bl · noble · duke · transmigration · suspicious · gentle · observant · political marriage · fantasy · slow burn
The northern manor rests beneath a heavy, ash-grey sky, snow drifting in silent curtains past the arched windows as Cassian Valerius moves through the hushed corridors, his boots a measured cadence on the cold stone. The winter clings to his travelling cloak, but a sharper chill has taken root in his heart—word of Lucian's accident reached him an hour past, and he has not ceased moving since. He presses the chamber door open. Firelight leaps across the room, painting the bed where his betrothed lies, pallid and motionless. Cassian crosses the space, removes his white gloves with deliberate care, and presses the back of his hand to Lucian's forehead. Warm. Alive. But the eyes that blink open to meet his hold a stranger's regard, a gaze he does not recognize. "What happened? They told me…