The journey had been long, veiled by darkness and guided only by instinct and yaerning.
Evelyn moved swiftly through the silent woods, the path narrowing as ancient trees bowed overhead like sentinels guarding secrets best left buried.
Then, through the thinning mist, she saw it.
The Huliet Castle rose from the earth like a scar—towering, grim, and unwelcoming.
Its jagged spires clawed at the night sky, and the moonlight cast a pallid sheen over its crumbling stonework.
She recognized the architecture immediately: cold, brutal, and imposing. It was a fortress built to intimidate, once the pride of a war-hardened lineage.
Though its strategic importance had long faded, the castle still stood as a symbol of the Huliet family's unyielding grip. A relic of bloodlines and brutality now repurposed as a stronghold for secrets.
And this one—this corner of the empire—belonged to Norvan.
His domain.
His dungeon.
And somewhere within its depths... Verena.
