18th September, 1829 BCE184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWR8Wi2f2YV
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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.184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCMYdxjeNjo
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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.184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPL3gkEZrOm
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It’s Witch’s Festival Day.184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu6IeeuvnJ0
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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.)184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbbgUqW6jKU
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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.”184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTGzsWguZ69
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“Returned from where exactly?” I ask, sitting up. “Kidnapping? The afterlife? A badly coded mobile game?”184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh9CDyEkPe9
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Her smile flickers. “You really don’t remember anything, do you?”184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbs85dRGIi1
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“Not a byte,” I say.184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmxO2y8rLI0
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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.184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡthnGGAhUjz
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“Today’s the Witch’s Festival,” she says softly. “We celebrate the day the darkness ended.”184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNpw2X46hzs
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I tilt my head. “Okay, sounds uplifting. Continue.”184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6ke2wSGxTT
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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.”184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkxVjOmWcvr
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“Diablo,” I repeat. “Subtle name choice.”184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvDeokvj0Tl
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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.”184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfxqf2PQ4PJ
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“Sounds like the type to skip brunch invites,” I murmur.184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP8s5AjuQmu
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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.”184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKS4fCKyyZ9
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There’s a beat of silence. The air feels heavier somehow.184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLlUhaHu352
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I lean back, pretending to be casual. “So… you throw a festival for a witch who died saving everyone?”184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDb3tSHxXTc
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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.”184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIf6WKU8GeP
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Her tone softens, and for a second — just one — she looks genuinely sad.184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFx7gbTLKMF
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Then it’s gone. The mask slips back into place.184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp67Rdqqds1
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“Get dressed, Ariana,” she says, standing up. “The people are waiting.”184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq8DsDqQ8bh
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I watch her leave, the silk of her gown whispering against the floor.184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDHHXyWcTUx
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The Witch of Darkness, huh?184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9GOSh9QGTn
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A sacrifice that ended a war.184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyyTD229oVD
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I stare at my reflection in the mirror — at Ariana’s face — and a strange chill runs down my spine.184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAPvQxImqAe
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“Great,” I mutter. “History lesson with ominous foreshadowing. Love that.”1234 copyright protection180ＰＥＮＡＮＡhtWpDadA8s 尼

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