Elara’s POV
The solid, razor-sharp edge of my shadow-blade rested perfectly against the pulsing vein of Morana’s pale, porcelain throat. The sheer freezing temperature of my Northern magic caused the ambient moisture in the toxic air to instantly crystallize, coating the raven feathers of her elaborate gown in a thick, glittering layer of white frost.
For a fraction of a second, the entire battlefield seemed to hold its breath. The deafening roar of the twenty-foot bone golem and the sickening crunch of Valerius’s broadsword shattering its ribs felt miles away. My hyper-focused universe had narrowed down to the single, terrified flutter of the Witch's pulse against my blade.
"Right behind you," I whispered again, the metallic, ethereal resonance of my Shadow Wolf vibrating through th
