Chapter 421: Breaking the Illusion

Astrid’s POV

The Packhouse felt like it was holding its breath.

The soft rustle of papers, the distant murmur of warriors preparing for their assignments, even the steady crackle of the fireplace-all of it felt muted under the weight of what was coming.

I stood at the center of the war room, the maps and reports spread before me like pieces of a puzzle I hadn’t yet solved.

My mind raced through the details, analyzing each thread of information, trying to see the bigger picture that Ardan had laid out for us.

We had a plan—an effective one by all accounts. But something gnawed at me, a persistent itch in the back of my mind that refused to be ignored.