"The kingdom bleeds."
"If a ruler is selfish…"
"The kingdom dies."
His crimson eyes met Kael's.
"So tell me."
"What already exists within you?"
Kael opened his mouth—
Then stopped.
He didn't know.
He had been a normal man on Earth.
He had never led a nation.
Never commanded an army.
Never carried the lives of thousands on his shoulders.
"I…"
His voice faltered.
"I don't know."
The attendant studied him in silence.
Then, unexpectedly…
He nodded.
"An honest answer."
A King's Greatest Enemy
Without warning, the walls around them dissolved.
The war chamber vanished.
Kael found himself standing atop the palace walls overlooking the battlefield.
Thousands of soldiers clashed below.
Magic lit the night like falling stars.
The cries of the wounded echoed across the plains.
The attendant stood beside him as though they were merely watching a play.
"What do you see?"
Kael answered immediately.
"A war."
"No."
The attendant pointed toward the battlefield.
"Look again."
Kael narrowed his eyes.
At first, nothing seemed different.
Then…
He noticed it.
An Aetherion captain arguing with another officer instead of leading his men
A noble