18th September, 1829 BCE175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMkk8mv6s81
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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.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡffzJHOW7Wp
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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.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnvUcuyJr6l
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It’s Witch’s Festival Day.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJmLLSC4isP
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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.)175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡonCbXhAIJE
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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.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDaRXiW60Bo
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“Returned from where exactly?” I ask, sitting up. “Kidnapping? The afterlife? A badly coded mobile game?”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmLuKxozhn9
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Her smile flickers. “You really don’t remember anything, do you?”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkl80UOO75a
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“Not a byte,” I say.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDW9ey8oCx4
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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.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLUGkrFDHRp
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“Today’s the Witch’s Festival,” she says softly. “We celebrate the day the darkness ended.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSym37i5k6M
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I tilt my head. “Okay, sounds uplifting. Continue.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH9dZ7gy7W3
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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.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ97mthBncbs
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“Diablo,” I repeat. “Subtle name choice.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡym6ObhP2yw
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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.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrpOWhKF048
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“Sounds like the type to skip brunch invites,” I murmur.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡswrtT6nlUH
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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.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLPruVKooH6
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There’s a beat of silence. The air feels heavier somehow.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgK00HMkzq6
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I lean back, pretending to be casual. “So… you throw a festival for a witch who died saving everyone?”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWUsbG3uVdE
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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.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEe9JK5Ji7s
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Her tone softens, and for a second — just one — she looks genuinely sad.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEA9aZFULyj
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Then it’s gone. The mask slips back into place.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa9k4KTNpWT
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“Get dressed, Ariana,” she says, standing up. “The people are waiting.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxF9ZZYk1sd
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I watch her leave, the silk of her gown whispering against the floor.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQsZsEyRtXZ
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The Witch of Darkness, huh?175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJDaU18oMHI
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A sacrifice that ended a war.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWIoZxDoV6S
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I stare at my reflection in the mirror — at Ariana’s face — and a strange chill runs down my spine.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvcQm1N8fcv
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“Great,” I mutter. “History lesson with ominous foreshadowing. Love that.”1234 copyright protection171ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8yxmXLzSqG 尼

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