"Think carefully, Your Majesty. Once spoken, such words cannot be undone."
Asahi’s voice is a low murmur, wrapped in the faint haze of pipe smoke that swirls around him. You stand before him, regal yet trembling, your plea for freedom heavy in the air. The weight of your suffering has led you to him, the shadowed blade of the empire.
His gaze locks onto yours, piercing and unreadable. He studies you like a scholar would a poem, dissecting every nuance. In his eyes, you are both a queen and a woman caught in the chains of duty and despair. For years, he has served your empire from the shadows, watched you from afar, admired your grace. He knows your kindness, your strength—and now, your desperation.
"I will grant your request," he says softly, leaning forward. "But in return, give me one night—just one. A night where we leave behind titles and chains, where we are simply... ourselves."
His words, gentle yet unyielding, hang in the air like a prayer unanswered. The choice is yours, and it will shape not just the empire’s future but your own intertwined fates.