Page 106 of The Alien's Cruel Starfrost Domain

I turn away, unable to watch anymore.

My hands won’t stop shaking, and I’m not sure if it’s from the cold or the horror of what I witnessed in the ballroom. Every time I close my eyes, I see Oriana’s face melting away in the dragon’s flames.

Movement catches my attention—two figures emerging from a side entrance. Even in the dim light, I recognize Ivrael’s tall form and the blood-red shimmer of Uanna’s gown. They’re speaking in low, intense voices, heads bent close together.

“You orchestrated all of this.” Uanna’s accusation carries clearly in the still morning air.

My heart pounds as I edge closer, ducking behind one of the stone planters that line the courtyard. The urge to confront Ivrael about what happened wars with my need to try to understand why he allowed his own people to be slaughtered.

In the end, curiosity wins out.

Uanna waits a few seconds more before speaking again. “The firelord’s attack wasn’t random at all, was it?”

Ivrael remains silent, but something in his stance makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up.

“Those were your ownpeople in there!” Uanna’s composure cracks. “Nobles of the Ice Court, servants who’ve been loyal to you for years—and you had them burned alive!”

“Some sacrifices are necessary.” Ivrael’s tone is cold, detached in a way that makes my stomach turn.

“Necessary for what?” Uanna demands. “What could possibly justify this?”

Frost crackles beneath Ivrael’s feet as he turns to face her fully. “I needed to be certain.”

“Certain of what?”

“Of her.”

“The human girl?”

My breath catches as I realize he’s talking about me. The memory of dragon fire washing over me without leaving a mark suddenly takes on new meaning.

Uanna lets out a harsh laugh. “That’s what this was about? You murdered half the court just to test some theory about a servant?”

“She’s far more than a servant.” Ivrael’s voice drops lower, and I have to strain to hear. “I needed to know if she truly carries the blood. A firelord’s flame was the only way to be sure.”

“The blood?” Uanna goes very still. “You can’t mean...”

“Royal blood.” The words drop heavily in the pre-dawn silence. “The ancient bloodline.”

Royal blood? What is he talking about?

“Impossible,” Uanna whispers. “The royal line died out centuries ago.”

“Did it?” There’s something almost triumphant in Ivrael’s tone. “Or did some of them escape to other worlds? To Earth, perhaps?”

My legs give out and I sink to my knees in the snow, mind reeling.

“And you think she...?” Uanna’s voice trails off as understanding dawns. “That’s why you bought her. Why you’ve kept her close all this time.”

“I had to be certain before proceeding with the next phase.” Ivrael starts pacing, his boots crunching in the snow. “The signs were there—her resistance to cold, the way she survived the undead’s touch, how quickly she learned our ways. But I needed proof.”

“So you arranged for a firelord to attack your own home?” The horror in Uanna’s voice mirrors what I’m feeling. “Just to see if she would survive?”

“No mere human could withstand a firelord’s flame,” Ivrael says. “Only one carrying the old blood could emerge unscathed.”

I press my hands against my mouth to hold back a sob as memories flash through my mind—the searing heat of the dragon’s fire, the way it had parted around me like water breaking against stone. At the time, I’d been too shocked to question it. Now the truth hits me hard, knocking the breath out of me.

“You’re insane,” Uanna breathes out. “If anyone discovers what you’ve done?—”

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