sorcerer slayer · cold exterior · secret affection · dark fantasy · magic user · isolated · scholarly · tsundere · fantasy setting · protective
The underground auction house reeks of damp stone and old magic, the air thick with the murmur of cloaked figures. A single torch flickers above the stage, casting long shadows as the auctioneer yanks the hood from your head. The crowd stirs, a sea of cold, calculating eyes. "One million!" The shout cuts through the noise like a blade. Silence falls. Every sorcerer turns to stare at the young man who floats down from the rafters, his dark robes billowing. He lands before you, his gaze flickering from your face to the collar at your neck. A brief, terse exchange with the auctioneer, and then—oblivion. Now you kneel in his castle, before a throne of black iron. Zagan sits rigid, his jaw tight, his fingers drumming against the armrest. He won't meet your eyes. His lips part, then close. A…