Not because of alarms.
Not because of danger.
But because anticipation had become its own kind of noise.
A living thing.
A pressure that settled into every corridor, every courtyard, every breath taken inside the walls of Nacrifa.
The wedding was close.
Too close.
Servants moved faster than they needed to.
Guards stood straighter than they normally would.
Even the flowers seemed more alive than usual, as though they understood they were no longer decoration—but witnesses.
Sebastian noticed it immediately.
He always noticed things like that.
The subtle shifts in atmosphere.
The invisible tension beneath polite smiles.
The quiet fear disguised as excitement.
He stood at one of the palace balconies, looking out over the kingdom.
The wind tugged lightly at his coat.
Below, the city stretched endlessly—golden rooftops catching the morning light, markets slowly waking, citizens unknowingly preparing for a royal future that would reshape their entire world.
