[Lavinia's POV — March to the Black Wall — Dawn]
The first light of dawn crawled across the horizon like a blade cutting open the sky.
Hooves thundered beneath us. Armor rattled. Banners snapped in the cold morning wind as the Elorian army surged forward in disciplined waves. The forest swallowed our columns, torch after torch extinguished as sunlight broke through the trees in fractured gold.
Ahead of me, the Black Wall rose like a scar across the horizon.
A fortress carved into the edge of the Frostplain cliffs—jagged, towering, impossible to mistake. Even from miles away, it radiated the kind of silence that promised violence.
"Your Highness," General Arwin called from beside me, his horse keeping pace with mine. "Scouts report no movement yet. No Meren banners. No activity on the battlements."
"Which means they're watching," I replied. "Just hidden."
