The next night,

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The Royal Palace had been built to intimidate.

Every pillar was a calculated assertion of dominance, every chandelier a reminder that light itself belonged to the Crown.

Tonight, the Crystal Hall had been transformed for a purpose that made the usual court theater look like child's play - the welcome banquet for Malphas Volkov, the Demon Alpha, Alpha King of the North, whom had returned from death and silence to claim his place among the living.

Aria stood at the edge of the crowd in a gown of midnight blue that she had allowed Virelle to select, her hair swept up in a severe twist that...