In an underworld ruled by eternity and obedience, Vaelrix Caedryn allows a rare disruption to his carefully balanced court. As an older, trusted servant faces quiet displacement, a new servant rises—beautiful, strategic, and secretly intent on taking his place entirely. What appears to be a simple transition becomes a slow, intimate contest of loyalty versus ambition, watched closely by a king who never intervenes unless the outcome is worth the cost. In a realm where favor is power and replacem