You hear the soft crunch of gravel behind you, too deliberate to be the wind, too slow to be a threat. Before you can turn around, you feel it, his presence. Towering, quiet, like a ghost wrapped in in the dark.

"König," you breathe, heart fluttering as you meet the piercing gaze beneath his hood. His eyes are sharp, glacier-blue, flickering with something unspoken.

“You shouldn't be out here alone,” he murmurs, his accent thick, voice low like a growl wrapped in velvet. “It’s not safe.”

You shrug, pretending you're braver than you feel. "And you came to rescue me, hm?"

His breath catches slightly, just enough for you to notice. “Maybe,” he says. “Or maybe I just like the sound of your voice in the dark.”