18th September, 1829 BCE173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2lPMrxG8e4
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The morning light spills into my room like melted gold. The air hums with the kind of excitement you can almost taste — laughter echoing from the courtyards, bells ringing in the distance, and the faint smell of sweet smoke drifting through the windows.173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9G4rOp8Lbk
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Outside, servants rush around hanging purple banners and garlands of blue lilies. Musicians tune their harps, and someone’s arguing about where to put the fireworks. The whole palace feels alive.173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2ZebhF5yzq
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It’s Witch’s Festival Day.173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr04jvgxrc7
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I’ve never seen anything like it — at least, not that I remember. (Then again, my memory is a pretty suspicious blank, so that’s not saying much.)173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHgAVAZSnRa
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Clara walks in without knocking — because of course she does — wearing a pale lavender gown and a perfectly practiced smile. “You should be getting ready,” she says. “The whole kingdom wants to see the princess returned.”173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOjChTI79Jw
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“Returned from where exactly?” I ask, sitting up. “Kidnapping? The afterlife? A badly coded mobile game?”173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6pZzAyiIIx
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Her smile flickers. “You really don’t remember anything, do you?”173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKMCNWEtrWU
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“Not a byte,” I say.173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8z65zF3LDO
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She sighs — that elegant, exhausted sigh people do when they’re trying not to strangle you. Then she sits beside me on the bed.173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqrf4zVTckf
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“Today’s the Witch’s Festival,” she says softly. “We celebrate the day the darkness ended.”173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK9CK1jb4pZ
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I tilt my head. “Okay, sounds uplifting. Continue.”173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBgkNx3qn7K
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Clara folds her hands in her lap, eyes distant. “Long ago — centuries before us — there was a war between humans and demons. The Demon King, Diablo, rose from the abyss and declared the age of man over.”173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1iiQDWLE3c
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“Diablo,” I repeat. “Subtle name choice.”173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3J0lNAUDpp
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She ignores me. “The world was drowning in chaos. Then came her — the Witch of Darkness. Some say she was human. Some say she wasn’t anything at all.”173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH6D8x4jzck
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“Sounds like the type to skip brunch invites,” I murmur.173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm1o2H2jdvQ
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Clara glances at me but continues, voice lowering. “She was powerful enough to rival gods themselves. And yet… she chose to end it. She sacrificed her soul to seal Diablo forever. The war ended, but so did she.”173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOfFHAMITa7
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There’s a beat of silence. The air feels heavier somehow.173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaJx6rvq1yY
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I lean back, pretending to be casual. “So… you throw a festival for a witch who died saving everyone?”173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmXW0x0X51Q
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“Yes,” Clara says, looking toward the window. “To remember her. And to remind ourselves that even light can be born from darkness.”173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdFyz0D00CF
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Her tone softens, and for a second — just one — she looks genuinely sad.173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6n8QTE5YR5
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Then it’s gone. The mask slips back into place.173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJUKOarq9xq
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“Get dressed, Ariana,” she says, standing up. “The people are waiting.”173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl1wzm96GX8
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I watch her leave, the silk of her gown whispering against the floor.173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEaAZv6YcKW
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The Witch of Darkness, huh?173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzAV99GoqTB
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A sacrifice that ended a war.173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYlnRwLVB08
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I stare at my reflection in the mirror — at Ariana’s face — and a strange chill runs down my spine.173Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmArGAWLZlG
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“Great,” I mutter. “History lesson with ominous foreshadowing. Love that.”1234 copyright protection169ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5hvSloC1RN 尼

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