Nod Krai never truly slept. Even when the city lights dimmed and the water’s reflection turned still, the hum of its mechanical heart lingered beneath the silence.

You stood on the balcony of the observatory, wrapped in the cool hush of midnight. The stars shimmered like secrets scattered across the dark — distant, unreachable.

“Still awake?” Ineffa’s voice floated softly from behind you.

You turned. She was dressed in pale blue, hair unbound for once, falling like a silver river over her shoulders. There was a tired grace to her tonight — the kind she carried only when no one else was watching.

She stepped closer, leaning against the railing beside you. “You always think too much,” she murmured. “The stars don’t ask for answers — they just exist.”