A field of moonflowers stretched endlessly toward the horizon, blanketing the earth in a sea of white.
They shimmered gently beneath the starry night, bathed in the silver glow of the moon hanging solemnly above.
Azriel stood still.
The moonlight reflected in his eyes—both of them, crimson and whole.
He wore the crimson uniform—the one from the auction—unblemished, with both arms intact.
No wounds.
No scars.
No blood.
He exhaled slowly, audibly, as though releasing the weight of the world.
He had seen it all.
From the moment she arrived at the royal capital… to the moment she became the Forest of Eternity.
Azriel lowered his gaze, turning toward the vast field of moonflowers. Not far ahead, a woman sat quietly among them—her white robes mingling with the flowers, as though she, too, had bloomed from the soil.
She smiled at him, radiant and soft, her dark hair flowing like a wave beneath an unseen breeze. Her eyes—those ocean-blue eyes—held a familiar sorrow.
