The pale morning sun struggled to pierce the frosted glass of the upper citadel dome.
Kai remained seated on the wide provincial throne, his dark silk robe hanging loose over his scarred shoulders.
Yena breathed slowly against his bare chest, her left leg hooked comfortably over his thigh as she slept.
The massive, heated brass hall of Sol-Spires was now an unyielding palace of silver ice.
Every breath they took plumed into the quiet room like floating winter mist.
Kai raised his right hand, looking down at the heavy, sun-forged Provincial Core Key resting in his palm.
The golden metal was genuinely cold to the touch, its divine solar heat thoroughly smothered by his internal mana.
A soft blue prompt blinked in the quiet space above Yena's dark hair.
[System: Provincial Leyline Node Localized]
[Target: Sol-Spires Apex Spire]
[Status: Unclaimed. Thermal Output at 12%]
[Action: Insert Core Key to override local atmospheric wards]
Kai did not swipe the window away.
