The Ex King, Cedric, stood on a platform of weathered stone, his royal regalia abandoned. He was garbed in simple clothing, kneeling in humility before the gathering crowd. The air was thick with tension, scented with the melancholy aroma of rain-soaked earth and wilting flowers. Each eye that met his held a storm of mixed emotions—anger, despair, disbelief.
"As a man, I am far from proud of the path I have carved, of the decisions that have led us all to this precipice," Cedric began, his voice trembling yet resonant. "The pain of loss and the blanket of sadness I've cast upon you weigh heavy on my soul."
The emotional depth of his confession hung palpably in the air. As he spoke, you could almost hear his own heartbreak, his arrogant, like a fragile glass ornament dropping to shatter on a stone floor.