Azel's eyes fluttered open in the real world.
He didn't recognize the ceiling.
The faint glow of icy crystals embedded in the stone walls gave the entire room a bluish hue, almost as if the moon itself had been trapped indoors.
The air was crisp, biting with a cold that was oddly refreshing rather than uncomfortable.
And then he realized — he wasn't alone.
In fact, his body was utterly trapped.
His arms were stretched wide across a bed that felt far too vast, yet neither reached the edge.
And atop his chest, curled like a kitten, was Lillia.
Her tiny hands clutched his tunic as she mumbled incoherently in her sleep, her head resting on his stomach.
To his left, Edna lay snug against him, her warm breath tickling his ribs as she snored faintly, her mature form pressed into his side with a softness that was… hard not to notice.
