It was impossible for someone to get lost in the Winter Region unless they strayed into the endless snow of the Winter Expanse or somehow managed to slip through the gates and swim the freezing waters toward the Empire.
The borders of Winter were iron, sealed by frost and guarded by blood.
That was why Dante Winters could not believe what he was hearing.
The prince… had returned?
His lips tightened, his fists curling as the news echoed in his mind like a curse.
He had dealt with that boy years ago. He had seen to it himself.
In a single day, Dante had been overlooked, stripped of what he believed was rightfully his.
But fate had given him an opportunity: the boy.
Azariah's son.
He could become chosen by the goddess next, and therefore he was a threat to Dante's path.
He hadn't hesitated.
He had found a slaver skulking a bit away from the gates since he couldn't bring himself to kill his brother's child, frostbitten but alive, desperate for coin.
