"I can't believe this," Helios muttered, dragging a hand through his hair. "Have things truly gone this bad?"
He stepped out of the towering doors of the Solar Throne Palace, the echo of them closing behind him far too final for his liking.
His two younger brothers followed in silence, the weight of their father's words still hanging heavy in the air.
What the king had told them was not just troubling. It was the kind of news that would spread fear faster than fire once it reached the court.
The kind that invited panic, whispers, and doubt.
"If Father says it has, then it has," Kaelis said with a tired sigh. "At least he's trying to cure whatever disease is plaguing the kingdom now, instead of letting it rot further."
Helios let out a sharp breath. "Hasn't it already been bad even before this?" he asked quietly. "We are supposed to be a blessed kingdom. A kingdom that thrives under the gifts of Aurethys. And yet something like this still happens in our generation."
