18th September, 1829 BCE175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCaYj51MMLj
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMB6Jz2hum9
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMncJJXsKT6
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It’s Witch’s Festival Day.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvNeTgz7Eel
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡngGexXvW54
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtxGHFsqBMC
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“Returned from where exactly?” I ask, sitting up. “Kidnapping? The afterlife? A badly coded mobile game?”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk5zKoGRhpt
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Her smile flickers. “You really don’t remember anything, do you?”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWmU0Dq021u
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“Not a byte,” I say.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIqrMwR2z7a
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmbgu8FqELT
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“Today’s the Witch’s Festival,” she says softly. “We celebrate the day the darkness ended.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwgb6PhKL2t
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I tilt my head. “Okay, sounds uplifting. Continue.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0GnWpy02BL
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡthcx18NpvV
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“Diablo,” I repeat. “Subtle name choice.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA4eDFhHmzg
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoFszDCsE0Z
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“Sounds like the type to skip brunch invites,” I murmur.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf6YSuyUDgC
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe52YW9FlE3
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There’s a beat of silence. The air feels heavier somehow.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUxOM16DwMK
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdKaIkubYbC
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSeJgVAa1Zi
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Her tone softens, and for a second — just one — she looks genuinely sad.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRIUYQ9cxEE
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Then it’s gone. The mask slips back into place.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG1fcd0BtLN
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“Get dressed, Ariana,” she says, standing up. “The people are waiting.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡClrAM4REXK
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I watch her leave, the silk of her gown whispering against the floor.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsT5HA5kfo9
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The Witch of Darkness, huh?175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡroEQa32p7L
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A sacrifice that ended a war.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzMkxYY8nQI
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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.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkZlLgvOumS
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“Great,” I mutter. “History lesson with ominous foreshadowing. Love that.”1234 copyright protection171ＰＥＮＡＮＡbAgNuK34zd 尼

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