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.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWSrv6P2RnG
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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.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk7d1CiLiBT
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Then I hear it.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKjA3UjTuMv
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A shout.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1S7YaSFZQN
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Something crashing.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMHyDx7JypD
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A few people gasp—then the laughter dies.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqlECNYfI8K
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I stop chewing and look up. The air feels… off. Like everyone’s holding their breath at once.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdJKAv39ePI
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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.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe9eJkQqdUH
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And then I see her.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHXLbUxa12j
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Clara.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTHfc0SdeMG
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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.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKOOegj02ny
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I blink once. Twice. “No… no, no, no—”183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgYEZpGDm7e
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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.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVxYC0UtwVm
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“Clara?” My voice cracks. I shake her shoulder gently. “Hey. Wake up. You’re fine. It’s fine.”183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuGK6EQvNzw
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She doesn’t move.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYrCE2nRvSu
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Her chest isn’t rising.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu8gIeJwyFV
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I press my fingers to her neck. Nothing. Just cold skin.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjHjCcEQmLt
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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.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZNhVQ6NsdD
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Someone’s crying behind me. Someone else throws up.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEStQmsUoIS
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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.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr1THjXGrqo
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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.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1UwveOzbAp
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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.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjfNHGIgxC4
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And then—183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ941mFyuGSe
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those footsteps again.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYS5qCxxqN5
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Slow. Calm. Out of place.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ660kvQ1XMi
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I look up.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfJ7GYzzIES
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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.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjx75zTH0J9
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He just stands there, staring at me. Not the body. Not the guards. Me.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPfMVc2izOY
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And for a second, I forget how to breathe.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuRDzH50Gvb
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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.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkm2nurkwoT
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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.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM0ZgKrNeuR
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The screams vanish. The torches flicker and die.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9w07sLJmh5
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The floor disappears beneath me.183Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuffg9PpmxN
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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 protection179ＰＥＮＡＮＡNtHnjM9Kpp 尼

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