Present Day.

Far below the palace. The imperial prison stretched through layers of stone. The oldest sections had existed long before the current kingdom. Dark corridors extended endlessly through the underground.

Councillor Renault sat alone inside one of the deepest chambers. His hands remained restrained while his Aether remained sealed.

His position remained hopeless, yet somehow for a dead man, he still looked proud.

Atheline found that very irritating but also interesting. Lilith stood outside the cell, arms folded, expressionlessly watching the man, waiting for any form of movement or response.

Councillor Renault sat calmly on the stone bench, his gaze fixed upon her. Only pure, unfiltered hatred burned there. If it was anyone else, they would have probably flinched but the two remained unbothered by his clear malice.

Lilith spoke first.

"Where is your family? Renault"

Councillor Renault smiled, a small but smug smile. Lilith patiently waited. But Councillor Renault said nothing.

Several seconds passed in this suffocating silence. Lilith remained patient while Councillor Renault remained silent.

Atheline stood nearby, watching both of them. Unlike Lilith, he wasn’t interested in physical intimidation but he also wanted answers.

She tried again.

"Where are they?"

Councillor Renault softly laughed. The sound echoed through the chamber.

"You’ve already lost... Your majesty."

Lilith remained expressionless through his word vomit. Councillor Renault continued without giving anyone a chance to ask.

"You simply don’t know it yet," he finished then laughed loudly.

Atheline sighed, he should have expected a speech like that. Lilith looked toward him. He stepped forward, on cue.

Councillor Renault’s eyes shifted, studying him. Disgust immediately appeared.

"A disgusting foreigner does not have the right to speak to me."

Atheline smiled.

"A pleasure to meet you too," he greeted, his expression infuriatingly pleasant, "You must have suffered during the usual meetings in my presence... poor you, breathing the same air as a foreigner. "

Councillor Renault spat at the floor. Atheline remained unimpressed. Councillor Renault leaned back.

"You don’t belong here."

Atheline nodded.

"Probably."

He looked at him in surprise, that wasn’t the answer he had been expecting.

Atheline continued.

"Neither do traitors."

Councillor Renault’s eyes narrowed. Atheline pulled a chair forward, then comfortably sat.

Lilith glanced at him, her eyebrow raised but he ignored her. Councillor Renault looked confused at his actions.

Atheline wanted that, confused people made mistakes. He folded his arms.

"You know..."

Councillor Renault loudly sneered but Atheline continued, unfazed.

"I’ve met a lot of fanatics," Atheline smiled then continued," you don’t need to know where though."

Councillor Renault looked at him as though he had lost his mind. Atheline didn’t care, he continued regardless.

"They always think they’re special... " he held his gaze,"... They never are."

Councillor Renault’s face darkened. Atheline continued speaking casually, as though discussing the weather over tea. It was a thought he was having a conversation not an interrogation.

Councillor Renault hated it immediately. Atheline continued.

"You know what the funny part is?"

Councillor Renault remained silent but he could tell he was listening. Atheline smiled.

"They always believe history chose them," he said, and lightly wiped the corner of his robe, "Then history forgets them."

Councillor Renault exploded.

"You know nothing!"

His voice thundered through the prison. Atheline almost chuckled, finally an emotion.

Atheline leaned back, waiting for the show. Lilith watched silently.

Councillor Renault stood suddenly, chains rattling.

"You know nothing of blood!"

"Nothing of legacy!"

"Nothing of sacrifice!"

His face twisted, years of hatred finally spilling outward. Atheline remained seated despite his outburst. Councillor Renault pointed toward Lilith.

"That thing sits upon the throne!"

The chamber became dangerously silent. Lilith’s expression didn’t change, which somehow made it worse. She was already used to such insults.

Councillor Renault continued shouting.

"A pretender!"

"An usurper!"

"A stain upon the old blood!"

Atheline watched as froth formed at the corner of his mouth while he shouted. He wasn’t talking to them anymore, but preaching.

The words poured out. Decades of fanaticism, resentment, and grief.

"The old lines will return!"

"The impure will fall!"

"The throne will be cleansed!"

Lilith remained motionless. Atheline noticed something through all that, pain. Hidden beneath the madness and buried beneath ideology, was real grief.

Atheline understood where it was coming from. His daughter, she had been set to be queen but had died under Lilith’s hand when she tried to kill her to avenge her fiancé, the former king.

Councillor Renault had clearly never recovered, his hatred simply found a new shape.

Atheline sighed.

That was a tragedy, but not an excuse. Councillor Renault’s voice rose again.

"The Harbinger shall return!"

The chamber froze. Even Lilith’s eyes narrowed slightly. Councillor Renault laughed, a wild sound, almost joyful.

"The Harbinger of Death!"

"The Chosen One!"

"The Cleansing Shadow!"

His eyes gleamed with fanatic devotion.

"The dead are gathering!"

"The old powers awaken!"

"The impure will drown beneath them!"

Athe exchanged a glance with Lilith. That was very new. Councillor Renault continued laughing.

"The dead remember!"

"The dead watch!"

"The dead prepare!"

Lilith finally stepped forward, for the first time. The councillor fell silent.

Lilith’s cold voice remained calm.

"Who?"

Councillor Renault smiled.

"Who is the Harbinger?" She repeated.

The councillor’s smile widened, then he laughed again and said nothing.

The two stared at each other for a while, a battle of wills, and neither yielded.

Atheline watched Councillor Renault carefully. He looked genuinely confident as though he believed something was coming.

His eyes narrowed. Atheline trusted his instincts. If he was right, the councillor had already passed this fanatic mission to someone else.

The only people he could do that with would be his own children. The question was knowing where they are and which one.

Councillor Renault was to remain alive, for now. Dead men answered very few questions and they still needed answers.

The fanatic ramblings about a Harbinger of Death, his missing family, the mysterious Protector, and the hidden supporters; there were too many loose ends remaining.

Executing him immediately would satisfy justice while keeping him alive a little longer might protect the kingdom. The choice was obvious.