The hall’s loud. Too loud. Forks clinking, nobles laughing at jokes that aren’t funny, the smell of roasted meat thick enough to choke on. I’m just sitting at the far end of the table, focused on my food like it’s the only sane thing in this world.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9iHa9wNc2q
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Honestly, I couldn’t care less about whatever “festival” this is. Witches, blessings, dancing—whatever. My current religion is this plate of honeyed bread.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqmH9Ad6KrW
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Then I hear it.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIRrpU1lK3i
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A shout.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnOJ9ThMu1B
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Something crashing.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIji7DzdtcU
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A few people gasp—then the laughter dies.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡykgr9usF80
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I stop chewing and look up. The air feels… off. Like everyone’s holding their breath at once.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrc1AxqNzQr
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Another sound—someone yelling, then a chair scraping across the floor. I frown, wipe my mouth with the back of my hand, and stand. From where I’m sitting, I can’t see much—too many jeweled heads in the way—but I can feel the panic spreading.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ95V5AUbXd4
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And then I see her.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfwEUahTMr0
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Clara.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQDp9kiw3KA
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She’s on the floor. Dress torn, hair spilling out like spilled ink. There’s sauce—no, blood—on her chest. People are backing away, covering their mouths, screaming.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJCNkFtdCwd
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I blink once. Twice. “No… no, no, no—”174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFx49EmhPqh
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I push through the crowd, almost tripping on someone’s stupid dress train. When I kneel beside her, everything feels unreal. Her skin looks… pale. Too pale. Her lips are turning blue.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX8uIIUeXVS
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“Clara?” My voice cracks. I shake her shoulder gently. “Hey. Wake up. You’re fine. It’s fine.”174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaFYTkDK2WZ
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She doesn’t move.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQs1xJ0s9zz
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Her chest isn’t rising.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOB3pDaGxWX
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I press my fingers to her neck. Nothing. Just cold skin.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnZmMsg1l6r
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My stomach twists. I don’t even realize my hands are shaking until I pull them back and see the blood smeared on my palms.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyBFChOqZ4x
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Someone’s crying behind me. Someone else throws up.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq7x4faVXlC
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The hall is chaos. People are screaming, nobles tripping over each other to get away, guards shouting orders no one listens to. I can’t move. My knees are still on the floor beside Clara, who’s just… gone.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡodle4Bt0Yv
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I keep staring at her face — pale, soft, peaceful in the most terrifying way. Her eyes are half open, like she wanted to say something before the end.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDaZjiJT9bd
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Someone yells to “get the princess away,” but the sound feels distant, like I’m underwater. My pulse is pounding in my ears.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOJSQwYGryL
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And then—174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK5CzFQeYWw
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those footsteps again.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnNGClsnTGy
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Slow. Calm. Out of place.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK2ov3M8sX5
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I look up.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWFVlXosb2r
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He steps out of the crowd, golden hair messy and streaked with blood, eyes that sharp, unreal shade of blue that almost doesn’t belong in this world. Everything around him feels… quieter. The noise fades, the chaos dulls. Even the air feels heavy.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIGejJdvORR
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He just stands there, staring at me. Not the body. Not the guards. Me.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhRAKY5eOIU
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And for a second, I forget how to breathe.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8aEECY6fTj
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Something about him feels familiar in a way that makes my stomach twist. Like I’ve seen those eyes somewhere before — not here, not now, but in another life.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMQL7XMmygB
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My heartbeat slows. The light in the hall starts to bend, stretching like melted glass. His blue eyes shimmer — and suddenly everything around me blurs.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv63AxI4zWi
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The screams vanish. The torches flicker and die.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjdylImak45
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The floor disappears beneath me.174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgWNNVGqrQV
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174Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPAbhpmtdSx
And the last thing I see before everything turns black is his face — calm, distant — as if he’s been waiting for this moment for centuries.1234 copyright protection170ＰＥＮＡＮＡoz0ekbQQam 尼

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