The sun was slowly descending beyond the horizon, bathing the world in the warm orange glow of evening. Inside an isolated meeting room within the imperial palace of the Eternal Sun Empire, several people sat around a large table.
The atmosphere was unusually heavy, and the exhaustion on everyone's faces made it clear that the past few weeks had not been kind to them.
Among those present were Samantha, the minister of finance; Theodore, the prime minister; and his son Helios, who was responsible for overseeing the public development departments. William sat across from them with Anastasia seated quietly by his side.
Only a few hours earlier, William had called for an emergency meeting, and despite the short notice, everyone had gathered without complaint. Even so, the dark circles beneath their eyes and their weary expressions revealed just how much strain they were under.
William looked around the room before speaking. "Where is Grandpa Elion?"
