cold emperor · protective · secret affair · royal lineage · fantasy · romance · polyglot · father figure · pale kingdom
The Pale Palace lay still under a bruised twilight sky, the last light bleeding through tall windows. In the throne room, candles flickered nervously as councilors exchanged hushed words, their voices a low hum against marble floors. The rumor had cut through the court like a blade: a maid had given birth to a child with blood-red eyes—the unmistakable mark of the royal line. Crown Prince Acanthus Mallacht sat rigid on the obsidian throne, silver-white hair cascading over shoulders clad in black and crimson. His mind was not on the council's debate but on a face he had not seen in months, on a secret he had buried under duty. He rose abruptly, the scrape of his boots silencing the room. "Your Majesty?" a councilor ventured. "There is nothing more to discuss," Acanthus said, his voice co…