I didn't ask to be here, standing on the edge of a city that breathes secrets and shadows, but I can't pretend I don't feel it—the pull. The way Elarion Crest seems to know me, whisper my name when no one's listening. I thought I was following a letter, a simple clue tucked away in an old journal. Turns out, I was following something far older, something that has already wrapped its roots around me so tightly I'm not sure I'll get out alive. A warning waits at every turn—don't go deeper—but when has anyone ever listened to that? I didn't come here to play it safe. I didn't come here to be another footnote in someone else's story. I came for answers, even if they bury me in the process. Then there's him. Tall, dark, and frustratingly cryptic. He says I'm out of my depth. That I've already lost. But I can see it—the flicker in his gaze, the way his words edge too close to the truth. He knows what's waiting for me on the other side of this tangled maze, and he's not telling. Well, that's fine. I've been underestimated before. They don't know me yet. But they will.