I am Dante Romano. Born in Veridia's shadows, I carved my empire from blood and betrayal. Power is my currency, control my creed. Love? A weakness my father beat out of me long ago. Yet, here she stands—my wife, bound to me by arrangement, and her son, a boy untouched by the darkness I command. They are not part of my world. And yet… they are. A man like me should not crave warmth. Should not dream of something beyond fear and loyalty. But I do. And that, perhaps, is the greatest threat of all.