The King's decree was final. Regina was officially granted a seat within the Ministry, a move that sent shockwaves through the remaining nobles as they filtered out of the hall.
Regina walked through the palace gardens toward her waiting carriage. It was a vehicle that seemed crafted from the night itself, its surface a matte black that didn't reflect the flickering torches of the courtyard.
Before she could reach the door, a heavy step sounded on the gravel behind her. "You may have deceived everyone in that courtroom, but not me," Draven's voice was a low, jagged hiss.
Regina stopped, but she did not turn. She stood perfectly still, her dark cloak blending into the shadows of the evening.
Draven stepped into her line of sight, his face twisted with a volatile mix of anger and desperation. "I know what is hidden under this veil, Iris. I know exactly who you are."
"I know that you are aware," Regina replied calmly. Her voice remained as smooth as glass, showing no sign of the "trembling wife" he had once known.
Draven recoiled slightly at her composure. "Then why the theatrics? Why hide behind this scrap of silk if you know I can see through it?"
"I am not hiding, Draven," Regina said, her head tilting slightly. "But I have no desire to be known as your former wife within these walls. That woman died the day she left your gates."
She took a step closer to her carriage, the obsidian veil fluttering in the cool breeze. "I came here to build my own identity. Until I have strengthened it—until the name Regina carries more weight than your crown—I will not reveal my face."
Draven let out a harsh, mocking laugh. "You think you can dictate the terms of your own exposure? I could end this charade with a single word. I can expose you to the Council right now."
Regina finally turned her head to look at him, though the veil still obscured her eyes. The air between them grew thin, charged with the energy of the Eclipsereaver.
"If you could have exposed me, Draven, you would have done so the moment I stepped into the hall," she said, her tone dripping with a quiet, lethal logic.
She leaned in, her voice dropping to a whisper that only he could hear. "You know my father is watching. You know the King is desperate for this alliance. And you know the truth of your own failure."
"If the King learns that you discarded the Sovereign of Night," she continued, "if he realizes you threw away the Empire's greatest weapon because of your own pride... your position as Crown Prince is gone for good."
Draven's jaw tightened, his face pale in the moonlight. He wanted to strike back, to find a flaw in her armor, but he found himself staring into a void of his own making.
"You are a ghost, Draven," she said, turning away and stepping into the carriage. "Stop trying to haunt a woman who has already moved on."