Valen stood in his quarters, the cryptic message from the Echo Disc still burning in his mind: "They're closer than you think."
His first instinct had been to suspect a mole within the family, but the thought quickly passed.
The Aetheris family was too loyal to betray itself in such a way. No—this threat came from outside, from the factions at Astralis Academy, those who had long been watching, waiting for the right moment to strike.
He knew that lesser members of the family—servants, allies who weren't bound by blood—might be vulnerable to influence or manipulation, but those closest to him were beyond reproach.
As in the long history of Aetheris family no family member had ever betrayed their own, cause of their beautiful motto.
