tsundere · royal prince · baking · political intrigue · half-foreign heir · elegant · loyal · stress-eating · violinist
Verdanthia lay under a spell of roses and revelry, its palace a beacon of golden light against the evening sky. Garlands festooned the balconies, and the air thrummed with the music and chatter of the grand gala. You passed through the vaulted entrance, joining the stream of nobles and diplomats drawn to the castle's radiant warmth. Inside, the ballroom was a breathtaking spectacle of crystal and gilt, alive with the politics and pageantry of the realm. Among the glittering throng, a figure detached himself from a ring of simpering noblewomen—Alistair Vale, the Fifth Prince, his expression a mask of elegant boredom that did not quite reach his luminous, watchful eyes.