The silence inside the royal council chamber was suddenly broken.
The double doors of the chamber opened with a loud creak. A royal guard, wearing the King's golden lion crest on his chest plate, rushed into the room. He looked incredibly pale and stressed.
The guard walked quickly to the center of the room. He went down on one knee right in front of the King's round table and bowed his head deeply.
"Your Majesty," the guard spoke. His voice echoed slightly in the large, quiet room. "I bring terrible news from the deep cells."
King Leonel sat up straighter in his chair. He gripped the edges of the wooden table tightly. "Speak," the King ordered firmly.
The guard swallowed hard. "Your Majesty, the prisoner... the stranger who carried the iron weapon... is dead."
A large collection of gasps echoed immediately around the room. The older lords shifted nervously in their comfortable seats. The military generals frowned deeply, exchanging dark, worried glances.
