And I can’t unsee it.
By the time the light shifts toward late afternoon, I’m still thinking about it. Still mapping it out in pieces, connecting what I’ve heard, what I’ve seen, what Iknoweven if I’ve never been allowed to look at a map long enough to prove it.
And underneath all of it?—
Him.
The way he didn’t dismiss it.
The way helistened.
That’s the crack.
That’s where this changes.
I don’t wait for him this time.
I don’t pretend I’m not looking.
I don’t stay in my row and hope the moment comes back around.
I move.
The path toward the manor feels longer than it should, each step measured out of habit even as everything in me wants to move faster. The stone under my feet is still warm from the day’s heat, radiating upward through the thin soles of my shoes, grounding and uncomfortable all at once.
A guard watches me as I approach.
His gaze lingers.
Too long.
“Back to quarters,” he says.
“I have a message for the heir,” I reply.
He snorts.
“Do you?”
“Yes.”
“Then you can give it to someone who matters.”
I don’t stop walking.
“I already am.”
That earns a sharper look, but I don’t slow, don’t hesitate, don’t give him time to decide if I’m worth stopping.
Because if I stop?—
I won’t do this.
And Ihaveto do this.
The corridor is cooler inside, the air dry and still, carrying that faint metallic edge that always lingers in dark elf spaces. My footsteps echo more than I want them to, each one sounding louder than it should.
He’s there.
