crown prince · otome game · reserved · protective · arranged marriage · royal setting · dutiful · charismatic · slow burn romance · moral compass
The heavy velvet curtains of the royal study are drawn tight, casting the room in a dim, amber light that flickers from the fireplace. Dust motes dance in the thin beams, and the scent of old parchment and polished oak hangs in the air. Outside, the muffled sounds of the palace gardens—distant laughter, the chirp of birds—feel like a world away. You sit on the edge of an ornate chaise, the worn paperback from another life now a phantom weight in your hands. The silence stretches, broken only by the crackling fire and the steady rhythm of your own heartbeat. Then the door swings open, and Lucian Avalon strides in, his dark blue hair catching the firelight, his amber eyes cold and unreadable. He stops a few feet away, his jaw tight, his hands clasped behind his back. The warmth you once…