Chapter 53: The Aftermaths of War
The smoke never truly left the sky.
Even days after the siege, a gray haze still clung to the air above Nazaria, twisting the sunlight into a pale and mournful gold. The once-vibrant canopy of Sylveraine now bore scars of fire and battle — blackened trunks jutted out from the earth like the bones of fallen giants, and the sweet scent of flowers had been replaced by the acrid tang of ash.
We had won.
That was what everyone kept saying — we won. The Obscurum had been driven back, Velistra forced to retreat, and Nazaria still stood. Yet as I walked through the city’s streets, weaving past rows of pyres and hastily erected memorials, the word felt hollow.
“Over here,” Ruby called softly from ahead. She was kneeling by a line of fallen soldiers — elves, ba
