The inner halls of the imperial palace were quieter than the crowded streets outside, yet the silence carried its own kind of tension, as though the ancient stone walls themselves were listening to every word spoken within them. Princess Ira Devyani walked beside Chief Minister Mahadevan through a series of long corridors lined with carved pillars, their surfaces etched with scenes from the empire’s long history—great kings defeating enemies, armies marching beneath blazing banners, and at the center of it all the symbol of the Solar Empire rising triumphantly above every battlefield.

Ira had passed these murals thousands of times in her life.

But today her eyes lingered on them longer than usual.

One carving showed Emperor Vardhana the Conqueror raising a sword toward the sky while a monstrous winged creature fell beneath him in defeat. The creature’s body resembled a dragon, though the sculptor had twisted its shape into something ugly and savage, its wings torn and its jaws open in what looked more like desperation than rage.

The empire called that victory.

Yet the murals inside the forbidden temple had shown something very different.

There the dragons had not been enemies.

They had been allies.

“Your Highness?” Mahadevan said quietly when he noticed her slowing down.

Ira blinked and forced herself to keep walking.

“Nothing,” she replied.

They soon reached the largest chamber in the palace.

The throne hall.

Massive doors carved from black sandalwood stood open, revealing a room so vast that the ceiling seemed to disappear into shadow far above the polished marble floor. Tall pillars shaped like blazing flames lined the chamber, and between them stood rows of imperial guards dressed in gold-plated armor that gleamed beneath the torchlight.

At the far end of the hall, raised upon a wide platform of white stone, stood the throne of the Solar Empire.

And seated upon it was the man who ruled half the continent.

Emperor Suryaveer Vardhana.

He was a tall man despite his age, with sharp features and streaks of silver beginning to appear in his dark hair. His golden robes shimmered faintly beneath the torches, and the crown of the Solar Dynasty rested upon his head like a piece of living sunlight.

Beside the throne stood several members of the imperial council.

Generals.Priests.Advisors.

All of them turned their attention toward Ira as she approached.

The emperor’s voice echoed calmly through the hall.

“You took longer than expected to return from a simple forest expedition.”

Ira bowed respectfully.

“The temple ruins were more complicated than we anticipated, Father.”

A faint murmur spread through the council.

The emperor studied her carefully.

“I received reports from Captain Arvind,” he said slowly. “He claims the temple shook violently after you entered it.”

“That is correct.”

“And he also claims you encountered an unidentified man within the forest.”

Ira felt every pair of eyes in the hall shift toward her.

“Yes,” she answered.

The emperor leaned slightly forward.

“Describe him.”

Ira hesitated for only a moment.

“He appeared human,” she said carefully. “But he moved… unusually fast.”

Several generals exchanged skeptical glances.

“Bandits often exaggerate their abilities to frighten travelers,” one of them muttered.

But the emperor remained silent.

His sharp gaze never left Ira’s face.

“And the footprints?” he asked.

The question caught her slightly off guard.

“You were informed about those as well?”

“Captain Arvind mentioned them in his report,” the emperor replied. “Large clawed tracks found near the temple.”

A faint smile touched the lips of one of the court scholars.

“Probably some unknown jungle beast,” the man said dismissively.

The emperor ignored him.

Instead he asked the question that made Ira’s pulse tighten.

“Did you find anything inside the temple?”

The mark on her wrist burned.

For a brief moment she considered telling him everything.

The crown.

The dragon symbol.

The roar that had shaken the mountains.

But something inside her warned against it.

“Nothing significant,” she said calmly.

The emperor’s eyes narrowed slightly.

He knew her too well.

“You are certain?”

“Yes.”

The silence stretched.

Finally, the emperor leaned back against the throne.

“Very well,” he said. “You may rest from your journey.”

Relief washed briefly through Ira.

But the emperor raised a finger before she could turn away.

“However,” he continued, “I have arranged a meeting tomorrow with the imperial scholars. They will accompany you back to the temple so the site can be properly studied.”

Ira stiffened.

“You want to reopen the temple?”

“Of course,” the emperor replied. “If something valuable lies hidden there, the empire will claim it.”

The burning in her wrist pulsed again.

She forced her expression to remain calm.

“As you wish, Father.”

The emperor nodded, signaling that the audience was over.

Ira bowed once more before turning toward the exit.

As she walked away, she could feel the weight of the entire court watching her back.

That night the palace gardens were unusually quiet.

The rain had finally stopped, leaving the air cool and filled with the scent of wet earth and jasmine blossoms. Moonlight filtered through the clouds in pale silver beams, illuminating the long pathways that wound through the royal gardens.

Ira walked alone beside one of the reflecting pools.

Her mind was too restless for sleep.

She stopped near the water and rolled up her sleeve again.

The dragon mark glowed faintly in the moonlight.

It had spread slightly higher along her arm now.

“What are you?” she whispered.

The surface of the pool rippled gently.

A voice answered from behind her.

“Something very dangerous.”

Ira spun around instantly.

Rudra stood beneath the branches of a flowering tree, his dark hair moving slightly in the night breeze.

The palace guards stationed around the gardens were nowhere in sight.

Her heart pounded.

“You shouldn’t be here,” she said.

Rudra stepped slowly closer.

“You shouldn’t have awakened the crown.”

Moonlight caught his golden eyes.

“You’re lucky I arrived before the others.”

A chill ran down her spine.

“Others?”

Rudra’s gaze shifted briefly toward the palace towers rising above the garden walls.

“The moment the Serpent Crown awakened,” he said quietly, “every ancient creature connected to dragon magic felt it.”

He looked back at her.

“Which means they’re coming.”

Ira swallowed.

“Who is coming?”

Rudra’s expression hardened.

“Dragons,” he said.

Then his eyes flickered down to the glowing mark on her arm.

“And now,” he added softly, “so will every hunter who wants the last dragon rider dead.”