The Hunt continues

"The First Dragonknight."

That heavy, monumental declaration reverberated off the thick stone walls of the Audience Chamber, freezing the air inside the grand hall.

Every eye pivoted toward Damian Blacksun.

Shock and disbelief rippled across the ranks of assembled nobility, while a sharp, burning envy flickered in the eyes of several veteran knights.

To many present, Damian was merely a foreign rogue warrior—a commoner who happened to reach the tier of a Sword Runner, no different in rank from the seasoned officers standing along the carpet.

Ranker or not, did an unaffiliated commoner from the frozen North truly deserve to hold a title bearing the revered dragon name of the Darkstar bloodline?

Even Ser Hughway felt a complex rush of mixed emotions regarding his liege's sudden declaration.