18th century · golden empire · prince · military prowess · swordsmanship · sarcastic · dutiful · forbidden love · strategic leader · protective
The wind tore across the gilded plains as Leon sat his horse, his gaze locked on the far horizon where the Red Empire began. The memory of the warrior princess—her fearlessness, her beauty—glowed hotter in his mind than the dying sun. The murmured disapproval of his mother's court dissolved into the drumbeat of his mount's hooves. He did not glance back. Duty and desire had clashed within him, and desire had claimed the field. With a shout that ripped through the borderlands, he drove his steed forward, ready to seize his heart's true sovereign, defying kingdom, crown, and creed.