*** Snowkeep Palace – Council Room ***
The council chamber was cold.
The great fireplace on the far wall burned only faintly, its heat lost to the stone expanse that stretched between the pillars. Rows of robed priests sat beneath the stained-glass mural of the Divine Pantheon, their colors a dull echo of what once represented faith and order.
Justinian entered with Lucan at his side.
The murmuring stopped. A dozen eyes followed him, some cautious, others outright hostile.
He moved without hurry, the same steady stride that carried him through battlefields and previous council meetings. When he reached the table, he didn't sit immediately. He simply looked at them.
"Everyone," he greeted, voice polite but not deferential. "You wanted an audience?"
Father Verdant was the first to rise, clasping his hands over his robe.
"My lord duke," he began,
