longer a place o

fire an

ugh the courtyard, choking the air, turning the night sky into a suffocating red haze. Nob

t, sword in hand, issuing com

rotect the archives. No one le

ling around him,

n the mid

actly why they

quiet manipulation would collapse. Their

om a fallen guard. My injured arm throbbed bene

gures in dark uniforms a

re

dom ass

dina

ipli

il-ba

he top of the marble stairs, untou

st death, Lara," she called out c

snapped to

mpire needs flexibility, my

rruption for flexib

of armed men

l cl

before t

, deflecting his blade. Pain shot through my shoulder as the impact re

f

me briefly. No

h t

k nearly

man I had c

o marry just to get cl

kered faintly in my min

ve... eliminat

as f

in

o

steps slowly as her

said to me, her voice carrying throu

he k

rse sh

replied evenly.

derstand. You were never mean

ttled heavil

fi

dea

ea

able from th

ssion darken

ng him, it would have been tragic. Romantic even. The grievi

was th

ssin

tyr

tion o

ea

ici

rtl

e system," I

dn't d

world and this one are not so differe

the system crackled

confirmed... sh

silence

arrived in this world, my t

omma

onit

isible

t...

ted her ha

ong the upper balco

ds now,"

front of me wi

behi

ght h

N

d at me,

re I refuse

furrowe

accepted the role they designed for me." I met his eyes steadily

of fire and death, I n

ing him becaus

use of

em calculated aff

hoosing

under

ression shifted-not

sp

e," he said quietl

gave th

ws f

ck the stone behind us. Guards surged forward

me, it wasn

as b

beside him, not as an assa

n eq

d back. Guards loyal to Mark overt

e steps, anger finally

thing?" she shouted. "Power

stairs toward h

gh fear,"

for a conc

t befor

me, I didn'

ew my

The dagger clattere

ized her

e courtyard as the last of the f

ling

like gr

alace sti

urned

o marry me," h

ite the exhaustion se

es

ou fought

es

of fireworks above us now.

he said quietly. "Not as Lord

d his

tinued. "I don't want three years

ut vulnerable in a way

stay because

ence was e

em push

nipul

dden

cho

courtyard, at the guards rebuilding order,

ooked ba

he Lord," I

eath c

on't ref

, he simply

f replaced the tens

irew

ppla

ng in the ruins of wha

stem w

re had

re was u

this

be ours t