TSTBL 00

Prologue

Once, this bridge had been a lively place, filled with countless tourists and the music of orchestras that would perform magnificent pieces at various spots along the way. Now, however, only desolate winds and a silent landscape lingered around it.

It had been a long time since anyone had seen snow due to climate change, but this place received a heavy snowfall in winter. As Rian let out a small gasp of delight at the year’s first snow arriving right on time and held out her palm to catch the flakes falling like flower petals,

“Excuse me.”

At the voice coming from not far away, Rian’s eyes froze.

“How do I get to the Imperial Palace?”

Nearly four years had passed, yet her instincts still remembered his low voice.

A beautiful man slowly approached through the white mist of his breath, dressed in the familiar uniform adorned with a wing-shaped pilot’s badge.

Everything about him was just as she remembered, yet there were differences.

The insignia on his epaulettes now bore a different rank. His chest was densely covered with medals. And, more than before, his entire presence radiated an intimidating and dangerous aura.

As Rian stumbled backward, barely managing to shake her head in refusal, the groceries she had been carrying fell to the ground. The ingredients burst and were crushed beneath her feet, leaving a complete mess.

After everything I went through to escape from that place back then…

Only now was I finally beginning to crawl out, little by little, from those hellish years.

It wasn’t difficult to climb onto the bridge, which barely reached her chest.

The man standing before her did not move an inch. He simply stood there, calmly observing everything she did.

Then, at that moment, a sudden gust of wind swept around her frail body as she glared at him in desperation.

Her long brown hair covered her face, and as her body slowly tilted forward, the only thing she regretted was that she could not see the expression on his face at the very end.

“I told you to pray that I would die instead, didn’t I, Rian?”

It was a movement far too swift to believe it belonged to a man who had always walked with such leisurely, unhurried steps.

In an instant, her delicate body landed safely within his firm embrace.

Then a voice as cold as frost descended over her.