Chapter 136: Lessons Bound in Ink and Expectation
Lyria's POV
I blinked at him.
For a moment, I was not entirely certain I had understood his question.
Was there… something else?
To me, scent had always meant something simple. Something bought. Something worn. Perfume, perhaps. Or scented soaps, if one could afford such things. Things I had never truly had access to.
Even the faintest hint of fragrance had always belonged to someone else.
Not me.
My fingers curled lightly against my skirt.
"I do n-not… u-understand, y-your Grace," I admitted softly.
Duke Thorncrest watched me for a moment, then tilted his head slightly, as though considering how best to phrase his thoughts.
"Apart from the wolfless," he said, his tone easy, "everyone carries a scent."
My breath stilled.
"And yet," he continued, one brow lifting faintly, "you look rather surprised by that fact."
Something inside me tightened.
Wolfless.
