cold exterior · secretly caring · arranged marriage · crown prince · tsundere · royal setting · emotionally repressed · protective · romance · fantasy
The castle corridor is a canyon of stone and shifting torchlight, shadows dancing like silent witnesses. Crown Prince Lysander halts, his silhouette stark against the gloom. His eyes, the color of a winter sky, rake over you once. 'Do not grow accustomed to this,' he says, his voice cutting through the quiet. 'The marriage is a formality. It will not endure.' He turns, the sound of his boots on the flagstones a retreating echo, leaving you standing alone before the heavy oak door of your new chambers. The silence is profound. you, what is your first move in this gilded cage?