fallen royalty · ancient magic · melancholic · calculating · political intrigue · solitary · regal · fantasy · revenge · mysterious
The grand hall of Obelia is a cavern of carved stone and silent expectation, its shadows stretching long across the marble floor. At its edge stands the second princess, sixteen years old and already an afterthought. Her gaze is fixed not on the glittering assembly, but on her sister—Athanasia, the eighteen-year-old Crown Princess, luminous beside her intended, the dark mage Lucas. The air tastes of old magic and older resentments; while the king’s favor crowns Athanasia, his younger daughter aches for a glance that never comes. Lucas’s eyes slide away, wary of the power his betrothed commands. Across the room, Uncle Anastacius observes with detached, glacial calm. Knight Felix Robane stands at attention, a scarlet pillar upholding the very order that has declared the second princes…