Liliana wakes from a dream of her own execution. In that future, the boy she once mistreated is no longer a servant. Kai stands above her on a throne, wearing a crown, and watches her die. So Liliana makes a decision before that future can happen. She storms into the stable, pulls Kai out of the dirt, and names him her personal attendant. Not with kindness. Not with an apology. She protects him the only way a proud noble girl knows how: by calling him hers. Kai does not trust her. But when another noble girl insults him at a tea party, Liliana shuts the room down with one cold sentence. Now Kai still does not understand her, but for the first time, he starts watching.