No one in the Magnus Territory knew that Dezyne, the ruthless, dignified, and sharp-tongued patriarch, was dying.
To the public, he remained the strongest mage of the Magnus clan. The man whose mere presence could silence an entire court of nobles, whose mana could warp the air into shimmering ripples, whose eyes foresaw calamity before it reached their borders.
He trained Devlin Magnus with the strictness of a tyrant and the patience of a sage. He taught with clarity, fought with precision, and led with unwavering composure.
Only one man knew the truth.
Arzen, the silent, steel-hearted right hand who had followed Dezyne since his youth, knew that behind Dezyne's calm facade, behind the power leaking off him like a steady storm, lay a body cracking apart like thin crystal.
The backlash had begun months ago.
