18th September, 1829 BCE175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtGMNxMy6gy
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb0BKcGYBdm
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdaTdD1oyM4
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It’s Witch’s Festival Day.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm63kiAxEMY
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF6Joa73uxC
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0mArrAh7j9
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“Returned from where exactly?” I ask, sitting up. “Kidnapping? The afterlife? A badly coded mobile game?”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡItLnvbRAsG
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Her smile flickers. “You really don’t remember anything, do you?”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgQszz9HgnR
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“Not a byte,” I say.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKaAdsoCQYO
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnA8ozyRSlx
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“Today’s the Witch’s Festival,” she says softly. “We celebrate the day the darkness ended.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTo6D2IG68n
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I tilt my head. “Okay, sounds uplifting. Continue.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCZsXQ56Jh9
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7ExMhtSsLK
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“Diablo,” I repeat. “Subtle name choice.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlWUq66rEbO
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUbkiRrYAKY
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“Sounds like the type to skip brunch invites,” I murmur.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy1X8g3sc2p
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡztVRB2uPzI
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There’s a beat of silence. The air feels heavier somehow.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Br8Qgl9Jb
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEbM9eDyLy3
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4SOPWo99Xs
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Her tone softens, and for a second — just one — she looks genuinely sad.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA6r5MFYVvM
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Then it’s gone. The mask slips back into place.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP21oslkTB6
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“Get dressed, Ariana,” she says, standing up. “The people are waiting.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfRDhk2jr6d
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I watch her leave, the silk of her gown whispering against the floor.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUDJKOFLaZC
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The Witch of Darkness, huh?175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP5is6ppRej
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A sacrifice that ended a war.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ6hAT04PFC
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcSF2NqZ5r6
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“Great,” I mutter. “History lesson with ominous foreshadowing. Love that.”1234 copyright protection171ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ0yM4Hdu6w 尼

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