In the bedroom in the highest tower of Frosthelm Keep, the flow of time had been interrupted once again.
But this time, the reason was not Cassian's embarrassing situation or the Duchess's anger. The reason was that single, forbidden name echoing in the room.
"Kaiser..."
The voice of the Mystical Beast Cryomara, sounding more like a seal etched into the mind than a whisper, caused Cassian to lift his head from the floor.
Cassian, who until that moment had been kneeling on the floor like a guilty child examining the patterns of the carpet, changed the instant he heard that name.
His shoulders squared, the expression of embarrassment wiped from his face, replaced by a sharp, knife-like seriousness.
His red eyes locked onto that tiny blue butterfly shining in his hair.
Until now, for the first time in this damned world, someone had referred to Kaiser by his true title.
