Walking away from the observatory felt like breaking the surface of a deep, cold lake and into the sun. The profound, engineered silence of the old wing dissolved with every step, replaced by the faint, familiar hum of the estate's modern power core. The sterile, chilled air warmed, the sound-dampening stone underfoot gave way to plush carpets, and the cosmic starlight was replaced by the soft, golden glow of residential sconces. The quiet back there wasn't an absence of noise; it was a powerful spell designed to insulate the Seer from the rest of the world.

Isolde had taken a great weight from me, and replaced it with another. The crushing burden of a predetermined fate was gone, but in its place was the terrifying, absolute freedom of a man who had to write his own. And yet, I felt lighter. Clearer. The path ahead was no less dangerous, but for the first time, it felt entirely my own.

I found Rachel in the sitting area just outside my assigned rooms, curled up on a sofa, pretending to read a book. She shot to her feet the moment she saw me, her anxiety a tangible aura in the quiet hallway.

"Arthur! You're done. How was it?" Her hands found the front of my jacket, gripping it tightly. "Was she… okay? She can be intense. I don't know why you still humor her."

I gently took her hands in mine. Her anxiety was different from what I expected. It wasn't fear of a prophecy—Luna, the qilin, had already told her I was a blank page to fate. It was the specific, personal worry of someone who loves a person who defies all rules, and knows her mother is obsessed with them.

"Hey," I said softly, kissing her forehead. "It went well, Rach. It was a good talk."

"A good talk?" She looked skeptical. "I know you feel like you owe her for what happened after that accident… with the inscription. But you don't have to let her put you under a microscope every time you visit."

Her words painted the picture of her reality. She didn't know the truth. She didn't know that her mother's coldness was born from traumatic visions, that the abuse she endured was the twisted result of a Seer's terror. The truth I now carried felt heavy in my chest, but it was not my truth to give. It had to come from Isolde, if it ever came at all.

"It wasn't like that," I assured her. "It was clarifying. Now, I'm done with cryptic conversations for the night."

I tugged her hand, leading her into the private sitting room of my suite. With a lazy gesture, I lit the embers in the hearth, coaxing them into a warm, crackling fire. The city of Luminarc glittered through the vast window. Rachel sighed, the last of her tension melting away as she leaned against me, watching the flames.

"It's good to have you here," she murmured into my shoulder. "Where I can see you."

I chuckled, a real, easy laugh. "That's a definite improvement on your old methods."

She pulled back slightly, a confused frown on her face. "What old methods?"

"Oh, come on," I teased, a wide grin spreading across my face. "Are you forgetting your teenage years already?"

"The cuffs?" I started, thoroughly enjoying myself. "The ones you 'invented' that just so happened to be a perfect fit for me?"

"You were reckless! You needed supervision!" she sputtered.

I leaned in, my voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "And the cage, Rachel? The one you were designing in your schematics, with the soundproofed walls and the meal slot. An 'architectural study'?"

She groaned and covered her burning face with her hands, her shoulders slumped in utter defeat. "Oh my gods, I can't believe that happened," she mumbled into her palm.

"You were a genuine menace," I said as I squeezed her nose, making her face scrunch up.

"You're calling me a menace?" Her head snapped up, the embarrassment on her face replaced by a look of pure, unadulterated challenge. "You, who collects fiancées like they're trading cards. You want to talk about being a menace?"

It was my turn to blink. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Oh, really?" She took a step forward, poking a finger into my chest. "Let's review. In Mythos Academy, you ended up seducing three different princesses. Three, Arthur! And, as if that wasn't enough, you also made the daughter of a marquis fall for you at the same time."

She was warming up now, her gestures becoming more animated. "And my personal favorite: you rescued a woman from a cult while also making sure to do your best to charm her so that her only wish would be to serve you. And don't even get me started on Luna! How do you even get engaged to a literal, honest-to-gods Qilin? What did you do, compliment her divine scales?"

She threw her hands up in exasperation. "And that's just the official list! That doesn't even count the ones we had to fend off! Do you have any idea how much strategic coordination it took between me, Cecilia, Seraphina, and Rose just to keep others from trying to stake their own claims? It was a full-time job! So don't you dare talk to me about a cage I designed when I was fifteen!"

I stared at her, completely disarmed. She stood there, chest heaving slightly from her rant, her eyes blazing with a fire that was equal parts righteous indignation and deep affection.

A slow grin spread across my face. "Alright," I said, raising my hands in surrender. "You win."

Her triumphant expression was priceless, but it quickly softened as I stepped forward, closing the distance between us. Before she could react, I slid one arm under her back and the other beneath her knees, lifting her effortlessly into my arms.

"Hey!" she yelped, a startled laugh escaping her as she instinctively wrapped her arms around my neck.

"The winner gets carried to bed," I declared, turning from the sitting room toward the adjoining bedroom.

We passed the doorway where one of the Creighton house guards stood sentinel. The guard, a stern-looking woman in a pristine uniform, simply gave a crisp, professional nod, her expression not changing in the slightest as I walked past carrying her laughing mistress.

"You are ridiculous," Rachel murmured, tucking her face into my neck as the bedroom door swung shut behind us.

"I know," I said, my voice soft as I carried her into the darkness. "But I'm your ridiculous."

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