The palace's main courtyard was full. Village chiefs, elders, representatives of hamlets and farms had come from all across the Neverdie Realm. Some had traveled for days. Others had arrived the night before, sleeping in the stables or common halls.
There were dozens of them, standing, pressed together. Faces marked by sun, wind, earth. Calloused hands. Simple but clean clothes.
Kael watched them from the high gallery window. Kira stood beside him.
"They came," said Kira.
"Yes."
"You expected fewer?"
"I didn't know."
"They all responded."
"Because they want to hear."
"Or because they're afraid to disobey."
Kael turned his head.
"Perhaps. But they're here. That's what matters."
"Will you speak to them?"
"Yes. And you stay with me."
"On the platform?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because I want them to see you. To understand that you are one of them."
"I'm a half-demon."
"Exactly. You're proof that the kingdom is greater than races."
Kira didn't answer.
They descended.
Silence fell in the courtyard when Kael appeared. He climbed a low platform, without a throne, without a dais. Kira stood slightly behind him, but visible.
Kael swept his gaze over the crowd.
"Thank you for coming," he said.
His voice carried, clear, effortless.
"I didn't summon you to give orders. I summoned you to speak."
He paused.
"The kingdom survived. You survived. You worked, sowed, built, raised your children. You held on, even when the throne was empty."
An old farmer nodded.
"But survival is no longer enough," Kael continued. "It's time to rebuild. To become what we once were. To stop bowing our heads to other kings."
Murmurs of approval.
"I won't promise you victory. I won't lie and say it will be easy. But I will tell you this: I will not leave again. And I will not let anyone take what is yours."
A man raised his hand.
"Speak," said Kael.
"My king. We have lost lands. Roads. Markets. How will you recover them?"
"By force, if necessary. By diplomacy, if possible."
"And if the other kings refuse?"
"Then they will learn why the Neverdie Realm bears its name."
A shiver ran through the assembly.
A woman stepped forward.
"We've heard that you've changed. That you lived among humans."
"It's true."
"Did it weaken you?"
"No."
"Did it make you more merciful?"
"Perhaps."
"And is that a good thing?"
Kael looked at her.
"It is a thing. Time will tell if it's good."
The woman nodded.
"I have another question," said a young man with a grave face.
"Go ahead."
"Why is he with you?"
He pointed at Kira.
"Because he spent ten years searching for me. Because he survived the roads, the hunts, the lies. Because he remained faithful when everyone doubted."
"He's a half-demon."
"He is one of us."
"Some say he can't be trusted."
"Those people are wrong."
"And if they refuse to follow him?"
"They don't have to follow him. They have to follow me."
The young man lowered his eyes.
"Anything else?" asked Kael.
Silence.
"Then listen carefully. The kingdom will rise. The lands will be replanted. The roads will reopen. The forges will be relit. And you will be its first actors."
He stepped forward.
"I am not a palace king. I am a field king. If you need me, I will come. If you are attacked, I will fight. If you are hungry, I will find food."
Some faces relaxed.
"But in exchange, I ask one thing of you."
"What?" asked the old farmer.
"Stop bowing your heads. Stop accepting scraps. Stop surviving. Start living."
A heavy silence, charged with emotion.
Then the old farmer knelt.
The others followed. One by one. Then all.
Kael looked at them.
"Rise."
They obeyed slowly.
"I don't want knees. I want arms. Hearts. Wills."
"You'll have them," said a woman.
"Then tomorrow, we begin."
He stepped down from the platform.
The crowd parted before him. Some reached out their hands, others bowed their heads. But all looked at him with a new light.
Kira joined him.
"You spoke well."
"I spoke the truth."
"That's why it was good."
"Perhaps."
"They believe you."
"They hope. That's different."
"Hope is a beginning."
Kael stopped in the middle of the courtyard.
"Then let's not disappoint them."
"We won't."
"No. We won't."
They entered the palace, leaving behind them the still-trembling crowd.
The kingdom had set itself in motion again.
And this time, it would not stop.