Chapter 171

• Emilia’s POV
• The soft crunch of gravel beneath our shoes seemed to be the only sound as we strolled through the quiet park. It was one of those rare, clear nights where the stars seemed to spill endlessly across the sky, their light reflecting in the calm water of the small lake nearby. Alaric walked beside me, his hands tucked casually into his pockets, his posture relaxed in a way I wasn’t used to seeing.
• He wasn’t barking orders or strategizing with his men. There was no tension in his jaw, no furrow in his brow. Tonight, he wasn’t the commanding, calculating man I’d come to know. He was just Alaric.