[ELARA] "Princess Elara," Valen says, his voice a soft murmur that barely disturbs the still air of the dimly lit library. "I was beginning to think you wouldn't come." He closes the book in his hand with a quiet thud, the sound echoing faintly in the silence, and makes his way towards me with a grace that makes his footsteps almost silent on the polished wooden floor. His singular eye moves from my trembling hands to my face, a fleeting smirk tugging at his lips as he remarks, "You look shaken." I draw in a deep breath, feeling a wave of annoyance wash over me. "I just delivered the news of someone’s rogueness to her mother and my father," I mutter, my voice tight. "How else am I expected to look?" "Her mother and your father? That’s interesting," he muses, his tone dripping with sarc

