Surrendered To The Lord Of Sin

A small smile tugged at Lucrezia’s mouth. "I shall try to behave."

She gave a harmless look. "See that you do."

For the first time that evening, Lucrezia felt her chest loosen. She had been so focused on escaping the discomfort of Vaeron’s chamber that she had not realised how badly she needed a moment of ordinary companionship.

Nalia did not know who she really was. She did not know about her mother, her mission, or the secrets hidden beneath the name Anastasia. And perhaps that was precisely why it was so easy to speak with her.

Was it terrible of her to want something like this? Just an ordinary companion where she could be a normal person around? Not with a title hanging above her head, or a duty following her wherever she went? Was that selfishness? Or was it stupidity?

Nalia moved toward the chest and pulled out a clean nightdress. "I can find you something to sleep in, if you like. It might be a little short, but it should fit."

"Thank you. That would be wonderful."

While Nalia searched through her things, Lucrezia sat on the edge of the bed. The mattress dipped beneath her weight, and she rested her hands in her lap.

Her thoughts returned to Vaeron. She wondered whether he was still awake. Whether the exhaustion had finally overcome him. Whether he had gone back to the Elders or remained in his chamber.

And, despite herself, she wondered whether he was angry with her.

She had entered his bathing chamber without permission. She had touched him, pulled him from the water, and panicked when she could not find a pulse. Then he had seized her wrist, and she had fled at his command.

She could not decide which part troubled her most. Perhaps it was the look in his eyes.

They had been so bright, so unnaturally red, that for a moment she had not recognised the man standing before her. She had known him to be dangerous. She had seen what he could do. She had watched him kill without hesitation.

But she had never seen him look quite like that. The trial had been different. Then, he wasn’t close.

It frightened her in a way she could not easily explain.

And yet, when she remembered the scars across his face, the exhaustion in his movements, and the way he had sunk beneath the water, another feeling rose to meet the fear.

Concern.

She had been worried about him. She still was.

Lucrezia frowned faintly at her hands. It was a strange thing to care about someone who had given her so many reasons to be afraid.

"Are you sure everything is all right, my lady?" Nalia’s voice brought her back.

Lucrezia looked up.

The servant stood before her, holding a folded nightdress. Her expression was gentle, but her eyes were observant.

"Yes," She answered.

Nalia tilted her head slightly. "You seem troubled."

Lucrezia accepted the nightdress and ran her fingers over the soft fabric. "It’s been a long day."

She smiled. "That it has."

"I think I simply need some rest,"

Nalia nodded, though she seemed to recognise that there was more to it than that. She did not press the matter. Instead, she returned to the table and lit the candle, allowing its small flame to spread a soft amber glow through the room.

"Then rest," She said. "Whatever is troubling you can wait until morning."

Lucrezia looked at her. For a moment, she wanted to tell her everything.

She wanted to explain how strange it felt to live among creatures who could kill her without a second thought. She wanted to tell her about the fear she had carried since childhood, about the secrets she had been forced to keep, and about the impossible task she had been given.

But she said nothing. There were too many things she could not afford to reveal.

Instead, she offered Nalia a grateful smile. "You’re very kind." She admitted.

The girl shrugged, suddenly appearing embarrassed by the compliment. "I’m only giving you a place to sleep."

"Sometimes that’s enough."

Nalia’s expression softened.

Outside, the wind brushed against the window. The candle flickered, casting moving shadows across the walls. Somewhere in the distance, a bell rang once, its low note travelling through the castle before fading into the night.

Lucrezia listened. She thought of the incident at the fair again.

And then she thought of the book Greed had given her. The words she had read returned to her with uncomfortable clarity.

’One of the Sins fell in love with their kind.’

A Sin.

A witch.

She had been taught that witches were extinct, that their powers were abominable, that they had threatened the Realm itself. Yet the book suggested something far more complicated. Something that had been deliberately cut from history.

If a Sin had loved a witch, then perhaps the stories she had been taught were incomplete. Perhaps they had always been incomplete.

Lucrezia looked toward the door. Not tonight, she thought. For now, she had a room, a candle, and a little peace. And for the first time all day, she could sit without feeling as though she were waiting for something terrible to happen.

At least, she hoped she could.

Because somewhere beyond the eastern wing, deep within the castle’s ancient stone, a faint vibration passed through the walls.

It was so slight that Lucrezia barely noticed it.

Nalia did. She stopped folding the linens and looked toward the floor.

"Did you feel that?" She asked.

Lucrezia turned to her. "Feel what?"

Nalia hesitated, then shook her head. "Nothing. Probably the wind."

But Lucrezia had felt it too. A strange, almost imperceptible tremor beneath her feet. It was gone before she could make sense of it.

What was that? She thought.

She looked toward the window, where the snow continued to fall against the dark glass.

For a moment, she had the uncomfortable sensation that something on the other side of the castle had just become aware of her, but then the feeling vanished, and the room fell quiet again.𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢