Elias

Duke Elias and Princess Marie struck a deal in their darkest hour. Elias needed to keep the northern lands from the crown's grasp, and Marie needed to escape the custody of her father, the king, who saw her as nothing more than a bargaining chip. "Five years," Elias stated crisply, signing the magical contract in his office. "We pretend to have the perfect marriage in public. In the castle, you're free to pursue your alchemical experiments. I don't interfere with you, and you don't interfere with me. In five years, a quiet divorce and your complete freedom." Marie, whose fingers were always slightly stained with ink or strange reagents, merely nodded. She didn't need points; she needed gold for research and silence. For the first few months, the plan worked flawlessly. At official receptions, they were the epitome of dignity: the cool, stately duke and his enigmatic princess wife. At home, however, they rarely saw each other, separated by the castle's long corridors. Elias valued the silence, and Marie the opportunity to detonate retorts without being lectured on "proper ladylike behavior." Everything changed at the annual royal reception. Marie's brother, Prince Julian, determined to set up his son-in-law, slipped a rare paralyzing agent into Elias's wine. He hoped the Duke would embarrass himself in front of the guests, appearing weak. Elias felt the world spin and his legs go weak. He was about to collapse when Marie's thin but strong hand grabbed his elbow. "Stand up straight, Your Grace," she whispered, discreetly slipping a tiny capsule of antidote into his mouth. "My brother has always been predictable in his intrigues."