The room felt larger than it had any right to be. Empty space stretched between the walls, swallowing the echoes of everything that had just happened.
Instead, he stood by the window. The sea lay beyond, restless and indifferent. Waves rolled toward the shore, broke, and disappeared like nothing mattered. Like nothing had changed.
His hand pressed against the stone frame. It trembled. He closed his eyes.
Then it slipped. His other hand came up, covering his face. The breath he let out wasn't steady anymore. It broke halfway through, caught somewhere between control and collapse.
Tears followed before he could stop them..He turned slightly, as if the empty room could still judge him. "I gave you my blessing," he muttered under his breath. The words sounded unfamiliar now. "And you walked away."
His jaw clenched. Another breath. Sharper this time. "I should have stopped you." The thought lingered. Then stretched. Then twisted.
A knock came from the door. Drexo froze. His hands dropped instantly, but the damage was already done. He turned away from the light, dragging his sleeve across his face in one quick motion. Then again. Slower this time, more careful.
"Who is there?" he asked. His voice came out steady.
Almost steady.
"Cedric, Your Grace."
Silence stretched.
Drexo inhaled through his nose, then exhaled slowly. His fingers brushed under his eyes once more, making sure no trace remained. He straightened his posture, forcing his shoulders back into place.
"Come in."
The door clicked open. Cedric stepped inside and shut it behind him. He moved a few paces forward, then bowed low. "Your Grace," he said, head lowered. "Evelyn asked me to deliver this note the moment they depart."
He extended his hand. The small folded parchment rested on his palm.
Drexo's eyes dropped to it. "Evelyn?" he repeated. His brows drew together. "A note?"
Cedric nodded, his arm still stretched forward. Drexo did not take it immediately. "What could have been written here," he said slowly, "that she couldn't say to me in person?"
Cedric shifted slightly, his shoulders rising and falling once. "I do not know, Your Grace." The room fell quiet again.
Drexo finally reached out and took the note. The parchment felt lighter than it should have. "Thank you," he said.
Cedric bowed again.
Drexo turned the note in his hand, observing the fold, the seal already broken. His gaze lingered on it for a second too long before he looked back at Cedric.
"You may leave."
Cedric bowed once more, then turned and walked out. The door closed behind him with a soft click.
The moment it shut, the silence returned. He looked down at the note again. "What could Evelyn have to tell me," he murmured, almost to himself, "that she couldn't come to me, but decided to write it and pass it?"
His thumb slid under the fold. Slowly, he opened it. The parchment crackled faintly. His eyes moved across the lines.
Once, then again.
His breath caught. His hand rose sharply to his mouth. "What?" The word escaped before he could stop it.
He stepped back. The paper trembled slightly between his fingers. "No," he said under his breath.
He turned, pacing once across the room. Then again, faster this time. "No, Evelyn would never joke with something of this magnitude."
He stopped, then turned again. The note remained in his hand, but his grip tightened around it, crumpling the edge without him noticing.
His chest rose and fell unevenly. He looked toward the window. The sea was still there. Unchanged, but now it felt farther away.
When he reached it, he braced both hands against the stone and stared out toward the shore.
Ships.
Small figures moving. The same scene as before. But not the same meaning.
Then he paused. Something shifted behind his eyes. "I must stop them," he said. The words came out low, but certain. "I must not allow my child to be born far away from me."
The sentence hung there. Heavy, and Irreversible. He turned sharply.
The door flew open before his hand fully reached it. "Cedric!" he shouted as he stepped into the corridor. His voice echoed down the stone walls.
But there was no response. He moved forward, faster now. A guard straightened at the end of the hall, startled by the sudden movement.
"You," Drexo said, pointing. "Bring me Cedric and Theon immediately."
The guard didn't question it. He turned and ran. But Drexo did not wait. He moved past him, down the corridor, through the archways, out into the open air. His steps quickened with each turn, until walking was no longer enough.
He broke into a run. The courtyard blurred around him. Soldiers turned at his passing, but none spoke. The urgency in his movement made questions feel like interruptions.
By the time he reached the path to the shore, his breath had already begun to tighten.
Still, he did not slow. The harbor came into view. Ships rocked gently against their restraints. Sailors moved about, unaware of what was about to change.
Drexo descended the final steps and strode toward the nearest group of sea warriors. "I have to go after Maria and her army," he said.
His voice carried.
It trembled slightly, but the command within it did not weaken. "I need to stop them."
"What?" one of the guards blurted out. Confusion flashed across his face. "Are you deaf?" Drexo roared.
The words struck harder than the waves against the shore. "Move the ship. I must go after Maria and her army. I need to stop them."
The guard didn't hesitate again. He turned immediately, shouting orders to the others. Hands moved quickly. Ropes were untied. Anchors shifted.
The ship creaked in response. At that moment, footsteps approached from behind.
Fast.
"You summoned me, Your Grace."
Drexo turned. Theon stood there, slightly out of breath. Drexo nodded once. "Yes. Send a raven to the eastern sea warriors."
Theon straightened. "Tell them to stop Maria and her army. They must not allow them to leave our territory."
Theon's brows furrowed..Confusion flickered across his face. "But why, Your Grace?" he asked carefully. "thought this is for the better?"
Drexo's jaw tightened. For a moment, he said nothing. Then, he whisper. "She is carrying my child." The words landed heavier than anything else that morning.
Theon froze.
The confusion vanished, replaced by something sharper. Understanding. Shock.
Then he bowed. "I will do it immediately." He turned and ran. Drexo didn't watch him go.
He turned back to the ship and stepped onto it without hesitation. The wood shifted slightly under his weight. Ten men followed closely behind, their movements quick, precise.
"Your Grace," one of the guards said, voice strained. "They must have gotten far. There is no way we can overtake them."
Drexo's head snapped toward him. "Move this ship," he said. The words came out like steel. "Go the maximum speed you can."
The guard bowed immediately and turned away, shouting new orders.
The sails were raised. The ropes tightened. The ship groaned as it began to pull away from the shore.
Drexo moved to the front. The sea stretched before him.
Wide, and ynforgiving.
Somewhere beyond it, he clenched his fists. "Please, Maria," he whispered. The wind carried his voice away before it could settle.
"Do not be far from me now."