As the battle raged on, with ice clashing against wind and crystal under the roar of the crowd, Kai's gaze wasn't on the fight.
It was on her.
Lira.
He'd thought he'd feel something else when he saw her again—relief, maybe.
The warmth of familiarity after years apart. They were childhood friends, after all.
First friends.
He thought they'd talk again.
Sit somewhere quiet, maybe. Laugh at dumb things. Make up for the lost time.
But now?
Now that she stood there, back straight and expression cold as ice... something twisted deep in his chest.
An ache—or maybe something worse.
He wasn't sure. Or maybe... he just didn't want to acknowledge it.
"Did you hear? Lady Lira got engaged to the Crown Prince of Vielmora Kingdom..."
Those words still echoed in his mind.
He told himself they didn't matter. That they were just... friends.
And for a while, he believed it.
The ache in his chest had dulled, faded, locked behind walls he'd carefully built over the years.
But now?
