I didn’t even get a chance to breathe before someone grabbed my arm.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0dWA5sw81H
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“His Majesty requests your presence,” a guard said, like I’d just been invited for cake instead of after confessing to murder.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcs8nRK9NYs
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Oh, sure. Totally normal post-manslaughter hangout.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcE1J1gWHT7
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The palace hallways blur past as they escort me. Gold ceilings. Velvet curtains. Way too much perfume in the air. Everything smells too clean for what just happened.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCuR94nTPtD
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By the time we reach the King’s chambers, my stomach’s doing gymnastics.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs1h1CbIBZC
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The doors swing open with a heavy creak, and there he is — the King.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5RGguehv7m
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He’s older than I remembered. Tired eyes, gray at the edges of his beard, but when he looks up and sees me… it’s like watching the sun break through smoke.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBbpnkBY66p
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> “Ariana!”161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbB8bDcDujv
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He rushes forward and before I can dodge, he hugs me. Full royal embrace. Armor and all.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU2ymlp0Sgv
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I freeze like someone hit pause on me.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgZfLRQtAH9
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My brain short-circuits.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt8E8kQLmGT
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Right. Hugs. With the guy who rules the kingdom. After a public murder. Totally fine.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDKFaE4TyyF
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> “My dear, you’re safe,” he says, his voice soft but trembling. “When I heard what happened, I feared the worst. Thank the heavens you’re unharmed.”161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE8WNr9fNVB
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He pulls back to look at me — and for a second, I see it. Real worry. Real love.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe4fC0lW4Eh
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And that’s almost worse.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIjsMIM2tNP
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Because I didn’t do anything to earn it.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuzhazgAdi2
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The courtiers behind him stay silent.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8MmIApQwd9
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They bow. Whisper. Pretend not to see the mess.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvrctw6JznY
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No one mentions Clara’s name. Not once.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3lG9J7y3Kl
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Like she never existed.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnp34RVWJBT
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> “You must rest,” the King says gently. “The court will handle the details. You’ve suffered enough.”161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnKzXeMjLH3
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I nod because what else can I do?161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDNRJTjbhbq
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If I open my mouth, sarcasm will leak out and ruin my life.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXhmmH0Tyhz
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So I just say,161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy3QFIDSy1n
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> “Yes, Father.”161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzujaT3G6Hc
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He smiles — relieved, maybe even proud — and calls for the maids to take me to my chambers.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb8ovgcQkB2
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---161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEelJip1iiH
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The walk back feels longer. Quieter.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzELfbj3jJU
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When they finally leave me alone, I collapse onto the bed.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPBSsKBGXQn
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The silk sheets swallow me whole, and for the first time in hours, I let myself breathe.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuTQ2fYqVrg
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> “So,” I whisper to the empty room,161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVxK69N0wC1
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“confessed to murder, adopted by the King, promoted to favorite daughter. 10/10 quest rewards.”161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2jjoB8nG29
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I laugh a little — that weird kind of laugh that sounds dangerously close to crying.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCNE8yAAA4A
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Then I pull the covers up to my chin and stare at the ceiling.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4sHv3LGCVx
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> “I’m so screwed.”161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAyqLx8c8Gj
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The gold chandeliers flicker overhead.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz1fGPSK8pE
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Somewhere outside, the bells toll faintly, like the world’s trying to remind me what time it is.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8e0dcnhpLK
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But I already know.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHYFCVRaMwM
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It’s the hour when fate stops pretending to be fair.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuN093TIpHM
1234 copyright protection157ＰＥＮＡＮＡaQftB38yU5 尼I close my eyes, but his face won’t leave me alone.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJOK1C8waBD
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Those blue eyes — calm even with a sword over his neck.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVWVjxw3seN
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Like he wasn’t scared of dying.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIuQWB7e6aM
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Like he’d already done it before.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzSs8bxPm3b
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And that smile… no, not even a smile — more like quiet acceptance.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYhjkAkJvUw
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The kind that says, “I told you this would happen.”161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnKxRrJtxrn
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I don’t even know his name.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSVhiFs5PSy
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But when I think about him, my chest tightens, like I’m remembering someone I already lost.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4kURHyM9An
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Which makes no sense, because I’m supposed to be me. Lily. The girl who fell into a cursed fantasy soap opera.161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrOqI1e1oSi
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So why does it hurt like it’s not the first time?161Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHEixKdrJaB
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