The Human Emperor was striding toward Alexa with the confidence of a man who thought he was the main character of this story.
'Oh, you sweet summer child,' Pyris thought, watching the Emperor's determined march. 'You have no idea what kind of narrative you just walked into.'
The entire banquet's atmosphere shifted in an instant—not because of the Emperor's approach, but because someone else had just entered the scene with the timing of a perfectly orchestrated plot device.
Lekiza appeared directly in Pyris's path like she'd been waiting her whole life for this moment.
And holy shit, had she come prepared to help her father.
'Okay, that's not fair,' Pyris thought, his eyes widening. 'That's just showing off at this point.'
