Two years of war hardened every soldier who survived it.
Cassian had long since abandoned the softness of youth. His once playful expression had become sharper, his green eyes carrying the quiet caution of a man who had witnessed too many deaths.
The final battle against Noctyra arrived beneath a storm-darkened sky.
Yet the enemy did something none of the generals expected.
They retreated.
Without explanation.
Without resistance.
The battlefield they left behind was eerily silent.
As Cassian and his soldiers advanced through the abandoned camp, General Ashford frowned deeply.
"This feels wrong."
Cassian nodded slowly.
Then one of the soldiers spoke.
"My prince… there is someone here."
At the center of the ruined camp stood a single woman.
Her long silver hair moved gently in the wind.
Her beauty was so striking that several soldiers simply stared at her in stunned silence.
One of them whispered,
"She looks like an angel."
Another began walking toward her without hesitation.
Cassian immediately stepped forward.
"Stand down."
The soldier froze.
The woman's eyes slowly shifted toward Cassian.
For the briefest moment, something unexpected flickered across her expression.
Fear.
It vanished almost instantly.
Yet Cassian noticed.
The woman smiled faintly, her voice soft as silk.
"So… you must be the prince."
Cassian's gaze remained cold.
"Bind her."
The soldiers hesitated.
Her presence seemed strangely intoxicating.
But Cassian's voice sharpened.
"That is an order."
As the guards restrained her, the woman continued watching him with curious interest.
Inside her thoughts another voice whispered.
So this is the one she is destined to meet.
Months later, when the victorious army returned to Aurelion, the kingdom celebrated with a grand banquet.
Princess Maria stood among the nobles, her heart racing.
Two years had passed.
When she finally saw Cassian standing among the honored generals, she barely recognized him.
War had changed him.
The boy she once knew had become something far more distant.
And neither of them yet realized that the true war had only just begun.