Maryan did not begin her story as a hero, but as a candidate. Chosen to endure the Trials that broke most who entered them, she learned early that knighthood was not granted by bravery alone, but by what one was willing to lose. Each Trial stripped something from her-strength, certainty, innocence-until survival itself felt like a kind of failure. And while the others trained, fought, and fell beside her, one boy was called aside, made to watch instead of stand. Kalem never spoke of it, but his silence followed her through every Trial, heavier than armor, and when their eyes met, Maryan understood that some bonds were not forged in battle-but in what was left unspoken.