The sky was a perfect, cloudless blue—too peaceful for a day like this.
Kael stood quietly at the entrance of his manor, hands behind his back, watching the horizon.
The air was crisp, the kind of morning that could almost fool one into thinking nothing was wrong.
Above, Yue hovered lazily, her eyes scanning for the rest of the group.
"No one here yet," she called down, "They're late."
In front of him, the carriage waited, the horses pawing at the ground restlessly. Kael glanced to the side.
There, by the fountain, the Divine General—his uncle—was feeding birds with a scowl on his face and a bowl of seeds in his hand.
The man looked like a general forced into retirement.
Or worse—into administration.
Kael's eyes narrowed.
The old man had been burdened with both the duchy's affairs and training the troops ever since Kael and Selene decided to go devil-hunting.
A noble cause, yes. But to the Divine General, it was hell on paper.
