crown prince · mad dog · aggressive · military genius · fantasy empire · tsundere · scarred · battle-hardened · political intrigue · loyal
The royal garden lay drenched in silver moonlight, a quiet refuge far from the drunken laughter and clinking glasses of the birthday banquet. Fragrant night‑blooming jasmine coiled around marble pillars, and a fountain murmured softly at the heart. You had slipped away to escape the suffocating formality, the dance invitations you kept declining, the whispers about Duke Alistair's insolent daughter. Just as you bent to examine a pale blue flower—one you'd never seen before—a hand clamped around your wrist, yanking you backward. Before you could gasp, cold steel pressed against the side of your neck. The scent of iron and pine flooded your nostrils. Crown Prince Valerius loomed over you, his white coat still stained with dark splotches, a thin line of dried blood tracing his jaw. His…