Aria didn’t trust war councils.

Mostly because the people who called them tended to be rich, stupid, or in the process of selling you out.

So when an official summons arrived—bearing the royal seal, and requesting her presence at a “Special Strategy Assembly of National Concern”—she assumed it was a trap.

And went anyway.

New Quest: Enter the War Council and Leave With More Power Than You Came With

Side Objective: Embarrass a noble. Any noble.

The council chamber looked like a chessboard: polished obsidian floor, white columns, and a semicircle of gilded chairs where a dozen nobles sat like vultures in velvet.

Prince Kael was already there, lounging with his signature expression of amused contempt. When Aria entered, all conversation stopped.

Lady Virelle—her lovely, snake-like aunt—smiled coldly.

“Didn’t we already bury you, dear?”

Aria returned the smile. “You tried. Poorly.”

Passive Skill Activated: Verbal Violence I – Words Hit Harder Than Swords

High Chancellor Morven cleared his throat.

“We’re not here for family drama,” he said stiffly. “We’re here because of a threat that affects the realm.”

He gestured, and a hooded figure stepped forward.

Slender, silver-haired, reeking of incense and something darker.

“The Oracle Witch of Esh,” he announced. “She brings a warning.”

The witch looked straight at Aria.

“You’ve been marked,” she said.

“The systems are converging. One of you will burn the world.”

The room fell silent.

Then Lady Virelle said dryly, “Charming. Can we get back to actual problems now?”

But Aria’s eyes didn’t move from the witch.

Marked?

Convergence?

Burn the world?

System Message: Unauthorized Prophecy Detected

Threat Level: Uncertain

Suggestion: Interrogate Witch / Steal Her Powers / Avoid Spontaneous Combustion

Aria smiled sweetly. “Oracle, darling. Can I speak to you alone?”

The witch tilted her head. “Of course. But I charge extra for death omens.”

“Put it on Kael’s tab.”

“I’m not paying,” Kael muttered.

They stepped into a shadowed side hall. The witch moved like smoke.

Aria didn’t waste time.

“Tell me everything.”

“The systems in this world were never meant to wake,” the witch said. “Now there are seven.”

“Seven?”

“You have one. The prince has one. And someone—perhaps the girl you hate most—has one that devours the others.”

Aria’s blood ran cold.

Yvonne. It had to be her.

System Expansion: Global System Map Fragment Acquired

Unlocked: Multi-System Interface (Beta)

Warning: More users = More war

The witch pulled something from her sleeve—a crystal vial, swirling with black mist.

“Drink this,” she said. “If you want to see where she is.”

Aria took it without hesitation.

“Will it hurt?”

“Yes,” the witch said. “But so will the truth.”

Aria drank.

Images slammed into her mind:

A black tower rising from bone-covered hills.

A girl with golden eyes, laughing as people screamed.

A silver crown, shattered and bleeding.

And at the center—Yvonne, standing over a corpse.

Aria’s corpse.

She dropped the vial.

Vision Complete:

Enemy Identified – Yvonne, Host of the Devourer System

Location: Blackspire Region (Restricted)

Quest Unlocked: Kill the Betrayer. Again.

Back in the council chamber, the nobles were already arguing over troop movements and trade routes and whose beard was more important.

Aria returned to her seat.

She raised her hand.

“Everyone here is wasting time,” she said. “There’s a war coming. It won’t be won by numbers or treaties. It’ll be won by people like me.”

Lady Virelle laughed. “You? A washed-up heiress with delusions of power?”

Aria pulled a small silver box from her sleeve, opened it—and tossed a writhing black feather onto the table.

Everyone recoiled.

“The Blackwing Society is alive,” she said. “And they’ve already made contact.”

Gasps. Curses. Prince Kael smirked like he was watching a play.

“I suggest,” Aria said, rising to her feet, “that you stop treating me like a problem—and start treating me like the only chance you’ve got.”

Quest Completed: Establish Authority at War Council

Rewards: +15 Reputation, Access to Military Intel, 1 Vote in Strategy Planning

Hidden Bonus: Lady Virelle Now Has Nightmares About You

Chapter 8: The Devourer, the Dress, and the Deadly Duel