The village was in chaos.
People ran in every direction.
Children cried.
Parents called out for their families.
The silver crown that had appeared in the sky was gone, but its image remained in everyone’s minds.
Elisa stood frozen.
Her hand still glowed faintly.
“What just happened?” she whispered.
Nobody answered.
Because nobody knew.
Raphael grabbed her shoulders.
“Are you okay?”
“I think so.”
“You think so?”
“That’s the best answer I have.”
Lily raised a hand.
“I have a theory.”
Rose groaned.
“That’s never good.”
Lily pointed at Elisa.
“She’s secretly a princess.”
Then she pointed at herself.
“And I’m secretly rich.”
Rose smacked the back of her head.
“Ouch!”
“This is serious!”
The Shadow Knights slowly climbed to their feet.
Their leader looked shocked.
For the first time since arriving, fear appeared on his face.
“The Crown’s Power…” he muttered.
The messenger stepped forward.
His voice trembled.
“Leave.”
The knight looked at him.
“You dare command me?”
The messenger pulled a golden seal from his cloak.
The seal of the Royal Oracle.
The knight’s eyes widened.
“The Oracle has declared the girl untouchable until the Gathering.”
Silence.
The Shadow Knights exchanged nervous looks.
Even powerful kings respected the Oracle.
Her words had guided the kingdom for generations.
The knight clenched his jaw.
Then he lowered his sword.
“Very well.”
His cold eyes settled on Elisa.
“But this changes nothing.”
He pointed toward the north.
“The kings are already moving.”
Then he and his men disappeared into the forest.
Nobody celebrated.
Their problem had not ended.
It had only begun.
That night, the village council gathered.
Every important person in Willowbrook was present.
The village chief.
The messenger.
The town healer.
Even old Mrs.
Martha, who attended every meeting whether invited or not.
Elisa sat beside Raphael.
Lily and Rose sat nearby.
Rose looked nervous.
Lily was eating someone else’s snacks.
The meeting was tense.
Finally, the messenger stood.
“The Oracle has summoned Elisa to the capital.”
The room exploded with questions.
“The capital?”
“Why?”
“Is it safe?”
The messenger raised his hand.
“The Gathering of Kings will begin in seven days.”
Everyone became silent.
The Gathering.
The only time all seven Kings of No Throne met in one place.
It happened once every five years.
And it almost always ended with bloodshed.
“The Oracle believes Elisa must attend.”
Elisa frowned.
“Why me?”
The messenger looked at her carefully.
“Because the prophecy speaks of a girl marked by silver.”
He paused.
“And because the Empty Throne is reacting to your existence.”
A chill ran through the room.
Nobody wanted to hear those words.
For twenty years the throne had remained silent.
Now it was awakening.
Raphael suddenly stood.
“I’m going with her.”
The messenger nodded.
“Expected.”
Rose raised her hand.
“We’re going too.”
Lily nodded immediately.
“Someone has to keep Elisa alive.”
Elisa blinked.
“Shouldn’t that be my job?”
“No,” Rose said.
“You have terrible survival instincts.”
The room actually laughed.
Even Elisa couldn’t argue.
She once climbed a tree to rescue a cat.
The cat escaped.
Elisa fell out of the tree.
The cat was fine.
The next morning, preparations began.
The journey to the capital would take six days.
Everyone was busy.
Everyone except Lily.
She was trying to fit twelve loaves of bread into one bag.
“Why do you need so much food?”
“Adventure requires snacks.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“It is if you’re hungry.”
Rose sighed.
Raphael was checking supplies when the messenger approached him.
“I need to show you something.”
Raphael followed him behind a nearby building.
The messenger looked around carefully.
Then he opened a small wooden box.
Inside was a silver pendant.
Raphael frowned.
“What is it?”
The messenger’s expression darkened.
“Protection.”
“For Elisa?”
“No.”
The answer surprised him.
The messenger looked directly into Raphael’s eyes.
“For you.”
Raphael froze.
“What does that mean?”
The messenger hesitated.
Then he spoke quietly.
“The prophecy mentions the Silver Heir.”
Raphael nodded.
Everyone knew that part.
“But there is another part.”
Raphael’s heart began beating faster.
“What part?”
The messenger lowered his voice.
“The Silver Heir will rise.”
He paused.
“And beside her will stand a man whose fate is hidden from the gods themselves.”
Raphael stared.
“What?”
“The Oracle believes that man is you.”
For several seconds, neither spoke.
Finally Raphael laughed.
“You have the wrong person.”
The messenger didn’t laugh.
“The Oracle has never been wrong.”
At that exact moment, far away in the western mountains, a castle door opened.
A young man stepped onto a balcony.
Unlike the other kings, he wore no crown.
No royal robes.
No jewels.
Only simple black clothing.
Yet thousands of soldiers obeyed him.
He was the youngest of the Seven Kings of No Throne.
King Adrian.
The Seventh King.
Twenty-three years old.
A warrior feared across the kingdom.
A servant rushed toward him.
“My king.”
Adrian looked up from a letter.
“The girl?”
“The Silver Heir has appeared.”
A slow smile crossed Adrian’s face.
At last.
After years of searching.
At last.
“Prepare my horse.”
The servant blinked.
“Your horse?”
“Yes.”
“What about the army?”
Adrian turned toward the rising sun.
“I don’t need an army.”
His golden eyes seemed to shine.
“I’ll meet the future queen myself.”
Back in Willowbrook, Elisa looked toward the horizon without knowing why.
A strange feeling filled her chest.
Something was coming.
Something important.
Something dangerous.
And somewhere beyond the mountains, a king was already riding toward her.