Chapter 25 The Blood Queen's Indolent Reign

• The city of Bayla awoke to another morning of uneasy coexistence. Market stalls opened with forced cheer as human merchants cast nervous glances at their Vossheim overseers. A fruit seller yelped as a silver-booted foot sent his apples rolling across the cobblestones.
• "Faster, worm," sneered the Vossheim guard, his elongated canines glinting in the morning light. "The Duke's banquet requires your best produce—not this rotting garbage."
• In the opulent mansion looming over the city, sunlight streamed through stained-glass windows, painting the bedroom in hues of crimson and gold. At the center of this lavish nest lay Valentina Vossheim—a vision of voluptuous decadence. Her snow-pale limbs stretched like a satisfied cat's, making the silk sheets whisper against her generous curves. A contented sigh escaped her rosebud lips as she rolled onto her stomach, her plump rear accentuated by the motion.