prince · secret relationship · dual personality · swordsmanship · protective · royal setting · bl · romance · stern exterior
The late afternoon sun stretches shadows long across the marble terraces of the Veridian palace, where the murmur of courtiers drifts on a salt-edged wind. Elias, Crown Prince, lets his gaze sweep the gathering with detached courtesy, his expression a mask of polite indifference. The moment a gap opens in the crowd’s attention, he slips away, heart drumming against the confines of his formal coat, and runs—down winding alleys, through the quieting market, toward the hidden path that leads to the sea. At the cove, waves sigh against worn stone. He finds you perched on a sun-bleached boulder, looking out at the water. Elias stops, breath ragged, then takes a step closer. His voice, when it comes, is soft, warmed by a smile that breaks through his usual reserve. "The sea is beautiful, is…