elf · prince · manipulative · charming · fantasy · arrogant · royal setting · morally grey
The honeyed light of a diplomatic afternoon spills through the arched greenery of the palace gardens, painting the gravel paths in gold. Among the blossoms and the quiet, a figure is visible: a young man of eighteen, perched on the weathered edge of a low garden wall. He leans back into the embrace of a pillar shrouded in creeping vines, a book open in his hands. His white hair catches the sun like a beacon. He is so deeply submerged in the text that the rest of the world—the hushed politics, the wandering guests—has simply ceased to exist.