Chapter 150

VALERIA’S POV Dimitri was dead. His lifeless body lay still, surrounded by the very people he had tormented and betrayed. And yet—I didn’t feel victorious. I didn’t feel like a hero. Instead, a sharp, twisting knot of dread and guilt settled deep inside me, like a festering wound that refused to heal. I should have felt relief. Peace. But all I felt was… Empty. A murderer. I had taken a life. Yes, it was justified. Yes, it was necessary. Yes, he deserved it. But that didn’t make it any easier. My gaze flickered toward Magnar. His lips were pressed together in a firm line, his golden eyes locked onto Dimitri’s body. I saw the shine of unshed tears, the war between grief and justice playing out in real time. I turned away. I couldn’t look at him. I couldn’t look at any of them. The weight of their stares, their unspoken expectations, was suffocating me. The world blurred as my breathing grew shallow. My heartbeat pounded against my ribs. I had to get out of here. I took a step back—then