The dance ended in a swirl of moonlight and soft applause. Elara stepped off the floor, her partner already swallowed by the crowd. The moment she was alone again, the weight of a hundred gazes settled on her like a cloak she had never asked to wear. The ballroom hummed with whispers, the kind that slithered through the air like smoke, curling around her ankles and tugging at her nerves.
She inhaled slowly, keeping her expression calm. She had survived the first dance. She had survived the princes. She had survived the stares.
But the quiet did not last long.
The moment she turned, she felt it. Heat. Pressure. A presence closing in.
Riven sighed dramatically. “Ah. The walking furnace approaches. Try not to ignite anything important.”
Elara did not need to look to know who it was. Ther
