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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmF2MurQ9G9
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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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwffUo34fIw
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Then I hear it.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNtDwMI203q
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A shout.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeeOW2zVpRp
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Something crashing.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoqyBJRa3UJ
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A few people gasp—then the laughter dies.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHorc2wf1yO
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I stop chewing and look up. The air feels… off. Like everyone’s holding their breath at once.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUTvMHOv4dC
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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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCyDHNF64TB
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And then I see her.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJmqVhikFuq
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Clara.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGfFdEnSB3A
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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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH3h6A2T73M
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I blink once. Twice. “No… no, no, no—”162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXu2fWXtuu4
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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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYnNDMMSgUV
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“Clara?” My voice cracks. I shake her shoulder gently. “Hey. Wake up. You’re fine. It’s fine.”162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRiW3zQzoVA
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She doesn’t move.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzeGKyNJfEq
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Her chest isn’t rising.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBLBPcRSes5
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I press my fingers to her neck. Nothing. Just cold skin.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuBCcAauTbi
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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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ30be0HJcoX
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Someone’s crying behind me. Someone else throws up.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbD43yAlHHx
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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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI4ec94x0Sr
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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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoezE0uLlIf
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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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQEUZmPLt4q
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And then—162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgqIlYuvo9H
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those footsteps again.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu3TzC0snEO
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Slow. Calm. Out of place.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8rPauTGy2e
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I look up.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM55EPaPe3P
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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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQLQqoWx8E1
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He just stands there, staring at me. Not the body. Not the guards. Me.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ09HlddSYtV
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And for a second, I forget how to breathe.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi9mch1l4IL
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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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡng1Kb1MQZ1
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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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9cIKSB4s6w
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The screams vanish. The torches flicker and die.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡImsGnmX2uy
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The floor disappears beneath me.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ36m5zwc5P
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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 protection158ＰＥＮＡＮＡHOC9hnbirQ 尼

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