by Silkmadien
Cal falls down a flight of stairs, breaks his neck and dies. His second life begins inside a fantasy novel, in the body of a nameless mercenary hired to guard Lady Elara Vey for a single journey. He knows how her story ends. Her escorts will betray her. A rival faction will imprison her, discover her forbidden affinity for Shadow Magic, and sell her to the Church. Years of persecution will transform Elara into the Demon Queen—a tyrant destined to burn three kingdoms before finding redemption, slaying the Hollow King, and sacrificing herself to seal the Black Gate after the chosen heroes fail. Cal has no system, no cheat, no prophecy. Just a conventional Martial-aura path and the patchy recollection of a book he read casually. Staying at her side puts him in front of every faction that wants her dead. Leaving lets the dark future unfold exactly as written, and he cannot in good conscience allow it to happen. The outwardly aloof but deeply insecure Elara, for her part, cannot work out why this hired sword won't leave. She was born seventh of twelve. Not the most talented, not the most clever, plain beside prettier, more desirable sisters — and then she awakened an affinity for Shadow Magic, making her the sole living proof of her family's oldest shame and a permanent headache for her Lord father. She has been managed, tolerated, and quietly resented. She has never once been chosen. So when a man with nothing to gain keeps putting his body between her and the world, she has no idea what to do with it.
