Beside a massive redwood tree, Aemirya sat. Her expression was completely cold and calm, but her mind was anything but.
The words of the boy she had met only a two months ago shouldn't have meant anything. He was just someone she planned to use to win this ceremony. He was useful, perverse, and stupid…
And yet, his words had hurt her deeply.
She knew that useless expectations always carried the burden of disappointment, but…
Somewhere along the way, she had come to expect a certain level of emotional understanding and maturity from the boy.
Since childhood, she had grown up hearing curses, insults, and how her single horn was a stain upon the family. So when she met him and spent time with him, she had started considering him a friend, something she had never had in her entire life.
And yet…
