Less than a minute passed before the door swung open.
The guards stepped inside and scanned the room quickly. Their gazes fell on the queen on the floor, her hands shaking, her face the picture of grief and they understood what had happened without needing to be told.
One of them looked to the bed to see their king's unmoving form.
A senior guard issued a swift order and one of the younger ones turned and rushed out to fetch the king's chief advisor.
It was protocol to have the chief advisor view the body of the dead king before anything else, since he was the one tasked with announcing the king's death.
Nheera did not look up. She stayed where she was, folded in on herself, her sobs filling the room with a sound that echoed off every wall.
It did not take long for the guard to return and he brought Laheir back with him.
Laheir crossed the room to the bed first. He stood there, looking down at Zeriel for a moment, and then his gaze moved to Nheera.
