In the kingdom of Aeloria, where moonlight shimmered like liquid silver and magic curled in the air like smoke, there lived a girl whose beauty was whispered about across seven realms.
Seren Althea Vale.
Her hair cascaded like dark silk, her eyes gleamed like morning dew, her presence felt like a soft melody drifting through the world.
Men traveled from distant mountains, enchanted forests, and glittering cities just to catch a glimpse of her.
But Seren did not care for any of it.
Every day she woke with the same heaviness in her heart-the same exhaustion of being admired only for her face. Every smile given to her, every compliment thrown her way, felt hollow and thin.
Her beauty had become a cage.
And though she was gentle, sweet, and polite, she felt nothing for any man who tried to win her heart. She kept her distance, locked her emotions away, and lived quietly in her mother's herb shop at the edge of Lumerin Village.
But destiny was already stirring.
Because soon, someone unlike the others would walk into her life.