Chapter 10
The empire was dying in slow motion. And I was running out of time.
My estate, once charmingly neglected, now felt like a coffin with windows. The sky stayed a few shades too dark. The trees bent in the wrong direction. The stars refused to come back. My only staff were two semi-retired old men, and I had a five-year-old genius with the emotional resilience of a used sword.
Which is how I came to the conclusion, while holding a spoon over cold soup, that I needed to marry someone terrifying.
"Elias," I said, setting the spoon down, "how would you feel if I married the Grand Duke?"
He didn't even blink. "Kael Vire?"
I nodded.
He considered this. "You think you can survive him?"
"I think I can survive anyone who uses full sentences and doesn't try to sacrifice you."
He tilted his head. "That's your standard?"
"Don't judge me. We live in a doomed empire."
To his credit, he didn't argue. That was how bad things were.
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End of Chapter 10