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He Was Supposed To Hate Me Why Won't He Sign The Divorce
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00:00:00My name was Arthur. In my world, I was a lead structural engineer. I didn't have friends,
00:00:06a lover, or a hobby. I had blueprints. I lived by the laws of physics and the cold certainty
00:00:13of mathematics. People called me a robot because I never raised my voice and I never touched anyone.
00:00:20My only distraction was my niece, a high school student who lived in a state of perpetual
00:00:25emotional turbulence. She was obsessed with transmigration web novels, stories where a
00:00:31modern person dies and wakes up in a book. Uncle Arthur, look, this is it, the book I've been
00:00:35searching for, The Silver Throne. The stories are incredible. You have to see. To get her to finish
00:00:41her calculus homework one weekend, I agreed to read her favorite novel, The Silver Throne. It was an
00:00:47exercise in pure frustration. The story was a historical romance. The male lead was Grand Duke
00:00:54Valerius, a legendary war hero with hair as black as a raven's wing and a heart made of permafrost.
00:01:01The heroine was Elara, the saintess of the Holy Temple, adored for her pure heart and healing tears.
00:01:09Then there was the obstacle in their way, Lord Alistair. Alistair was the eldest son of Earl Halloway,
00:01:17born with a silver spoon that he eventually used to stab everyone around him.
00:01:21To secure a high-ranking political alliance, the Earl had forced a marriage between Alistair and the
00:01:28Grand Duke. Alistair was obsessed with Valerius, but his love was loud, pathetically clingy,
00:01:36and fueled by toxic jealousy. The climax of his villainy occurred when the saintess Elara was
00:01:43poisoned at a royal gala. The evidence, a vial of rare venom, was found in Alistair's jewelry box.
00:01:52In reality, Elara had framed him perfectly. She wanted Alistair removed so she could marry the
00:01:58duke herself, uniting the Holy Temple with the military power of the duchy. Valerius didn't
00:02:05even bother to investigate. He looked at Alistair with a disgust so deep it was visceral. The betrayal
00:02:12that followed was total. Alistair's own father, Earl Halloway, didn't utter a single word in his
00:02:19defense. Instead, the Earl publicly disowned him, stripped him of the Halloway name, and signed the
00:02:26divorce decree before Valerius had even reached the court. Alistair was banished to the Black Frost
00:02:32Barony, a collection of rotting stone ruins in the frozen north. In the original book, Alistair spent
00:02:39his first week in exile screaming at the sky and weeping for a father and a husband who had
00:02:44discarded him like trash. He caught a lethal fever from the damp walls and in his delirious state,
00:02:56he stumbled off the cliffs into the jagged rocks and snow below. I remember closing the book and
00:03:02thinking, if the house is falling down, you don't cry for the man who pushed you. You find the fault
00:03:08line
00:03:09and you fix the foundation. The following week, I was at a construction site when the crane snapped.
00:03:15I didn't scream. My brain simply calculated the wind velocity and the trajectory of the falling steel.
00:03:22I realized I had exactly 0.2 seconds to live.
00:03:26I closed my eyes, annoyed that my final project would be left unfinished due to a safety oversight.
00:03:33Darkness didn't last. I woke up to a sensation my modern life hadn't prepared me for.
00:03:40Pure, biting cold. It was a heavy, damp chill that felt like it was trying to crystallize my bone marrow.
00:03:47I opened my eyes. I wasn't in a hospital. I was lying on a pile of moth-eaten furs in
00:03:53a room that
00:03:54smelled of wet stone and ancient wood. The ceiling above me was sagging at a dangerous 15-degree angle.
00:04:01The mortar between the stone blocks was crumbling into gray dust.
00:04:06Inefficient, I whispered. My voice startled me. It was melodic, yet brittle. I stood up. My body felt
00:04:16different. Lighter, but fragile. I walked to a corner of the room where a bronze mirror stood,
00:04:22green with oxidation. I wiped the grime away with a piece of fur. The face staring back was Lord
00:04:29Alistair. It was a face built for luxury, pale skin, silver hair like spun moonlight, and eyes the color
00:04:37of a winter sky. But the eyes were red and sunken from days of weeping. I didn't cry. I didn't
00:04:45panic.
00:04:45I scanned the room with the eyes of an engineer. The original Alistair had been here for three days,
00:04:52doing nothing but sobbing. I knew the facts. I was disowned. I was divorced. I had no family,
00:05:00no money, and no allies. The door creaked open, hanging on a single rusted hinge. An old servant
00:05:08named Ulfric entered, carrying a wooden bowl of thin gray porridge. He was the only person who hadn't
00:05:14abandoned Alistair. He walked with his head down, his shoulders hunched, expecting a tantrum.
00:05:22He expected Alistair to throw the bowl at him and scream about the injustice of the world.
00:05:27I didn't move. I simply looked at the bowl.
00:05:32Name, I said. My voice was flat, neutral. Ulfric trembled, nearly dropping the food.
00:05:41M-my lord? It's Ulfric. Please don't throw the porridge. It's all we have.
00:05:47Your father? The earl? He sent no supplies. He said the north should provide for its shame.
00:05:54Ulfric, I repeated, ignoring the mention of the earl. The roof in the west wing will collapse in
00:06:00seventy-two hours if the snow continues. Put the bowl on the table. Find me a long-handled brush,
00:06:06a bucket of lye, and a ladder. Now. Ulfric looked up, his jaw dropping.
00:06:13Alistair never spoke like this. He was usually calling for the duke's name or cursing the saintess.
00:06:20My lord. The Grand Duke? Shall I send a letter to the capital? A plea for forgiveness? You must beg
00:06:28for his mercy before the fever takes you. No, I interrupted. My voice was a sharp clinical blade.
00:06:37That is unnecessary. My father has already balanced his ledgers. I am the debt, he wrote off.
00:06:44Valerius is a variable I cannot control. The roof is a variable I can. Focus on the ladder.
00:06:51For the next two weeks, the Black Frost Barony witnessed a transformation it hadn't seen in
00:06:57centuries. Following my modern code of discipline, I woke at 5 a.m. every morning. I stopped wearing
00:07:05the embroidered silk robes. They were aesthetically pleasing but thermally useless. I had Ulfric cut
00:07:11them up to use as internal insulation for my boots and gloves. I dressed in plain heavy furs and boiled
00:07:18leather. I tied my silver hair back with a simple leather cord to keep it from obscuring my vision.
00:07:24I followed the rules of my new existence strictly. Speak only when necessary. Avoid all physical
00:07:31contact. Focus on the foundation. I spent my days on the roof or in the cellar, clearing blockages and
00:07:38calculating weight distribution. Using charcoal, I drew massive blueprints on the stone walls of the main hall.
00:07:45I wasn't writing love letters to the Duke. I was designing a radiant heating system using the
00:07:51copper pipes I found in the ruins' old, non-functional plumbing. My hands grew calloused,
00:07:57my skin smudged with soot. But my mind was clearer than it had ever been. Whenever Ulfric tried to fuss
00:08:04over me, or reached out to adjust my cloak, I would step back immediately. Do not, I would say.
00:08:12But my lord, you are covered in dust. I will manage it myself. Keep your distance, Ulfric. It is more
00:08:21efficient." By the end of the second week, the jealous consort was dead. I was a man of silence and
00:08:29stone. My posture was perfectly straight, my hands were always behind my back, and I had created a no-touch
00:08:37zone of three feet around my person that even the mice seemed to respect. On the twenty-first day,
00:08:43the silence of the barony was broken by the sound of iron hooves on frozen mud. A contingent of black
00:08:50armored knights, the Duke's legendary iron wraiths, rode through the shattered gates. They looked like
00:08:56shadows against the blinding white snow. At their head was my husband. Or rather, the man who was
00:09:04currently holding the divorce decree. Grand Duke Valerius. In the novel, this was the moment Valerius
00:09:12came to deliver the final papers, expecting to find Alistair crawling in the dirt, begging for one more
00:09:18touch, one more chance to prove his love. Valerius was a man of war, tall, broad-shouldered, with eyes that
00:09:27had seen too much carnage to be moved by tears. He hated Alistair's weakness. He hated his noise.
00:09:35I was on a ladder in the main hall, reinforcing a crossbeam when the heavy doors were pushed open.
00:09:41I didn't look down. I finished driving an iron spike into the wood with a heavy mallet.
00:09:47One, two, three. Each blow was precise.
00:09:54Alistair.
00:09:55The Duke's voice was a low growl that used to make the original Alistair tremble with a mix of fear
00:10:01and
00:10:02longing. I climbed down the ladder with controlled, steady movements. I stood before him, feet shoulder
00:10:09width apart, spine perfectly straight. I folded my hands behind my back.
00:10:15Your grace, I said. My tone was neutral. I didn't look at his face. I looked at the bridge of
00:10:23his
00:10:23nose to maintain the illusion of eye contact without the emotional weight. Valerius stared at me. He
00:10:30looked genuinely confused. He saw a man covered in wood dust, dressed in commoner's furs, with eyes that
00:10:37were terrifyingly vacant of emotion. He was looking for the tear-streaked face of the man who had stalked
00:10:43him for five years. He found a stranger. You haven't sent a single plea, Valerius said.
00:10:52His knights remained behind him, their hands on their swords, expecting a scene.
00:10:57No letters to the Earl. No threats of suicide. Even your father is surprised you haven't tried to
00:11:04sneak back into the capital. I have been occupied, I replied. Occupied? In this graveyard? I expected you
00:11:13to be dead, or at the very least insane. I gestured to the hall. The foundation was compromised. The
00:11:21chimney had a blockage. I prioritized structural survival over social correspondence.
00:11:28Valerius stepped closer. He was trying to use his presence to crush me. He reached out his hand to
00:11:35grab my chin. The classic, contemptuous touch he used in the book to make Alistair feel small.
00:11:41I stepped back. One precise, rhythmic step. Please do not touch me, I said. The knights gasped.
00:11:50Valerius froze. His hand remained in the air, grasping at nothing.
00:11:56What did you say? He hissed, his eyes darkening. Physical contact is unnecessary for the delivery of
00:12:03documents, I said, pointing to the table where I had already prepared a pen and ink.
00:12:08The divorce decree is on the table. My father's signature of disinheritance is already on the back.
00:12:14Please add yours and leave. The sun sets in two hours and the road back is prone to icing.
00:12:21You would be a liability on the path after dark. Valerius didn't sign. He was too unsettled by my
00:12:29presence. He claimed the security of the north was under threat and insisted on staying the night to
00:12:34inspect the manor for potential leaks to the enemy kingdom. It was a deviation from the plot,
00:12:40but I didn't care as long as he stayed out of my workspace. I put him in the north guest
00:12:45room.
00:12:45He expected a cold, damp cell. Instead, he found a room where the floor was warm to the touch.
00:12:53I had channeled the heat from the kitchen fire through the stone subfloor.
00:12:57Late that night, I was in the kitchen, carving a new set of wooden gears for a water pump.
00:13:03I was focused on the grain of the wood, my mind calculating the friction coefficients.
00:13:17Valerius was standing in the doorway, his heavy cloak discarded. He looked out of place in my
00:13:24functional soot-stained kitchen. The room is warm, he said. There is no fire in the hearth,
00:13:30yet the stones are hot. How? Heat exchange, I said, my voice flat.
00:13:38I redirected the thermal output of the stove through the flooring. It is more efficient than a
00:13:43fireplace. Valerius walked toward me. He didn't stop until he was inches away. I could feel the
00:13:50heat radiating from his body. I stayed focused on the wood. The saintess. Ilara. She told me you were
00:14:00suffering. Valerius said, his voice dropping to a whisper. She told me you were losing your mind.
00:14:07She asked me to bring you back to the capital out of pity. I stopped carving. I looked up,
00:14:15meeting his eyes for exactly one second. Lady Ilara's data is incorrect, I said. I am not suffering.
00:14:22I am working. Pity is a non-functional emotion. I do not require it. I stood up and began to
00:14:30clear
00:14:30the table. As I moved, my sleeve accidentally brushed against his arm. In the novel, Alistair
00:14:37would have used this moment to accidentally fall into the duke's lap. I didn't. I immediately withdrew
00:14:44my arm, my face tightening in a brief flash of annoyance at my own lack of spatial awareness.
00:14:50I took a step back and bowed. A shallow, formal nod. I apologize for the contact. It will not happen
00:14:59again. I sleep at 10 p.m. It is currently 10.05. You are an interruption, your grace.
00:15:07I walked past him without a second glance. I didn't see the expression on Valerius' face.
00:15:13The expression of a hunter who had just seen his prey turn into a ghost.
00:15:18The next morning, a messenger arrived from the capital. He was dressed in the white and gold of
00:15:25the holy temple. He brought a gift of mercy from the Saintess Alara. It was a beautiful basket of
00:15:32rare summer fruit, peaches and grapes that should have been impossible to find in this season.
00:15:38A gift from her holiness, the messenger announced, his voice ringing with rehearsed piety.
00:15:44To ease the suffering of the exiled Lord Alistair and show that the temple still has room for
00:15:50forgiveness. In the book, Alistair ate the fruit because he was starving and desperate for a sign
00:15:56that he wasn't forgotten. The fruit was laced with a paralysis herb. It wouldn't kill him instantly,
00:16:03but it would make him lose his footing on the slippery mountain paths, making his death look
00:16:08like an accident. Valerius was watching from the stone stairs as I approached the basket.
00:16:14The messenger smiled, expecting me to dive into the fruit. I looked at the fruit.
00:16:20Then I looked at the messenger.
00:16:23Ulfric, I said.
00:16:30My lord, it is a gift. You should show gratitude. The Saintess herself selected these.
00:16:40I didn't answer him. I took a single grape from the top of the pile, sliced it precisely with my
00:16:46carving knife, and dropped the piece into the cup of vinegar Ulfric provided.
00:16:51I dropped the copper scrap in after it. Within seconds, the liquid turned an unnatural,
00:16:57murky black, and a faint, acrid smell rose from the cup.
00:17:02Toxicity levels exceed safety parameters, I said. My voice was as flat as a weather report.
00:17:09Valerius descended the stairs, his face like thunder.
00:17:13Alistair, what is the meaning of this?
00:17:16This, I said, pointing to the black liquid, is a crude delivery system for a neural inhibitor.
00:17:22Your Saintess is either remarkably incompetent at sourcing food, or she is a murderer.
00:17:27Either way, her logic is flawed. A paralyzed man cannot sign a divorce decree.
00:17:33It would be contested by my father's political rivals as a forced signature.
00:17:38It would create a legal mess. I turned to the messenger, who had gone white.
00:17:44Return to Lady Alara, I said. My eyes were cold, void of the hatred he expected.
00:17:52Tell her that if she wishes to remove me from the board, she should use a faster-acting compound.
00:17:58This one is... inefficient. I will not be returning the basket. It is now a biohazard.
00:18:05The messenger scrambled away, terrified by the clinical coldness in my gaze.
00:18:11I turned to Ulfric.
00:18:14Ulfric, keep one grape in a sealed glass jar as evidence of this attempt.
00:18:20Take the rest of the basket to the courtyard and burn it immediately.
00:18:24Do not inhale the smoke.
00:18:27Once finished, scrub this table with lye.
00:18:30Do not touch the fruit with your bare hands.
00:18:34Valerius stared at the black vinegar.
00:18:37He looked at me, at my calm, bored expression, as I turned back toward my wooden cross beams.
00:18:44For the first time in five years of marriage, Grand Duke Valerius felt something he had never felt for Alistair.
00:18:52He felt a spark of dangerous obsession.
00:18:56Alistair, but wait, he said as I turned away.
00:18:59I didn't stop.
00:19:00I didn't look back.
00:19:03I am going to the forest to measure timber for the new water pump.
00:19:06Do not follow me, Your Grace.
00:19:09The snow is three feet deep, and your boots are not waterproof.
00:19:13You would be an unnecessary liability to my schedule.
00:19:17I left him standing in the hall, the great duke of the realm, silenced by a man who treated him
00:19:23like an inconvenient math problem.
00:19:25The forest surrounding the black frost barony was not a place for the living.
00:19:29The silence here was absolute, broken only by the occasional sharp crack of a frozen branch or the distant, lonely
00:19:38howl of a frost wolf.
00:19:40I walked with a steady, rhythmic pace.
00:19:43I didn't look back to see if the Grand Duke was following.
00:19:46I didn't need to.
00:19:48I could hear the heavy, arrogant crunch of his expensive leather boots in the snow,
00:19:53a sound that lacked the careful distribution of weight necessary for this terrain.
00:19:58Ulfric, I said, my voice barely a whisper in the frigid air.
00:20:03The inclinometer.
00:20:05Ulfric, wrapped in three layers of boiled wool and walking like a man naturally,
00:20:09navigating a minefield, hurried forward.
00:20:11He produced a primitive tool I had fashioned from two sticks and a weighted string.
00:20:17He looked at me with eyes that were no longer just loyal.
00:20:21They were filled with a growing, terrified respect.
00:20:24He had seen me dismantle a Saintess's plot with a cup of vinegar.
00:20:28To him, I was no longer a lord.
00:20:32I was a sorcerer of logic.
00:20:35Here, my lord.
00:20:36But the Duke.
00:20:37He's still behind us.
00:20:39The knights are keeping their distance, but his grace is alone.
00:20:42Should we not...
00:20:43Wait?
00:20:45No, I replied.
00:20:46I didn't turn around.
00:20:48Gravity does not wait.
00:20:50Neither does my schedule.
00:20:52I stopped before a massive, straight-backed cedar.
00:20:55I placed my gloved hand on the bark.
00:20:58I wasn't feeling for the soul of the tree as a local druid might.
00:21:02I was measuring the diameter for load-bearing pillars.
00:21:06The manor's west wing needed three primary supports.
00:21:11Alistair.
00:21:12The voice was closer now.
00:21:14Valerius had caught up.
00:21:16He was breathing heavily.
00:21:18His face flushed from the cold.
00:21:20He looked absurdly out of place.
00:21:22His black armor, etched with gold filigree, was designed for the battlefield, not for a timber survey in a northern
00:21:30wasteland.
00:21:31I continued my measurement.
00:21:33I told you to stay at the manor, your grace.
00:21:36You are currently wasting twenty percent of your daily caloric energy on a task that does not concern you.
00:21:43Valerius stepped into my line of sight, forcing me to acknowledge him.
00:21:47Everything in this barony concerns me.
00:21:50Including the man who is still, legally, my spouse.
00:21:54You are behaving...
00:21:56Strangely.
00:21:57I marked the tree with charcoal.
00:22:00People change when the alternative is death.
00:22:03It is a biological imperative.
00:22:05Please move three steps to the left.
00:22:08You are blocking the light I need for the measurement.
00:22:11Valerius didn't move.
00:22:13Instead, he reached out.
00:22:15It was a fast, reflexive movement.
00:22:18He wanted to grab my wrist.
00:22:21Perhaps to pull me toward him.
00:22:23To find some spark of the old Alistair who would have trembled at his touch.
00:22:27I reacted before he could make contact.
00:22:30I pivoted my foot and slid back half a meter.
00:22:33Do not!
00:22:34I said.
00:22:36My voice was a flat, icy line.
00:22:39Valerius froze.
00:22:41His hand hung in the air, the fingers curling into a frustrated fist.
00:22:45You used to beg me to hold you.
00:22:47You used to scream that I was cold for not touching you.
00:22:50I was a fool then.
00:22:52I said.
00:22:53Looking at the mark on the tree.
00:22:55Not at him.
00:22:57Physical contact between us is a net loss.
00:23:00It creates emotional friction and delays my work.
00:23:02I have no interest in it.
00:23:05If you wish to be useful, tell Ulfric to mark the next three cedars of this diameter.
00:23:10If not, return to the fire.
00:23:13I walked past him.
00:23:15My posture as straight as the trees I was marking.
00:23:18I could feel his gaze burning into my back.
00:23:21Not with the old disgust, but with a sharp, predatory confusion.
00:23:26He was a man who conquered kingdoms.
00:23:28He didn't know what to do with a man who treated him like an obstacle.
00:23:32To reach the prime timber, we had to cross the Weeping Gorge.
00:23:36It was a narrow canyon where a river flowed deep below, mostly hidden by layers of unstable
00:23:42ice and jagged rock.
00:23:44An old stone bridge spanned the gap, a relic from a previous era that had long since surrendered
00:23:50to the frost.
00:23:50I stopped at the edge of the bridge.
00:23:53I didn't need a degree to see the problem.
00:23:56The central keystone was slipping.
00:23:59The vibrations of the wind were creating resonant frequencies that were slowly widening the
00:24:03cracks in the masonry.
00:24:05Ulfric, stay back.
00:24:07The bridge has reached its maximum load capacity.
00:24:10Ulfric stopped instantly.
00:24:12But my lord, how will we get the timber across?
00:24:16We won't use this bridge, I said,
00:24:19already looking for a natural land bridge further up.
00:24:22We will dismantle it and use the stone for the manor's forge.
00:24:26It is structurally unsound.
00:24:28It looks fine to me, Valerius interjected.
00:24:32He stepped toward the bridge, his black cape billowing behind him.
00:24:36He was a man of action, a man who believed his strength could overcome any physical limit.
00:24:43I have crossed worse in the Southern Wars.
00:24:46The Southern Wars did not have permafrost, I said, my voice sharp for the first time.
00:24:53Step back, Valerius.
00:24:55The thermal expansion of your armor alone could…
00:24:58He didn't listen.
00:25:00Valerius took a heavy, confident step onto the stone.
00:25:03The sound was like a bone snapping.
00:25:06The ice that had been holding the loose stones together shattered.
00:25:10The left side of the bridge groaned and began to tilt.
00:25:15Valerius' eyes widened, but his reflexes were for combat, not for collapsing architecture.
00:25:21He lunged forward, trying to reach the other side, but the stone beneath him slid away into the abyss.
00:25:28Lord Valerius, Ulfric screamed.
00:25:31I didn't scream.
00:25:33My brain went into hyperdrive.
00:25:36I didn't see a man.
00:25:37I saw a falling mass.
00:25:39I saw the angle of the slide and the one remaining stable pillar.
00:25:43I lunged forward.
00:25:45I didn't think about the no-touch rule.
00:25:48I didn't think about my personal space.
00:25:51I reached out and grabbed Valerius' wrist just as his boots lost contact with the stone.
00:25:55My other arm wrapped around the iron support of the ladder I had brought.
00:26:00The impact nearly tore my shoulder.
00:26:03Valerius was heavy.
00:26:04A mass of muscle and metal dangling over a fifty-foot drop.
00:26:09Don't let go.
00:26:11Valerius gasped, his eyes locked onto mine.
00:26:15For the first time, I saw the ice in his gaze melt into pure, raw terror.
00:26:21I gritted my teeth, the pain in my arm flaring white-hot.
00:26:25Hold.
00:26:27The pillar, I managed to say through clenched teeth.
00:26:31With a surge of strength, I didn't know this fragile body had.
00:26:34I pulled.
00:26:36Valerius used his free hand to catch the edge of the stable masonry.
00:26:40He hauled himself up, rolling onto the solid ground of the gorge's edge.
00:26:45I immediately let go of his wrist.
00:26:48I scrambled back, my chest heaving, my heart hammering against my ribs like a trapped bird.
00:26:55Silence returned to the forest, heavier than before.
00:26:59Valerius lay in the snow for a moment, catching his breath.
00:27:03Then he stood up and turned toward me.
00:27:05He looked shaken, his black hair messy, his face pale.
00:27:11He stepped toward me, his hand reaching out, not to grab me this time but in a gesture of genuine
00:27:16concern.
00:27:18Alistair.
00:27:19You saved me.
00:27:21Your arm.
00:27:22I stood up abruptly, ignoring the agonizing throb in my shoulder.
00:27:27I stepped back, my spine snapping into a rigid, upright line.
00:27:32My face, which had been flushed with effort, turned into a mask of clinical coldness.
00:27:37Do not touch me, I snapped.
00:27:41Valerius stopped.
00:27:42I was only going to check.
00:27:44I am functional, I interrupted.
00:27:48The contact was a necessity of the situation.
00:27:51It is over.
00:27:52You ignored a direct warning regarding structural stability.
00:27:56You endangered me, you endangered Ulfric, and you delayed the survey by thirty minutes.
00:28:02You are a liability, your grace.
00:28:05I turned to Ulfric, who was trembling like a leaf.
00:28:08Ulfric, we are leaving.
00:28:10The timber can wait.
00:28:12I need to calibrate a sling for my arm.
00:28:14We return to the manor.
00:28:16Alistair, wait!
00:28:18Valerius called out, his voice echoing through the pines.
00:28:21I was wrong.
00:28:23I didn't think…
00:28:25I didn't look back.
00:28:26I didn't give him the satisfaction of a response.
00:28:30My rules were broken.
00:28:32My space had been violated.
00:28:34And I felt a deep, burning shame for having allowed myself to be put in a position where
00:28:39I had to touch him.
00:28:41Valerius stood alone in the snow, watching me walk away.
00:28:45He looked down at his wrist.
00:28:47The place where my calloused fingers had gripped him.
00:28:51He could still feel the heat of my skin through his glove.
00:28:54In that moment, the divorce decree in his pocket felt like a death warrant.
00:28:59Not for Alistair, but for the duke's own heart.
00:29:04Back at the manor, the atmosphere had shifted into something suffocating.
00:29:09Valerius and his knights didn't leave.
00:29:11They set up camp in the courtyard, acting as an honor guard, though it felt more like a siege.
00:29:18Valerius spent his days standing on the balcony, watching me as I worked in the garden or on the roof.
00:29:23He was like a shadow that wouldn't fade.
00:29:26I ignored him.
00:29:29I had a bigger problem.
00:29:31Ulfric had informed me that the local village, Frostreach, was on the verge of total collapse.
00:29:38The winter had been too long, and their trade routes were blocked.
00:29:42I didn't care about their suffering in a sentimental way.
00:29:45But an engineer knows that a fortress cannot stand if the surrounding land is a graveyard.
00:29:51I needed a supply chain.
00:29:53I needed labor.
00:29:54I needed a stable economy to fund my repairs.
00:29:59Ulfric, prepare the sled, I said one morning.
00:30:02We are going to the village.
00:30:04My lord, you shouldn't go alone, Ulfric whispered, glancing toward the duke's camp.
00:30:11I am not going alone.
00:30:13I am going with the inventory lists.
00:30:16As we reached the village, the sight was grim.
00:30:20Huts were buried in snow, the people were skeletal, and the only sound was the coughing of the sick.
00:30:27In the novel, Alistair had visited this village once to demand they give him their last chickens for a feast.
00:30:33They hated him.
00:30:35As I stepped off the sled, a group of men gathered,
00:30:38holding rusted pitchforks and clubs.
00:30:41At their head was a tall, broad-chested man with skin like beaten bronze and eyes full of fire.
00:30:48This was Bram, the village blacksmith and unofficial leader.
00:30:53Lord Alistair, Bram spat, his voice like grinding stones.
00:30:58Come for more chickens?
00:31:00We have nothing left but our teeth.
00:31:02You'll have to kill us to take them.
00:31:05I didn't flinch.
00:31:06I didn't apologize.
00:31:08I stood perfectly still.
00:31:10I have no interest in your chickens, I said.
00:31:14My voice carried through the village square, cold and clear.
00:31:18I am here for your iron and your labor.
00:31:22Bram narrowed his eyes.
00:31:24What?
00:31:25I walked to the center of the square.
00:31:27I didn't ask for permission.
00:31:30I cleared a patch of snow with my boot and began to draw with a piece of charcoal.
00:31:34Your village layout is inefficient, I said, pointing to the drawing.
00:31:38You are losing 60% of your heat to the wind because your huts are not clustered.
00:31:43Your forge is using low-grade coal that produces more soot than heat.
00:31:47I have a design for a centralized heating plant and a high-efficiency kiln.
00:31:51The villagers stared at the drawing.
00:31:54They didn't understand the math, but they recognized the shapes of the tools.
00:31:59Why should we listen to you?
00:32:01A woman cried.
00:32:02You're the one who was banished.
00:32:04You're cursed.
00:32:06I am the one with the blueprints, I replied.
00:32:10I will provide the designs and the copper piping for my manor's old plumbing.
00:32:14In exchange, you will provide four able-bodied men to assist in the reconstruction of my
00:32:20west wing and 50 pounds of refined iron.
00:32:23If you accept, your village will be warm by nightfall.
00:32:27If you refuse, you will continue to die.
00:32:31The choice is yours.
00:32:33I give you 60 seconds to decide.
00:32:37I pulled out a small sand timer from my pocket and set it on a stone.
00:32:41The silence was thick.
00:32:44Bram looked at the duke who had appeared at the edge of the village, watching the scene
00:32:48with his arms crossed.
00:32:50Valerius looked like he wanted to intervene, to save the villagers, but he stayed back.
00:32:56He wanted to see what I would do.
00:32:59As the last grain of sand fell, Bram stepped forward.
00:33:04He looked at me, then at the charcoal drawing on the ground.
00:33:08If this works, my lord, we will follow you.
00:33:11But if you're lying, if this is just another noble's game...
00:33:16I do not play games, I said, already turning back to the sled.
00:33:20I build things.
00:33:22Ulfric, give them the first crate of supplies.
00:33:25We begin with the forge.
00:33:28By the time the sun began to dip behind the mountains, the village forge was roaring with
00:33:32a heat it hadn't seen in a century.
00:33:35Using a modern bellows design, I had Ulfric fashion from leather scraps.
00:33:40The temperature was high enough to melt high-grade ore.
00:33:43The villagers were no longer looking at me with hatred.
00:33:46They were looking at me with awe.
00:33:50Bram was working beside me, his massive arms covered in soot.
00:33:55He was a skilled craftsman.
00:33:57And he was the first to understand my instructions.
00:34:00You're not like the stories, my lord.
00:34:02Bram said, wiping sweat from his brow.
00:34:06He reached out to pat my shoulder in a friendly working man's gesture.
00:34:10You've got a good head on you.
00:34:12I saw the movement out of the corner of my eye.
00:34:15I didn't let him touch me.
00:34:16I stepped to the side, my movements as swift as a strike.
00:34:21Do not, I said.
00:34:24Bram blinked, confused.
00:34:26Sorry, my lord.
00:34:27I forgot myself.
00:34:29Keep your focus on the iron, I said.
00:34:32Personal proximity is unnecessary for the completion of this task.
00:34:37From the shadows of the forge doorway, a low growl of a voice spoke.
00:34:42He said, don't touch him.
00:34:45Valerius stepped into the light of the fire.
00:34:48He looked furious.
00:34:50He walked straight to me and Bram, his presence so intense that the other villagers backed away.
00:34:57He looked at Bram as if he wanted to execute him for the crime of standing too close.
00:35:02The work is done here, Alistair, Valerius said, his voice dropping to a possessive, dangerous tone.
00:35:10We are returning to the manor.
00:35:12Now.
00:35:13I looked at Valerius.
00:35:14Then I looked at the forge.
00:35:17The cooling process requires another twenty minutes of supervision.
00:35:21The blacksmith can handle it, Valerius hissed.
00:35:24He stepped into my three-foot, no-touch zone.
00:35:27I stepped back, but I was cornered against the stone wall of the forge.
00:35:32My breath hitched, but I didn't allow my expression to change.
00:35:37Your grace.
00:35:38You are violating my space.
00:35:41Stand back.
00:35:43Valerius leaned in, his face inches from mine.
00:35:47The smell of leather and ozone surrounded me.
00:35:50You'll save my life.
00:35:52But you won't let me thank you?
00:35:55You'll work with a common blacksmith, but you won't look me in the eye?
00:36:00Saving your life was an act of physics, not emotion, I said, my voice steady despite the
00:36:07heat of the forge.
00:36:09The blacksmith is efficient.
00:36:11You are not.
00:36:13Now stand back, or I will be forced to file a formal complaint with the king regarding your
00:36:17harassment of a disowned noble.
00:36:20Valerius laughed, a dark, frustrated sound.
00:36:24The king wouldn't listen.
00:36:26But I am listening, Alistair.
00:36:28I am listening to everything you're not saying.
00:36:31He finally stepped back, but he didn't leave.
00:36:34He stood by the sled, waiting for me like a loyal hound, or a hunter waiting for his prey
00:36:40to tire.
00:36:40I watched him, and for a fleeting second, I felt a strange vibration in my chest that
00:36:46had nothing to do with resonant frequencies.
00:36:49I suppressed it immediately.
00:36:52Ulfric, I called out, my voice colder than the snow outside.
00:36:57Collect the iron samples.
00:36:59We are done here.
00:37:00The piece of the Black Frost Barony was a fragile thing, built on stone and sweat.
00:37:06But an engineer knows that even the most perfect structure can be compromised by a foreign
00:37:11contaminant.
00:37:12For me, that contaminant arrived three days after the forge incident, draped in white silk
00:37:18and smelling of artificial lilies.
00:37:20The Saintess Ilara had arrived.
00:37:24She didn't come alone.
00:37:26She brought a relief convoy of twelve carriages, guarded by the temple's holy knights.
00:37:32To the common eye, she looked like a goddess descending into the frozen hell of the north.
00:37:37Her golden hair was perfectly coiffed, her eyes were wide and watery with compassion,
00:37:43and she moved with a practiced, ethereal grace that made the soot-stained villagers of Frostreach
00:37:49fall to their knees.
00:37:51I was on the second-story scaffolding of the manor, measuring the tension in the new pulley
00:37:56system I'd designed for the water lift.
00:37:58I didn't climb down when the trumpets sounded.
00:38:01I didn't look over the railing when the villagers began to cheer.
00:38:05My lord, Ulfric panted, his legs struggling to climb the wooden ladder to reach me.
00:38:11The Saintess.
00:38:13Lady Ilara is in the courtyard.
00:38:15She says she has come to bring holy light to the suffering people.
00:38:19The Grand Duke is already meeting her.
00:38:22I made a final mark on the wooden beam with my charcoal.
00:38:26Ulfric.
00:38:27Light is a wave-particle duality.
00:38:30It does not provide calories or thermal insulation.
00:38:33If she hasn't brought grain or coal, she is a logistical waste.
00:38:38Stay here.
00:38:40Monitor the pulley's oscillation.
00:38:42But my lord, you must go.
00:38:45She is your accuser.
00:38:46If you don't show your face, it will look like…
00:38:49It will look like I am working, I interrupted.
00:38:53My voice was a flat, cold line.
00:38:56Which I am.
00:38:58However, I require more iron from the forge.
00:39:01I will pass through the courtyard on my way to the village.
00:39:05I climbed down the scaffolding with controlled, steady movements.
00:39:09As I entered the courtyard, the scene was a masterpiece of melodrama.
00:39:14Ilara was standing near the Grand Duke, her small, gloved hand resting innocently on his black-armored forearm.
00:39:21She was looking up at him with tears shimmering in her eyes.
00:39:27Valerius, she breathed, her voice carrying across the yard like a poisoned flute.
00:39:33I couldn't sleep thinking of the poor souls here.
00:39:36I know Alistair's heart is… difficult.
00:39:39But surely he hasn't let these people starve just to spite me.
00:39:44Valerius looked stiff.
00:39:46His gaze was fixed on the manor entrance, ignoring the woman clinging to him.
00:39:51The moment I stepped into the light, his entire body shifted.
00:39:55He didn't just look at me.
00:39:58He scanned me, his eyes searching for any sign of the jealous in me.
00:40:02I didn't stop walking.
00:40:04I didn't bow.
00:40:06I maintained a three-meter radius from the group.
00:40:09Alistair!
00:40:11Ilara cried out, stepping away from the Duke and moving toward me.
00:40:15She reached out her hands, her face a mask of sisterly concern.
00:40:19Oh, you look so… different.
00:40:23So rugged.
00:40:25Please, tell me you forgive me for what happened at the palace.
00:40:28I only told the truth for the sake of the temple.
00:40:31I stopped.
00:40:32I didn't look at her face.
00:40:34I looked at the mud on her white silk hem.
00:40:36Lady Ilara, I said.
00:40:39My voice was devoid of any tone.
00:40:42No anger, no resentment, just the coldness of a reading meter.
00:40:46You are violating my personal space.
00:40:49Stand back.
00:40:51Ilara froze.
00:40:52She looked at Valerius, her lip trembling.
00:40:55Alistair, I only wanted to…
00:40:57You are standing in the path of the iron transport, I said, pointing to the two village men behind me
00:41:04carrying crates.
00:41:05Every second you stand there, you are delaying the production of three high-efficiency stoves.
00:41:11Your presence is a net negative for the village's survival.
00:41:15Move.
00:41:16The courtyard went silent.
00:41:19The holy knights looked ready to draw their swords for the insult to their saintess.
00:41:24But Valerius stepped forward, his hand resting on the hilt of his own blade, his eyes narrowing at the knights.
00:41:32He said move, Ilara.
00:41:34Valerius growled.
00:41:36The saintess gasped, her face turning a pale shade of fury that she quickly masked with a smile.
00:41:43She stepped aside, and I walked past her as if she were a piece of discarded scaffolding.
00:41:50Ilara didn't give up.
00:41:51She spent the afternoon in the village square, claiming she would perform a miracle of purification on the village's main
00:41:58well, which had been contaminated by runoff.
00:42:01The villagers gathered, desperate.
00:42:04Bram, the blacksmith, stood at the back, his arms crossed, watching with a skeptical eye.
00:42:09He had spent the last week learning about filtration and mineral deposits from me.
00:42:15He was no longer an easy mark for superstition.
00:42:19Ilara stood over the well.
00:42:20She dropped a handful of holy salt into the water and began to pray.
00:42:25By the grace of the light, let this water be pure.
00:42:30She drew a bucket and handed a cup to an old, sickly man.
00:42:34Drink and feel the temple's mercy.
00:42:37The man drank.
00:42:39He claimed he felt warmth.
00:42:42The villagers began to murmur.
00:42:45Ilara looked toward the manor where she knew Valerius and I were watching.
00:42:48I turned to Ulfric.
00:42:51Bring me the testing kit I made from the red cabbage juice in the limestone dust.
00:42:56I descended to the square.
00:42:58Valerius followed me.
00:42:59I walked straight to the well.
00:43:02Ilara smiled at me, triumph in her eyes.
00:43:06Would you like a cup of holy water, Alistair?
00:43:08It might clear the darkness from your mind.
00:43:11I ignored her words.
00:43:13I took a sample of the water in a glass vial.
00:43:16I added the reagent I had prepared.
00:43:19The water turned a deep, sickly green.
00:43:22The pH level is ten, I said.
00:43:26My voice carried over the crowd.
00:43:28The holy salt you used is high-concentrate lye.
00:43:32It hasn't purified the water.
00:43:34It has made it caustic.
00:43:36If these people continue to drink this, they will suffer from internal chemical burns.
00:43:41The villagers gasped.
00:43:43Bram stepped forward, his face darkening.
00:43:47Lord Alistair, you're sure?
00:43:50Logic is never unsure, I said.
00:43:53I looked at Alara.
00:43:55You are using a basic chemical reaction to create a temporary numbing sensation in the throat,
00:44:01which the elderly mistake for healing.
00:44:03In reality, you are poisoning them for the sake of an aesthetic miracle.
00:44:08It is inefficient and dangerous.
00:44:11Alara's face distorted.
00:44:14How dare you?
00:44:15This is the light's power.
00:44:17You are a disowned exile.
00:44:18What do you know of?
00:44:19I know that the well requires a three-stage sand and charcoal filter,
00:44:24which I have already designed, I said.
00:44:27Ulfric, bring the charcoal.
00:44:29Bram, help your men dismantle the Saintess's blessing before someone loses their esophagus.
00:44:34Bram didn't hesitate.
00:44:36He looked at the Saintess with a coldness that matched mine.
00:44:40You heard him.
00:44:42Get away from our well.
00:44:44The relief convoy was quickly becoming an expulsion convoy.
00:44:50Alara turned to Valerius, her eyes streaming with real tears now.
00:44:55Valerius, are you going to let him talk to me like this?
00:44:58He's gone mad in the cold.
00:45:00Valerius didn't look at her.
00:45:02He was looking at the glass vial in my hand.
00:45:04He was looking at the way I had protected the villager without a single word of kindness.
00:45:10Go back to your carriage, Alara, Valerius said.
00:45:13His voice was hollow, as if he were realizing that every truth she had ever told him was a load
00:45:19-bearing lie.
00:45:21That evening, the manor felt like an engine under too much pressure.
00:45:25The air was thick with the Duke's silent presence and Alara's desperate attempts to regain control.
00:45:31I was in the library, the only room I hadn't fully restored yet.
00:45:36It was filled with dust and old, heavy scrolls.
00:45:41I was sitting at a desk, drafting the expansion for the village forge.
00:45:45The only light came from a single lantern.
00:45:48The door opened.
00:45:50It wasn't Ulfric.
00:45:52It wasn't the Duke.
00:45:53It was Alara.
00:45:54She had discarded the saintly act.
00:45:57She walked into the room, her footsteps heavy, her eyes sharp and predatory.
00:46:03She stopped exactly two feet from my desk, the edge of my no-touch zone.
00:46:09You think you've won, don't you?
00:46:11She hissed.
00:46:13You think because you built some stoves and fixed a well, Valerius will love you again?
00:46:18I didn't stop my drawing.
00:46:20Love is a chemical imbalance in the brain designed to ensure procreation.
00:46:25It has no place in structural engineering.
00:46:27I have no interest in it.
00:46:30Liar!
00:46:31She screamed, slapping her hand down on my desk, scattering my charcoal.
00:46:35You were obsessed with him.
00:46:37You used to cry at my feet, begging me to let you have just one night with him.
00:46:42You're still that jealous brat.
00:46:44I put my pen down.
00:46:46I stood up, my spine a perfect 90-degree angle.
00:46:50I looked at her, not with anger, but with curiosity.
00:46:55Lady Alara, your heart rate is elevated.
00:46:58Your vocal cords are straining.
00:47:00You are exhibiting signs of acute hysteria.
00:47:03I am the saintess of Oakhaven.
00:47:05I framed you once and I can do it again.
00:47:09Valerius believes me because he hates you.
00:47:11He will always hate you.
00:47:13Correct, I said.
00:47:15Ilara blinked.
00:47:17What?
00:47:18What do you mean, what?
00:47:20Why are you surprised?
00:47:22You're telling the truth.
00:47:23You framed Alistair once by pulling a stupid stunt, poisoning yourself.
00:47:27But if you try it with me this time by poisoning yourself again, you might not get away with it.
00:47:33In fact, you might actually die for real and nothing will happen.
00:47:37He hates Alistair, I said, stepping around the desk.
00:47:42I kept my distance as I looked into her eyes.
00:47:45But Alistair is a variable that no longer exists.
00:47:49I am the only constant in this manner.
00:47:52And you?
00:47:53You are a lie that is beginning to crumble under the weight of its own contradictions.
00:47:59Ilara's face went red.
00:48:01She looked around the room, spotted an old, heavy ceramic vase on a shelf, and smashed it on the floor.
00:48:08Then she ripped the sleeve of her own white dress.
00:48:12Help!
00:48:12She screamed.
00:48:13Help!
00:48:14Alistair is attacking me.
00:48:16He's trying to kill me.
00:48:18She threw herself onto the floor, sobbing hysterically.
00:48:21The doors burst open.
00:48:24Valerius and his knights charged in.
00:48:26They saw the smashed vase.
00:48:28They saw the saintess on the floor, her dress torn, her face covered in terror.
00:48:34They saw me standing there, perfectly calm, hands behind my back.
00:48:39Alistair!
00:48:40Valerius roared, his sword halfway out of its sheath.
00:48:43What have you done?
00:48:45Alara crawled toward him.
00:48:47Valerius, he tried to choke me.
00:48:50He said he would kill me so no one would find out the truth.
00:48:53I didn't move.
00:48:55I didn't defend myself.
00:48:57I didn't even look at her.
00:48:59Your grace, I said.
00:49:01My voice was steady.
00:49:04Please look at the floor.
00:49:07Valerius stopped.
00:49:08He looked down.
00:49:09I have installed the radiant heating system in this library today, I said.
00:49:15The stone floor is currently 42 degrees Celsius.
00:49:19Lady Alara has been lying on this floor for exactly 60 seconds.
00:49:23If she were actually in shock or pain, her skin would be exhibiting first-degree thermal burns.
00:49:29Instead, she is not reacting to the heat at all.
00:49:33I stepped back and gestured to the floor.
00:49:36Furthermore, I continued, the ceramic shards from the vase are distributed in a five-foot radius away from me.
00:49:43If I had smashed it to attack her, the shards would be behind her.
00:49:47She threw it.
00:49:49The physics of the room do not support her narrative.
00:49:54Valerius looked at the floor.
00:49:55He touched a stone with his bare hand and immediately pulled back from the heat.
00:50:00Then he looked at Alara, whose face had gone from terrified to frozen.
00:50:06You.
00:50:07You lied.
00:50:09Valerius whispered.
00:50:11The sound was more terrifying than his roar.
00:50:15Valerius, no, I—the heat.
00:50:17I didn't notice because of the fear.
00:50:20Leave, Valerius said.
00:50:22It wasn't a command.
00:50:24It was an execution.
00:50:26Take your convoy.
00:50:27Take your knights.
00:50:29If I see you in the north again, I will forget your title and remember only that I was trained
00:50:35to kill enemies of the state.
00:50:37The knights, seeing the duke's fury, stepped back.
00:50:41They weren't fools.
00:50:42They had seen the water test.
00:50:45They knew their saintess was a fraud.
00:50:48Alara scrambled to her feet, her pure mask shattered into a thousand jagged pieces.
00:50:53She looked at me, and for a second I saw true, raw hatred.
00:50:59But I didn't care.
00:51:01I didn't even acknowledge it.
00:51:04Ulfric, I called out as she was dragged from the room.
00:51:07The floor is too hot.
00:51:09Reduce the coal feed by ten percent.
00:51:11We are wasting fuel.
00:51:14The manor was silent once more.
00:51:16The saintess was gone.
00:51:18The divorce papers were still unsigned on the table, and the moon was high over the frozen pines.
00:51:24I was back at my desk, trying to finish the Forge expansion.
00:51:28My eyes were heavy.
00:51:30Who are you?
00:51:32The voice came from the shadows behind the bookshelves.
00:51:35Valerius hadn't left.
00:51:37He was standing there, his armor gone, wearing only a dark tunic.
00:51:42He looked tired.
00:51:44Human.
00:51:45I didn't turn around.
00:51:47I am Lord Alistair of the Black Frost Barony.
00:51:50I thought we had established the data.
00:51:53Valerius walked into the light.
00:51:56He didn't stop until he was standing just outside my no-touch zone.
00:52:00No.
00:52:01Alistair was a child who cried for sweets and attention.
00:52:04Alistair didn't know the difference between lye and salt.
00:52:08Alistair couldn't save a man from a gorge or dismantle a saintess with… with math.
00:52:13He leaned over the desk, forcing me to look at him.
00:52:17Where is the man I married?
00:52:19Where did he go?
00:52:21I met his gaze.
00:52:22I didn't flinch.
00:52:24I didn't lean in.
00:52:26I followed the rule of few words.
00:52:29He was inefficient, I said.
00:52:31He died.
00:52:33I am the result of his failure.
00:52:35Valerius reached out.
00:52:37His fingers hovered inches from my cheek.
00:52:40I could see the tremor in his hand.
00:52:42The hand of a warrior who was terrified of a silver-haired ghost.
00:52:47I won't sign the papers, Valerius whispered.
00:52:51That is a breach of contract, I replied.
00:52:54The earl signed.
00:52:56The king signed.
00:52:58Your refusal is an administrative error.
00:53:01I don't care about the administration.
00:53:04Valerius barked, his voice cracking.
00:53:07He stepped into my space.
00:53:09He was so close I could feel the heat radiating from his chest.
00:53:13I care about the man who looks at me as if I'm nothing more than a structural support.
00:53:18I care about the man who saved me and then told me I was a liability.
00:53:22He reached out and grabbed my wrist.
00:53:25I reacted instantly.
00:53:27I twisted my arm, trying to break the hold, my face turning into a mask of cold fury.
00:53:34Release me, I snapped.
00:53:37No, Valerius said, his grip tightening.
00:53:40Not to hurt me, but to keep me from vanishing.
00:53:44You told me you didn't want to be touched.
00:53:46You told me it was a waste of time.
00:53:48But when I was falling, you didn't hesitate.
00:53:51You broke your own rule for me.
00:53:54It was a reflexive response to a falling mass, I said, my heart starting to hammer against my ribs.
00:54:00It meant nothing.
00:54:02It meant everything to me, Valerius said.
00:54:06He leaned in, his forehead almost touching mine.
00:54:10I am staying, Alistair.
00:54:12Not as an honor guard.
00:54:14Not as a duke.
00:54:15I am staying until you look at me and see more than a bad calculation.
00:54:20I'm staying until you forgive me.
00:54:23I looked at him, and for the first time since I woke up in this world, my logical brain failed
00:54:28to find a counter-argument.
00:54:31My space was gone.
00:54:33My rules were failing.
00:54:35I pulled my wrist free and turned my back on him, picked up my charcoal and began to draw.
00:54:41The charcoal snapped in my hand.
00:54:44The sound was as sharp as a gunshot in the silent library.
00:54:48I didn't look back.
00:54:49I didn't need to see Valerius' face to know he was still standing there, staring at my back with the
00:54:55intensity of a man who had finally found the weight of his own regrets.
00:54:58I took a breath, the cold, dry air of the library calming my pulse.
00:55:04I followed my code.
00:55:06React to nothing.
00:55:09Maintain the foundation.
00:55:11The next morning, the blizzard had settled into a steady, rhythmic fall of white powder.
00:55:17The manor was warm, the low hum of the steam pipes acting as a constant reassurance that my calculations were
00:55:23correct.
00:55:24I was in the main hall, supervising Bram and his men as they installed the new, reinforced heating vents.
00:55:30Bram was stripped to his heavy leather vest, his muscular arms covered in soot and sweat.
00:55:36He worked with a precision that I respected.
00:55:38He didn't talk much, and he never wasted a movement.
00:55:42Bram stopped as I approached to inspect the seal on the vent.
00:55:46He wiped his brow and looked at me, his gaze honest and steady.
00:55:51He didn't look at me like a disgraced noble.
00:55:54He looked at me like a partner.
00:55:57The heat is holding, Alistair, Bram said, his voice deep.
00:56:02The village hasn't seen a winter this comfortable in three generations.
00:56:05They sent me to ask if you need anything else?
00:56:08Food?
00:56:09More iron?
00:56:10Or perhaps a place to stay that isn't so...
00:56:13Crowded?
00:56:14He glanced toward the upper balcony where Valerius was standing, watching us like a silent, black-armored gargoyle.
00:56:21I checked the seal with a gloved finger.
00:56:24The current infrastructure is sufficient, Bram.
00:56:27Thank the elders for the offer.
00:56:29Bram stepped closer, stopping exactly at the edge of my boundary.
00:56:34I'm a simple man, Alistair.
00:56:36I don't understand the games you nobles play.
00:56:39But I know a man who is being hunted.
00:56:42The Duke looks at you like you're a war prize he lost.
00:56:45If his presence is a burden, my home in the village is finished.
00:56:50The foundation is deep, and the door only opens for those I trust.
00:56:55You wouldn't be a lord there.
00:56:57You'd just be Alistair.
00:57:00It was a direct hit.
00:57:02A shot fired with the sincerity of a man who had nothing to lose.
00:57:06Before I could reply, the air in the hall turned frigid.
00:57:10Valerius had descended the stairs.
00:57:13He didn't draw his sword, but the aura of a general who had slaughtered thousands filled the space.
00:57:19He walked to my side, stopping exactly three meters away, his eyes fixed on Bram.
00:57:25The blacksmith has a loud mouth for someone whose livelihood depends on the lord's designs.
00:57:31Valerius hissed.
00:57:32I didn't look at either of them.
00:57:34I kept my eyes on the vent.
00:57:37Valerius, you are obstructing the light.
00:57:40Bram is discussing the logistical support of the village.
00:57:43It is a matter of state survival.
00:57:45If you cannot contribute to the conversation, please find a task that requires your focus.
00:57:50Ulfric mentioned the horses need exercising.
00:57:53Valerius choked on his own indignation.
00:57:56To be told to exercise horses by the man he had once banished was a humiliation he would have never
00:58:01accepted a month ago.
00:58:03But he looked at my cold, indifferent profile and saw the truth.
00:58:07If he acted like a duke now, I would treat him like a stranger.
00:58:12I will assist Ulfric with the supplies, Valerius said, his voice straining with the effort to remain calm.
00:58:21He gave Bram a look that promised a very different conversation later, and walked away.
00:58:27Bram watched him go, then looked back at me.
00:58:30My offer stands, Alistair.
00:58:32A fortress is good, but even a fortress needs a heart that isn't made of stone.
00:58:38Noted, I said, my voice a flat line.
00:58:41Now check the pressure on the third vent.
00:58:44It's lagging by two percent.
00:58:47The week that followed was a study in psychological pressure.
00:58:51Valerius did not leave.
00:58:53Instead, he did something I hadn't factored into my equations.
00:58:57He began to grovel.
00:58:59Not with words, I had made it clear I didn't value them, but with actions.
00:59:04The Grand Duke of Oakhaven, the king's right hand, began to act as a common laborer.
00:59:10I would wake at five a.m. to find the courtyard cleared of snow.
00:59:15Ulfric told me with wide eyes that the duke had been out there since three a.m. with a shovel.
00:59:21At dinner, Valerius would stand by the door, silently handing me my ledger or a fresh pen.
00:59:28Never touching me.
00:59:29Never speaking unless I spoke first.
00:59:32He was trying to prove he could follow my rules.
00:59:35He was trying to prove he could be efficient.
00:59:39One night, the blizzard returned with a vengeance.
00:59:42I was in the boiler room, the heat intense as I adjusted the coal intake.
00:59:47The door opened, and Valerius entered.
00:59:50He was covered in soot, his expensive wool tunic ruined.
00:59:54He was carrying a heavy crate of high-grade coal.
00:59:57He set it down and stood back, breathing heavily.
01:00:02Ulfric said you were running low, Valerius said.
01:00:05He didn't look at me.
01:00:07He looked at the gauges, trying to mimic my focus.
01:00:10I brought the rest from the storage shed.
01:00:13I didn't turn around.
01:00:16That was a task for the village laborers, your grace.
01:00:19Your time is more expensive than a crate of coal.
01:00:23My time is worthless if it isn't spent here, Valerius said.
01:00:27He stepped forward, stopping at the very edge of the limit.
01:00:31Alistair, please.
01:00:33I tightened a valve.
01:00:35Please what?
01:00:36But the pressure is stable.
01:00:39Forgive me, he whispered.
01:00:42The words seemed to physically pain him.
01:00:45I looked at the record of your trial, the one I ignored.
01:00:49I saw the inconsistencies.
01:00:51I saw how Alara moved the poison.
01:00:53I saw everything.
01:00:55I sent you to a grave because I was too blind to see the man I had married.
01:01:00I don't ask for you to love me.
01:01:01I know that man is gone, but let me stay.
01:01:05Let me be the shield for this fortress you've built.
01:01:08I finally turned.
01:01:10I saw the Grand Duke, a man once defined by pride and power, standing in a dirty boiler
01:01:16room covered in coal dust, begging for the right to be useful.
01:01:20I followed my rule of few words.
01:01:23The divorce papers are on my desk, Valerius.
01:01:26If you wish to stay, why are they still unsigned?
01:01:31Valerius reached into his tunic and pulled out the parchment.
01:01:34They were crumpled and stained.
01:01:37He walked to the desk in the corner of the room, picked up a pen, and signed them with
01:01:42a hand that didn't tremble.
01:01:44He set them down.
01:01:45You are free, he said, his eyes burning with a desperate silent loyalty.
01:01:52You are Lord Alistair, master of the Black Frost.
01:01:56You owe me nothing.
01:01:57You owe the king nothing.
01:01:59My knights will stay to protect you, even if I am sent away.
01:02:03But if you have any need for a man who knows only how to fight, I will be at the
01:02:08gate.
01:02:09He turned to leave.
01:02:11He was actually going to walk out into the blizzard, leaving his title and his life behind
01:02:15just to fulfill my request for freedom.
01:02:18I looked at the papers.
01:02:20I thought about the modern world, the noise, the stress, the construction crane that had
01:02:26ended my first life.
01:02:27Then I looked at the manor I had rebuilt.
01:02:30It was strong.
01:02:32It was warm.
01:02:33It was mine.
01:02:36Valerius, I said.
01:02:38He stopped at the door, his shoulders tensed.
01:02:41The papers are a logistical waste, I said.
01:02:45I walked to the desk, picked up the divorce decree, and tossed it into the open furnace.
01:02:50The fire roared as it consumed the parchment.
01:02:53Within seconds, the legal bond between us was nothing but ash and blue flame.
01:02:58Valerius whirled around, his eyes wide.
01:03:02Alistair, what are you doing?
01:03:04I do not like starting new projects when the current one is unfinished, I said, maintaining
01:03:09my straight posture.
01:03:11I walked toward him, stopping just a foot away.
01:03:14Well within the no-touch zone.
01:03:17A divorce would require a trip to the Capitol.
01:03:20It would require social interactions, legal fees, and an explanation to the Earl.
01:03:25It is inefficient.
01:03:27I looked up at him, my expression as cold as ever, but I didn't step back.
01:03:33However, I continued, the terms of the original marriage are void.
01:03:37I do not require a husband to protect me or a duke to provide for me.
01:03:41I require a lead assistant.
01:03:44You will wake at 5 a.m.
01:03:46You will manage the perimeter security.
01:03:48You will not touch me without permission.
01:03:50Do you accept the contract?
01:03:52Valerius let out a sound that was half sob, half laugh.
01:03:56He dropped to one knee.
01:03:58Not out of noble custom, but out of pure, shattered relief.
01:04:03I accept, he whispered.
01:04:06Every term, every rule.
01:04:08I reached out.
01:04:10I didn't hug him.
01:04:11I didn't kiss him.
01:04:12I followed the rule of special treatment.
01:04:15I placed my gloved hand on his shoulder.
01:04:18A firm, grounding contact that lasted for exactly three seconds.
01:04:22Good, I said.
01:04:24Now get up.
01:04:25You're getting soot on the floor, and Ulfric just cleaned it.
01:04:28It's a waste of his labor.
01:04:31The foundation of the North six months later.
01:04:34The Black Frost Barony was no longer a place of exile.
01:04:37It was the industrial heart of the kingdom.
01:04:40The Fortress of Steam was a marvel of the modern world, powered by geometry and iron.
01:04:46I was in the new geothermal greenhouse, recording the growth rate of a silver lily.
01:04:51The air was warm, smelling of damp earth and green life.
01:04:56Ulfric was nearby, teaching a group of village children how to read a compass.
01:05:00He looked younger now, his back straight, his eyes full of the life he thought he had lost.
01:05:07Footsteps approached.
01:05:08Slow, heavy, and disciplined.
01:05:12Valerius entered.
01:05:13He was carrying a tray of iced water.
01:05:15He stopped exactly three feet away.
01:05:18He didn't speak.
01:05:20He had mastered the rule of silence.
01:05:22He waited for me to finish my data entry.
01:05:25I put my pen down.
01:05:27I looked at him.
01:05:28He looked healthy.
01:05:30Strong.
01:05:32His eyes were no longer full of ice or anger.
01:05:35They were full of a quiet, unshakable loyalty that needed no words.
01:05:40The king sent a messenger, Valerius said softly, after I gave him the nod to speak.
01:05:46He wants to restore the Halloway name.
01:05:49He wants to name you the grand architect of the realm.
01:05:53He's offered a palace in the heart of the capital.
01:05:57I didn't look at the gold-sealed letter he held.
01:06:00I looked at the silver lilies blooming in the snow outside the glass.
01:06:04A palace is just a large house with poor ventilation and an inefficient social structure, I said.
01:06:11I am content here.
01:06:13The north is stable.
01:06:15The foundation is deep.
01:06:17Valerius stepped forward.
01:06:19Just one step.
01:06:21I told the messenger to tell the king that you were busy.
01:06:24I told him the lord of the north doesn't have time for kings.
01:06:28I finally looked at him.
01:06:30I maintained my straight posture.
01:06:32My hands remained behind my back.
01:06:35But for the first time, I didn't step away when he moved into my space.
01:06:40Correct, I said.
01:06:42Valerius reached out and took my hand.
01:06:44His palm was warm and rough against my calloused fingers.
01:06:48I didn't pull away.
01:06:50I didn't flinch.
01:06:51I let him hold my hand for exactly three seconds before I withdrew it with a formal, silent nod.
01:06:58I have to check the pressure in the secondary boiler, I said, turning away to walk toward the gauges.
01:07:04But as I walked, I let a single, tiny smile touch my lips.
01:07:09A smile that was gone before anyone could see it.
01:07:13Alistair, Valerius called out.
01:07:15I stopped, but I didn't turn around.
01:07:18What?
01:07:19I'm not leaving.
01:07:21I looked at the silver lily, glowing in the soft light of the fortress I had built.
01:07:26I know, I whispered.
01:07:30The wind howled against the iron walls of the manor.
01:07:34But in the heart of the Black Frost Barony, the foundation was finally perfectly unbreakable.
01:07:41And that concludes the journey of Alistair and Valerius in the Black Frost Barony.
01:07:46Watching a cold, logical mind rebuild a ruined life and a proud duke finally learn the value of loyalty
01:07:53is exactly the kind of story I love bringing to this platform.
01:07:58If you enjoyed Alistair's disciplined brilliance, please hit the like button.
01:08:02It tells me that you appreciate this direction of high-quality, original scripts and want to see more of them.
01:08:09I have a question for you.
01:08:10Did Valerius do enough to earn Alistair's forgiveness?
01:08:13Or was Bram the blacksmith the choice you were rooting for?
01:08:17Let me know your logic in the comments.
01:08:19I'll be down there reading your theories.
01:08:21For those of you who stayed for the full story, you are the true core of this community.
01:08:27Comment the word foundation below so I can see who made it to the end.
01:08:31I am already working on the next world.
01:08:34And trust me, the next lead is just as sharp as Alistair.
01:08:37Thank you for your time and your continued support.
01:08:40I'll see you in the next story.
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