The circular street had filled long before sunrise.
Citizens stood shoulder to shoulder behind rows of city guards, all eager to witness the execution that had already become the biggest topic in the kingdom. Students from the academy occupied one side of the square, merchants had abandoned their stalls for the morning, and even people leaning from second-floor windows watched in silence.
At the center of it all stood the execution platform.
It had been built from thick oak beams, its surface raised high enough for everyone in the street to see. A short flight of wooden steps led to the top, where a single support beam rose overhead. From it hung a fresh hemp rope ending in a neatly tied noose that swayed gently whenever the morning breeze passed through the square. Two royal guards stood on the platform with spears in hand, while another waited beside the lever that would release the trapdoor beneath the condemned.
