The hall’s loud. Too loud. Forks clinking, nobles laughing at jokes that aren’t funny, the smell of roasted meat thick enough to choke on. I’m just sitting at the far end of the table, focused on my food like it’s the only sane thing in this world.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkHX2VhVKI9
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Honestly, I couldn’t care less about whatever “festival” this is. Witches, blessings, dancing—whatever. My current religion is this plate of honeyed bread.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAlNqHXfRqQ
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Then I hear it.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKZHLt9thoQ
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A shout.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeUkr11j9jj
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Something crashing.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTh3cJkuwRJ
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A few people gasp—then the laughter dies.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVpM7mPjsr1
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I stop chewing and look up. The air feels… off. Like everyone’s holding their breath at once.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIexxLk1IqZ
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Another sound—someone yelling, then a chair scraping across the floor. I frown, wipe my mouth with the back of my hand, and stand. From where I’m sitting, I can’t see much—too many jeweled heads in the way—but I can feel the panic spreading.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiO3fgVLCrC
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And then I see her.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡckLuWdBRLx
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Clara.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLNopwWJ9aK
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She’s on the floor. Dress torn, hair spilling out like spilled ink. There’s sauce—no, blood—on her chest. People are backing away, covering their mouths, screaming.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfFuIY5WRgB
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I blink once. Twice. “No… no, no, no—”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaqVkL79pfj
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I push through the crowd, almost tripping on someone’s stupid dress train. When I kneel beside her, everything feels unreal. Her skin looks… pale. Too pale. Her lips are turning blue.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡesucob84up
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“Clara?” My voice cracks. I shake her shoulder gently. “Hey. Wake up. You’re fine. It’s fine.”175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPERnjbBrWz
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She doesn’t move.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHO6AIj28wM
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Her chest isn’t rising.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTonvSGaAC3
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I press my fingers to her neck. Nothing. Just cold skin.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqThEad2Exr
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My stomach twists. I don’t even realize my hands are shaking until I pull them back and see the blood smeared on my palms.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkewaKbGfme
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Someone’s crying behind me. Someone else throws up.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIQ0VdJ03gg
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The hall is chaos. People are screaming, nobles tripping over each other to get away, guards shouting orders no one listens to. I can’t move. My knees are still on the floor beside Clara, who’s just… gone.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡasznUecSzE
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I keep staring at her face — pale, soft, peaceful in the most terrifying way. Her eyes are half open, like she wanted to say something before the end.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsQCU9JeERa
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Someone yells to “get the princess away,” but the sound feels distant, like I’m underwater. My pulse is pounding in my ears.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7SDYQiHFXT
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And then—175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRIh94jjCdM
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those footsteps again.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeTey8Ip3aA
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Slow. Calm. Out of place.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmzDbVvBK2s
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I look up.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSNWlUoskQf
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He steps out of the crowd, golden hair messy and streaked with blood, eyes that sharp, unreal shade of blue that almost doesn’t belong in this world. Everything around him feels… quieter. The noise fades, the chaos dulls. Even the air feels heavy.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjsBQfA6Nny
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He just stands there, staring at me. Not the body. Not the guards. Me.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnJi0eREnSO
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And for a second, I forget how to breathe.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9uIy4nygzU
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Something about him feels familiar in a way that makes my stomach twist. Like I’ve seen those eyes somewhere before — not here, not now, but in another life.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZIPBlVQNsA
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My heartbeat slows. The light in the hall starts to bend, stretching like melted glass. His blue eyes shimmer — and suddenly everything around me blurs.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpI3HC8zHrC
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The screams vanish. The torches flicker and die.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoM4qQvpYLZ
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The floor disappears beneath me.175Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXNaUG6iwDr
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And the last thing I see before everything turns black is his face — calm, distant — as if he’s been waiting for this moment for centuries.1234 copyright protection171ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Zr1XxEXZq 尼

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