While Elena had spent the entirety of the previous night tossing and turning in a state of agitated reflection, Liam had woken up feeling remarkably invigorated. His sessions in the 'Path of Dreams' were proving to be a biological paradox; though his mind endured grueling battles within the dreamscape, his physical body emerged each morning with a clarity of thought and a sharpness of spirit that surpassed even his best days in his former life.
At the breakfast table, Elena’s seat remained conspicuously empty. Iris, her movements hesitant, informed Liam that the Mistress was 'feeling unwell' and had no appetite. Liam merely nodded, a faint, knowing smirk playing on his lips. Whether her illness was purely physical or a direct result of the poetic shock he had delivered the previous after
