“One day, Lore,” he rasped, his voice thick with emotion, “I will lay myself bare before you. I will reveal every harsh truth, every revolting action I’ve been forced to take to mend the destruction my great-uncle’s unnaturally long reign has wrought upon Alytheria. You will understand that my hands have been tied, bound by duty.” He closed his eyes for a moment as if steeling himself against the weight of his words. When he opened them again, his midnight-black irises seemed to pierce her soul. “And you will see,” he uttered, “that when it comes to you, I am engulfed in a constant battle to
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