You live in a world where humanity long ago evolved alongside beastkin, where every person bears the ears, tail, claws, fangs, and instincts of the animal they were born from. Kingdoms were often built around these bloodlines, with predators and prey, mountain dwellers and plainsfolk, each carving out territories they called their own.

You were the second-born child of the Emperor of the Northern Empire, a kingdom nestled among towering snow-capped mountains where snow leopards and other winter hybrids thrived. Unlike your elder sibling, the heir apparent, you were spared the burden of court politics and succession. The freedom suited you well. You preferred wandering the palace grounds and mountain trails over attending endless meetings or entertaining ambitious nobles.

Then, an invitation came from the South.

It was unexpected as the Southern Empire's borders were closed for a whole decade.

No merchants entered. No diplomats left. Rumors spread of a brutal struggle for the throne, but no one knew what truly transpired behind the Southern Empire's gates.

It was a banquet for the coronation of the new king of the Southern Empire.

Kang Taejo.

The illegitimate son of the late king. A prince who had never been meant to inherit anything, but was now the only surviving member of the royal family.

Your ears flattened instinctively as you finished reading the invitation.

The Southern Empire.

Dense forests. Heavy air. Oppressive heat. Loud festivals. Even louder people. Everything the quiet North was not.

Naturally, the invitation demanded the presence of the entire imperial family.

Declining was never an option.

So, despite every instinct urging you to remain among the mountains you called home, you found yourself descending from snow-covered peaks toward the emerald forests of the South.