The knocking came again - three precise raps that might as well have been nails in a coffin lid. Cel’s eyes tracked to the window. Second floor. Survivable drop if he needed to jump. His body could take the impact. The real question was whether he could make it across the grounds before they caught him. Whether running would make things worse than they already were. Whether worse was even possible.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKDTy1RvlUz
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“Celvian.” Instructor Saren’s voice carried that same clipped precision it always did. “I won’t ask again.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ466TnhabFt
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His legs moved without consulting his brain. Some distant part of him recognized that delaying would only confirm guilt, would give her reason to escalate. The rest of him was busy calculating exit vectors and wondering if Silent Moon could cut through iron bars.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvrve54Btmd
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The lock disengaged under his fingers. The door opened.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ34lJaaTkBY
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Instructor Saren stood in the hallway with her arms crossed, expression carved from granite. She looked exactly as she did during lectures - stern, uncompromising, wholly uninterested in excuses or explanations.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjtOjF3dSgn
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Behind her, the hallway stretched empty. No guards. No witnesses. No one waiting to clap him in shackles and drag him away.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ10SUdS5ycZ
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Just her.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuCIp2uEPJK
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“Inside,” she said. Not a request.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkvoGgaIMDu
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Cel stepped back. She entered without ceremony, closing the door behind her with a soft click that somehow carried more weight than if she’d slammed it.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyz1Ms1Qr9B
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She turned to face him fully. Her eyes swept across his face, tracking details he couldn’t name - the tension in his jaw, the way his hands hung at his sides, the careful neutrality of his expression.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoqCJ2HQIyo
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“Do you have any idea,” she began, voice dropping to something quieter and somehow more dangerous, “how close you came to ending your time at this Academy tonight?”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSyCTw6tMeC
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The words hit like stones. Cel’s throat worked but no sound came out.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiJzjOxzFoi
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“Violence between students is strictly forbidden. You know this. It’s foundational to maintaining order in an institution where every person carries divine power capable of killing.” Her arms remained crossed. “And yet you attacked another student. A noble at that.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡso1V0qjrYE
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Cel wanted to argue. Wanted to explain what Kyros had said, how he’d been pushed past boundaries.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpExE5T6brv
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But he kept his mouth shut.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxtOApSq0Ym
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“Lord Kyros suffered severe injuries.” Saren’s tone remained flat. Clinical. “The floor requires emergency repairs. Do you understand how serious this is?”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFxlog1Eoos
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Cel nodded once. Barely.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmDtWz3dJsu
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“I don’t think you do.” She took a step closer. "Under the laws governing assaults on nobility, you would be executed.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1TjCefVi1I
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Each word landed with measured precision, building weight rather than volume.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Wu2I8wLXS
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“You are a commoner with no family backing, no political protection, no influence beyond your own capability. One mistake - one moment of lost control - and everything you’ve worked for vanishes.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD6DKhfhvB8
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Silence pressed heavy between them.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjJPz1O5wUS
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Cel’s mind raced through implications. She was describing what should happen. What could happen. Past tense and conditional phrasing. Not what was happening.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmaDXR0ocvC
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“Fortunately for you, the young noble heirs present at the disciplinary conference showed remarkable restraint. They acknowledged that tensions exist between students of different standings. That in this particular instance, Lord Kyros may have contributed to the situation through his own behavior.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrE1hbN5qvw
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The words didn’t make sense. Noble heirs defending a commoner who’d attacked one of their own?11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRfbVZObCxE
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“You will not face consequences.” Her eyes bored into his. “But understand this clearly - if anything similar happens again, I will personally ensure you are removed from this Academy. Noble support or not. Are we clear?”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2vxOvhd9cB
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Cel’s voice returned in a whisper. “Yes.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR0XscyC9jx
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“Louder.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnxAfPDi5Z2
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“Yes, Instructor.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl7LsFvFQKI
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“Good.” She turned toward the door, then paused with her hand on the handle. “Control yourself, Celvian. You’re better than this.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD1XexSsg8A
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The door opened. Closed. Her footsteps receded down the hallway.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU3ZA53A8zw
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Cel stood frozen in the center of his room, staring at the space where she’d left.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpl995gj6Y0
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That was it?11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuv1HRLsiGp
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A scolding?11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwf2AQrGLV0
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His mind tried to process what had just happened. This couldn’t be the end of it. There was no way a commoner could put a noble through a floor and walk away with a warning.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHnXKGPbz1l
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Unless—11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5ZjUQsraZ9
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Esrin had intervened again. She must have done something.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWo1GXj4uPt
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But she’d left the Academy weeks ago. Returned to her duties with the Chosen Legion, or the Reckoning, or whatever else occupied someone of her standing. 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNj0Z4zTQYA
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So how?11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ12hkjD6CDo
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Movement in the hallway. Running footsteps, lighter than Saren’s measured stride.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvNhb3Yf8qy
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Cel’s body tensed automatically, preparing for whatever came next.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH0gyRvsmgb
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The door burst open.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡERZ3R4pOns
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Lior crashed into him with enough force to stagger them both backward. Arms wrapped around his chest in a grip that bordered on desperate, wheat-blond hair pressed against his shoulder.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfU9GMMtcRi
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“I thought—” Lior’s voice broke. “When I heard what happened, I thought they’d take you away. I thought I’d never—”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG75U1CKjuy
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The words dissolved into something between a sob and a gasp. His entire body shook.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8bdo5beAi2
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Cel stood there with his arms hanging uselessly, completely unprepared for this. For genuine fear on his behalf. For someone caring enough about his survival that the possibility of losing him produced this reaction.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡguDfGwXkSo
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He raised his hands slowly, awkwardly, and returned the embrace. Lior’s trembling gradually subsided, though he didn’t let go.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO1Y1tdGom2
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“What did she say?” The question came muffled against Cel’s shoulder. “What happens now?”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmQWPKG9SXu
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“Nothing.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtYNwPoOZWL
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Lior pulled back enough to look at his face, sky-blue eyes red-rimmed and disbelieving. “Nothing?”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFK4D8ugA7v
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“Nothing”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbF0oxv1rq7
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Lior shook his head, struggling to process. “That—That can’t be, right? You attacked Kyros. Everyone saw the aftermath. How is it just nothing?”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0X9VGVuGqD
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Cel had no answer. The same disbelief churned through his own thoughts in circles that led nowhere.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBIou0BoIpX
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“I don’t understand either,” he said finally.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxTp2pXK8EK
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They stood in silence, Lior gradually releasing his death grip and stepping back to a more reasonable distance. His breathing had steadied but his expression remained troubled, working through the same impossible calculations Cel had attempted moments before.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsFPpLNuhou
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“What happened?” Cel asked, his voice steady despite the turmoil swirling in his mind.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpVWMARcV40
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“You just attacked a noble!” Lior stared at him in disbelief. “How can you not—” 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWDb0jH89bH
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Cel raised a hand to interrupt, catching Lior’s gaze. 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq6tgEM3KoT
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“I meant afterwards,” he clarified, his tone more composed.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlomtgCj4nA
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Understanding flickered across Lior’s features, the urgency in his posture easing as he processed. 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8iqYHx6WHC
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“Oh,” he replied softly, taking a breath. 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzr5dH8iJkF
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“I...” His hands moved restlessly, trying to organize thoughts that clearly didn’t want to organize. “I don’t really know much.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJGEVvVSvah
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“They brought Kyros to the healer immediately. His face was... bad. Really bad. Blood everywhere.” Lior’s voice dropped. “Everyone was talking about it. About how you’d put him through the floor. About what would happen to you.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYuYtNPCyPp
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He paused, swallowing hard.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEWqjvz0ya6
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“Then the instructors cleared everyone out. Told us to return to our rooms. But I stayed close. Tried to hear what was happening.” His gaze shifted, not quite meeting Cel’s eyes. “They held some kind of conference. In the headmaster’s office, I think. I couldn’t get close enough to hear details.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6WlD9r13fx
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“Who attended?”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzSANcuMdbN
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“The instructors. The Academy head. And the noble heirs. All of them. Kyros - after the healer stabilized him. Sylvaine Grovethorn. Cordelia Tidecall. Owen Peakscale. Percival Tempest. And Hestia Mortveil.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8torTZ3Nyg
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The name landed with particular weight.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE6wF9FKLCW
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Cel’s thoughts immediately tracked to her. Hestia.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPPRIHPVWVI
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Had she done something to help him? Spoken in his defense somehow during that conference?11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrmNhzZSitx
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But why would she?11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvqdv2aVMUt
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She was suspicious of him at best, actively hostile at worst. She had no reason to protect him. No incentive to risk her own standing by defending a commoner who’d attacked a noble.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr6pNgfHw6i
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“Cel?”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwiMwkrL2Zf
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He blinked, awareness returning to find Lior watching him with concern.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjK7pULGMKr
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"Are you okay?" Lior fell silent, studying whatever he'd caught in Cel's expression. 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOgIxPDI0BR
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“Yes. Just thinking.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGBUNpDSFnB
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“About what happened?”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡloW4EZTssy
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“About why it didn’t happen. Why I’m still here instead of in a cell.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtkqYTNZl9W
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Lior’s worry deepened. “Does it matter? You’re safe. That’s what matters.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfH88R4TAPk
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The simple certainty in those words made something twist in Cel’s chest. Lior genuinely believed that. Genuinely cared only about the outcome rather than the politics behind it.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeqCUZOGGeR
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“You’re right,” Cel said, though the words felt hollow. “Thank you. For… waiting. For...” He gestured vaguely, unable to articulate what he meant.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkSC0fZHPUA
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“You’d do the same for me.” Lior’s voice carried absolute conviction.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5xjQGsaJcG
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Would he? Cel wasn’t certain. Self-preservation had been his primary instinct for so long that genuine altruism felt foreign. Uncomfortable.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzK0FwoS1a5
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But he nodded anyway. Let Lior believe it.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYkumYNl7SC
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They talked for a while longer - meaningless reassurances, speculation about what the noble heirs had discussed. Eventually Lior left, mumbling something about exhaustion and needing sleep. 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWtElmyCrvc
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Cel waited until his footsteps faded completely down the hallway.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡktKygjhbfT
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Then he left his room too.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjq5KYmJozV
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The dormitory was quiet - most students were already asleep or at least pretended to be. The hallway where he’d attacked Kyros showed fresh repairs, new boards replacing the shattered section. Someone had worked quickly to restore order.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHt4GGPWGgm
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He took the stairs down, crossed the grounds toward the training area with moonlight painting everything in shades of silver and shadow.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFAhHWCbkqj
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The training grounds were empty except for one figure.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxteRcxKJYe
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Hestia.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVy7bntDG9Z
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She moved through a sequence of exercises - not meditation this time, but physical conditioning. Push-ups executed with perfect form, her body rising and falling in controlled repetitions. Sweat dampened her shirt, her black hair pulled back to keep it from interfering.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0PnbxNvHqQ
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Cel approached slowly, boots crunching against packed earth.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡctrenLsJFd
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She noticed him before he’d closed half the distance. Her body stilled, arms locking in the up position. Then she pushed herself to her feet in one fluid motion, turning to face him fully.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡflZU0tygxl
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“Celvian.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZZXQ5tBuJJ
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“Hestia,” he replied, the syllables barely breaking the silence yet carrying an undeniable weight. 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX3sgUMD9dE
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He could feel the intensity of her gaze cut through the shadows of the night. The air crackled with unspoken words, thickening between them like the tension before a lightning strike.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡABbeiEo8zT
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“What did you do?”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaFS2MJlajV
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