Kazimir's body felt strange, unfamiliar. Every breath, every movement was alien, as though he were inhabiting a form that was no longer his own.

  His limbs felt both weightless and impossibly heavy, his senses heightened to an almost unbearable degree. He could hear the faint flicker of distant candle fmes, the slow, rhythmic creak of the castle settling, even the quiet hum of the very walls around him.

  Selis stood beside him, her tall, commanding presence steadying him as he struggled to find his bance. Without a word, she pced a firm hand on his shoulder, offering silent support.

  "Now that you are bound to the castle, you shall remain here," she said at st, her voice calm, measured. "I have already arranged a room for you, adjoining mine."

  They moved through the grand hall, past towering columns infused with swirling bck smoke, past statues and sculptures so lifelike they seemed to breathe. Heavy, velvet curtains concealed the windows, blocking out whatever y beyond.

  Each step proved a trial. Kazimir’s body faltered often, still adjusting to its transformation. Yet with every misstep, Selisara was there, her hand unwavering, her guidance effortless, the quiet poise of a knight long practiced in carrying burdens not her own.

  "You are progressing far better than I did when I got bound to the castle," she mused, her tone as serene as moonlight on still water.

  Kazimir looked up at her, the thought slipping from his lips before he could stop it. "You were bound to this castle too?"

  A pause, then a solemn nod. "Yes. I have endured this existence for centuries."

  Silence stretched between them as they continued walking, their footsteps muffled by the vish carpets beneath them. Along the walls, portraits of long-forgotten figures loomed, their painted eyes watching like silent sentinels.

  Kazimir’s mind swirled with questions. "Then... are you immortal? Does that mean I am as well?"

  Selisara’s gaze drifted upward, her expression unreadable. "In a way, all souls are immortal. They don’t fade when we die. They simply… move on."

  She paused, contempting her words as they passed beneath the flickering glow of an ornate chandelier. "So, yes. I am immortal. And so are you, though not in the same way."

  Kazimir frowned. "What do you mean?"

  She exhaled softly, as if drawing words from the depths of memory. "Should our bodies fall, reduced to cinders and ash, we shall rise again within these walls. The castle does not permit its chosen to fall. But death is not the only fate to fear."

  A shadow passed over her countenance, her pale silver eyes growing darker. "Beyond our world lie entities that defy understanding. They cannot destroy the soul, but they can corrupt it. Imprison it. Warp it into something unrecognizable."

  She turned to face him fully, her gaze sharp as a bde. "You are tethered to this castle by blood. I, by soul. That is our distinction."

  Kazimir digested her words slowly. "Then... if we ever encountered one of those creatures..."

  "You would be at risk," she said with quiet gravity. "My soul is sealed within these walls. Yours, however, remains exposed."

  At st, they arrived at a vast bck wooden door, its surface adorned with intricate carvings resembling the Umbrax royal crest. Selis pced her hand upon it, and from the point of contact, a silvery-white light began to spread, illuminating the engravings like veins of moonlight.

  Kazimir stared, transfixed, noticing his confusion, Selisara offered him a rare smile. "This is a security feature. Only those bound to the castle can open its doors."

  She pushed the door open for him, revealing a spacious, well-lit chamber. A grand silver chandelier bathed the room in soft light. The entire left wall was lined with bookshelves, a massive bck wooden desk sitting beneath them. A leather-bound book and quill rested upon it, a silver mp casting a warm glow over its surface. To the right, a burning firepce crackled, fnked by two plush couches.

  Above the mantle hung a shield with the crest of the Umbrax royal family on it

  Crossed behind it were two silver swords: one with a full moon pommel, the other with a crescent moon.

  At the back of the room, two more dark wooden doors stood side by side, both had had the same strange carvings, the one of the left of fmes, the one on the right of shadows. Between them loomed an ancient clock, not one that measured time, but one that tracked the position of the moon.

  Selisara closed the door behind them.

  "Welcome to your new home, my apologies for the mess. I don’t often have visitors. Please, make yourself at home."

  Kazimir moved to the couch with care. She remained close, steadying him until he sank into the cushions. His eyes drifted toward the crest.

  His gaze lingered on the shield above the firepce. "That’s the royal crest of Umbrax, isn’t it?"

  Selisara’s expression shifted, her voice quieter. "It was. Once."

  Sensing the discomfort in her tone, Kazimir decided to change the subject. "So… where’s my room?"

  She gestured to the two doors at the chamber’s rear. "Mine lies to the left. Yours to the right. Come."

  Selis guided Kazimir toward the doors, steadying him with a firm yet careful grip.

  Once again, she pressed her hand against the door, and like before, white light pulsed through the engravings resembling fmes, unlocking it with a quiet hum. The door swung open, revealing the interior of her chambers.

  At the back of the room stood a grand canopy bed, its silver-embroidered silk sheets shimmering softly beneath the dim light. To the left, a tall bookshelf loomed over a sturdy wooden desk, its surface neatly arranged with scrolls and ink. But what caught Kazimir’s eye was the figure standing to the right, a statue, nearly identical to Selisara in both form and presence.

  Wordlessly, she began removing her armor. One by one, the statue moved, accepting each piece and equipping it with silent grace. When she handed over the final piece, her sword, the construct stood sentinel, fully cd.

  By the time the ritual was complete, Selisara stood before him in nothing but her silver garments, the Umbrax crest dispyed proudly on her chest, her figure no longer hidden behind the weight of steel. The statue, now cd in full armor, loomed silently in its pce.

  She turned back to Kazimir, her expression as composed as ever. "This is where I rest. Should you need anything, you need only knock."

  She led him out of the chamber, to the door to his room, his one was engraved with carvings resembling shadows.

  Then she gestured for him to try opening it.

  “Now you try."

  Kazimir pressed his hand against the wood, but nothing happened. He frowned.

  Selis watched patiently. "You must focus on your connection to the castle. Feel it. Understand it. Become one with it."

  Kazimir closed his eyes, concentrating on the altar, the grand hall, the colossal door at the heart of the castle. Slowly, something stirred within him. A pulse, a thread linking him to the very walls around him.

  A soft glow spread from his fingertips, tracing the engravings on the door. The wood creaked and parted, revealing his quarters.

  The room mirrored Selis’s in many ways, a grand canopy bed with silver sheets, a wooden desk beside a towering bookshelf. But unlike her room, there was no armour-cd statue standing guard.

  Selisara noticed his gaze and gave a small, almost apologetic shrug. "Forgive me, those constructs are custom-made. I wouldn’t even know where to begin making another."

  Kazimir offered a tired smirk. "It’s fine. I never wore much armor anyway."

  Moving slowly, he approached the bed and sank into its silken sheets. The sensation was unlike anything he had ever felt, soft, smooth, yet strangely grounding. Sleep pulled at him almost immediately.

  Selisara stood in the doorway, watching him with an unreadable expression. "Before you rest, one st thing. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but all the windows are covered. For your own safety, do not open them. Never try to look outside without my permission."

  Kazimir frowned, about to ask why, but exhaustion overtook him.

  The st thing he saw was the flickering light of the chandelier before darkness cimed him once more.