James and Noah sat quietly in the drawing room, the late afternoon sun filtering softly through the tall windows. James was seated properly, legs tucked under him, unusually silent. Noah leaned back on the sofa, watching him for a long moment before finally sighing.
"So... you knew, didn't you?" Noah said, voice flat with a trace of annoyance. "The Empress Consort… she's the sister of the King of Dravencia—your father."
James gave a small nod, eyes cast down.
Noah scoffed, running a hand through his hair. "Great. I'm the only one who didn't know."
"There was a reason," James said softly. "Only Princess Sophia knew about it from the beginning."
Noah looked at him with disbelief, eyes narrowing. "Seriously? Even Kaerth and I were left out?"
James nodded again. "Even we weren't supposed to know. It's only been a week since I found out."
