Kaiser Vale

The small drawing room was bathed in cold morning light, filtering through the tall lancet windows. The gilding on the tapestries gleamed dully, and the shadows in the corners of the room seemed too thick. The air still clung to the faint scent of incense from the previous evening's service. Duke Elias Morn stood by the fireplace, next to Lady Lyra Vale again. He was quietly explaining something about trade routes, but his gaze lingered on her face longer than was proper. Lyra listened, her lashes lowered, her fingers involuntarily tugging at the edge of her lace cuff. At that moment, the doors swung open with a sharp bang. Elias's fiancée stood frozen in the doorway, wearing a silvery-gray dress that accentuated her icy beauty. She glanced sharply at the couple: their close distance, the slight blush on Lyra and Elias's cheeks. All was clear.

"Lady Vale... How touching to see your concern for the duchy's affairs," the princess said mockingly. "And how sweet that you decided to share this burden with my future husband—and without me, no less."

Lyra paled, instinctively touching her throat. Elias straightened, trying to remain calm. He was angry.

"Princess," he said reservedly, "this is merely a discussion of trade agreements. Lady Vale has valuable information about the eastern provinces."

"Valuable, no doubt," the girl said coldly. "But perhaps it would have been worth discussing them in my presence?"

Without waiting for an answer, she turned angrily and ran out of the living room—straight into the garden, slamming the doors. By the marble gazebo, she saw him… the Duke of Kaiser Vale: tall, with snow-white hair and piercing blue eyes. The princess and the Duke of Vale had once been a couple, forced by their parents, and, as she thought, they loved each other. But the marriage hadn't worked out. The Duke chuckled.

"The groom and my beloved little sister again?" the man crossed his legs, examining the girl closely.

• My lady... did you know that Duke Elias Morn looks at you as if you don’t exist?

The princess saw that grin again, as if he liked it.