登入I'm really sorry to for not updating for about four days, I've just had a lot to cope with. Anyways, how's this chapter ? ~Author Leela 💙
Gertha was waiting inside the entrance, her hands folded and her face as neutral as ever."My lady," she greeted and took my bag without asking, hefting it over her shoulder.Then she turned and walked down the corridor, her footsteps soft on the stone, I followed closely behind.The palace was so quiet, that my mere breath felt too loud."The Queen has requested your presence," Gertha said."After you have settled.""Settled where?""In your room, it's the same one as before."We turned a corner. The only sounds that reached filled the air were our footsteps and the distant crackle of torches."Ophelia." My feet stilled. The voice was female, low, unhurried, a voice that did not need to rise to be heard. It came from somewhere to my left. Gertha stopped too, her back still to me.I turned my head in the direction the voice has come from.A woman stood a few paces away, her gaze focused on me. She was taller than I was, her posture loose and easy, one shoulder leaning against the wal
"You are going to be late," Pilar said from the doorway, her arms crossed and her hair still wet from washing."I am not going to be late," I answered, "the carriage is not even here yet."My mother stood behind her, wiping her hands on her apron."You packed everything?" my mother asked. "Yes," I replied."The book?" "Yes.""The salve?" "Yes, Mama."She nodded but did not look at me, her gaze fixed on the bag by the door, on the worn handle and the buckle she had fixed herself two winters ago.Pilar uncrossed her arms. "She will be fine.""You do not know that," my mother replied."I know her," Pilar said, looking at me. "She is stubborn. That counts for something."My mother finally turned, her eyes moving over my face, my coat, my hands. "You have everything.""I have everything."The carriage arrived then, the horses' breath fogging in the cold air while the guards sat up front with their faces blank. They did not speak, they never did.Pilar pulled me into a tight, brief hug. "Do
The fire had burned in the hearth, its dying embers casting a weak reddish glow across the large stone chamber.Shadows stretched long and unsteady over the wooden furniture and thick fur rugs. The air hung heavy with the mingled scents of spent passion; sweat, candle wax and something sweeter: sex.A single candle flickered on the bedside table, its wax dripping slowly onto the dark wood.Niverna lay completely naked on the tangled silk sheets, her skin still flushed and damp from their rigorous exertions. Her red hair spilled wildly across the white pillows.She watched through half-lidded eyes as Lucian rolled out of bed, his powerful, scarred body moving with that familiar grace that had clung to him ever since she knew him.He did not glance back at her for a second.He reached down for his discarded clothes scattered across the floor, muscles flexing under his skin.She stretched languidly, arching her back like a cat, then pushed herself up on one elbow. A small, knowing smirk p
Four days had passed by swiftly and I was up before the sun.The cottage was cold and quiet, as I moved through it carefully, not wanting to wake my mother, my feet finding the familiar floorboards that did not creak.I stood in the middle of the kitchen in my nightdress and practiced.The curtsy first. One foot behind the other, spine straight, eyes down.One. Two. Three. Rise.Hands loose at my sides. Chin level.Then the walk, legs moving back and forth at an unhurried pace.Next, I tried the bow, a quick dip of acknowledgment for council members, shorter and less submissive than the curtsy. It was a gesture that said I see you without saying I am beneath you.Then the address. The correct titles, the correct order of greeting, who outranked whom and what that meant for where my eyes went and whether I spoke first or waited.By the time the sun rose and the first sounds of the ridge drifted through the walls; a gate opening, someone calling a name into the early morning, my body was
It came before dawn and pulled me under completely. When it let me go, I was somewhere else entirely.I was small.I didn’t realize it at first until I saw my short-fingered, soft hands. Everything around me felt oversized and strange, and a helpless weight settled deep in my chest.I was sitting on a woman’s lap. I could only see the dark blue fabric of her dress and feel her arms wrapped around me, her heartbeat steady and strong against my back. The cloth smelled faintly of wildflowers and sun-warmed linen. The carriage jolted over uneven ground, sending blurred shapes of trees and hills drifting past the window.A broad-shouldered man sat across from us, his hands resting on his knees, face turned toward the passing world.“They will not follow this far,” the woman said quietly.“They always follow,” he answered, voice low and tired. “We both know that.”“Then we keep moving.”“There is nowhere left to go.”Her arms tightened around me, protectively.“There is always somewhere,” sh
The tournament grounds were packed.Warriors from across Silver Fang had gathered for the seasonal matches, a tradition as old as the pack itself. Nobles sat in the shaded stands, their fine clothes bright against the grey stone. Servants moved through the crowd with trays of drink and bread. The sun was high and hot, and the dust from the ring hung in the air like gold.Kaelan did not care for any of it.His opponent lunged. Kaelan sidestepped, caught the man's arm, and twisted it sharply. The crack of bone was audible even over the crowd's roar. The man fell hard, his face contorted, his hand hanging at an angle it was not meant to hang.He did not get up.Kaelan stood over him, chest heaving, his practice blade loose in his hand. He did not look at the man. He looked at the tournament master."Next," he said.The crowd went quiet.The tournament master hesitated. He was an old warrior, grey-haired and scarred, a man who had seen decades of blood spilled in this ring. He had never se







