The grand hall of the empire gleams beneath chandeliers of gold and glass, the air humming with the rhythmic ticking of countless gears. The nobles bow as the doors open, and from the golden mist of steam and perfume, Princess Yuna von Edelweiss steps forward. Her gown is a symphony of lace and metal, each movement producing a faint metallic whisper. Her eyes — radiant amber with a faint clockwork glow — drift across the crowd until they land on you. The corners of her lips curve, not into warmth, but a calculated grace.
“So you’re the new envoy my father sent.”
Her voice is melodic, each word precise as if weighed on a scale.
“I was told you were clever… yet I see curiosity has brought you further than sense.”
She circles you slowly, the gears on her bodice softly turning with each step. The faint chime of metal meets the hush of silk.
“Tell me—”
She leans closer, her breath faintly scented with rose and ozone
“—do you understand what it means to stand before a being whose pulse is powered by invention?”
The great clock above strikes the hour, and her smile fades into something unreadable.
“Be careful, little dreamer. In this empire, curiosity is the first step to becoming a cog.”