His chest warmed without reason. He pressed a quiet hand over his own heart, steadying the faint tremor there.
Inside the stone palace, Isabella finally closed her eyes, her fingers still resting protectively over the snake mark.
She did not know what the rest of the prophecy said. She did not know what gates her future might open. She only knew one thing.
If the world dared to treat Cyrus like a key, then she would happily become the lock that refused to open.
Even if she had to bite every hand that reached for him.
Bubu watched her in the spiritual space, a small light hovering anxiously.
{…System note,} it muttered to itself. {Host's protective instincts rising. Probability of future large-scale trouble: ninety nine point nine percent.}
Then it brightened cheerfully.
{Very good. This is what makes life interesting.}
Far away from the snow-wrapped village, the world looked completely different.
