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Lilinoe Solmere crossed her arms and glared at the man standing in front of her

Unfortunately for her, the man she was supposed to marry was far more dangerous than a cactus.

Eryx Dravenhart

The most infamous bachelor in Soltherra.A billionaire heir.A walking scandal. And according to every gossip magazine in the city—

A certified heartbreaker.

Unlike everyone else in Soltherra, Lilinoe had a simple opinion about Eryx Dravenhart.

She disliked him.

For a moment, silence filled the room.

Slow. Dangerous. Amused.

Their marriage wasn't built on love.

It was a deal between two powerful families.

A strategic alliance meant to protect reputations, strengthen influence, and silence rumors.

But neither of them expected one thing.

War.

Because from the moment Lilinoe Solmere entered Eryx Dravenhart’s life—

Peace was no longer an option.

In the dazzling city of Soltherra, where power ruled everything and secrets hid behind every smile…

A devil met the only woman reckless enough to challenge him.

And somewhere between arguments, pranks, and dangerous truths—

The devil would fall.

For his Aphrodite.

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—STAY TUNED —

— SOLTHERRA CITY —

Soltherra was the kind of city that looked like a promise.

Golden towers rising against an endless ocean horizon. Marina lights scattered across turquoise water like fallen stars. Old colonial architecture standing quietly between modern glass giants, a city that never forgot where it came from, even as it kept reaching higher.

Beautiful. Ambitious. And underneath all that glittering surface deeply, carefully corrupt.

There are eyes that hold warmth like sunlight trapped in amber.

Soft. Golden. The kind that make strangers stop mid-sentence and forget what they were saying.

Lilinoe Solomere had those eyes.

And right now, they were narrowed at a laptop screen like it had personally offended her.

She'd been staring at this draft for twenty minutes. Not because she was uncertain. Because she was deciding how brutal to be.

She published it at 11:59 AM. By noon, The Soltherra Lens had crashed twice from traffic.

The article wasn't a simple criticism.

It was surgical.

Lilinoe had spent three weeks compiling every public scandal attached to Eryx Dravenhart's name. The charity gala he attended for exactly 11 minutes before leaving with someone's wife. The business merger that collapsed after his involvement. The three separate magazine covers in one year, all celebrating a man who had never once been photographed doing actual work.

She wrote with the kind of precision that came from genuine irritation.

"Soltherra has many problems. Rising costs. Inequality. Political corruption quietly bleeding the city dry. And yet our headlines remain faithfully devoted to a 29-year-old man whose greatest documented achievement is making expensive things look effortless." "Eryx Dravenhart is not a scandal. He is a habit. A city-wide addiction to watching someone destroy his own potential in real time and calling it charisma." "Some men are born with everything and still manage to contribute nothing." "Soltherra deserves better things to worship."

The comments section filled within the hour.

"FINALLY someone said it 💀" "Miss Solomere has more courage than this entire editorial industry" "She just ended her career lmaooo the Dravenharts will bury her" "Honestly? Not wrong though." "Lilinoe Solomere is literally the only journalist in this city with a spine" "She's gorgeous AND fearless I can't"

Whatever came next, scolding from the editor, calls from her father, lawyers, she'd handle it. She always did.

— DRAVENHART TOWER | EXECUTIVE FLOOR | 1:15 PM —

Soltherra stretched beneath him, glittering, restless, full of people who spent their lives being careful around names like his.

This girl had not been careful at all.

— TO BE CONTINUED —

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— SOLTHERRA CITY —

The article had been live for exactly 3 hours and 47 minutes.

In that time — The Soltherra Lens had crashed four times. Forty-seven journalists had reposted it.And two very different households were having very similar problems.

— SOLOMERE ESTATE — LIVING ROOM —

Matthew Solomere was a composed man.

Thirty years in high society had given him the posture of someone who never panicked. Steady hands. Measured voice. The kind of father who handled crises like board meetings, calmly without raising his voice.

He was currently pacing in circles holding his phone like it had bitten him.

Penelope set her tea down and smiled, the small private smile she'd been smiling for twenty-three years. The smile that meant, our daughter is going to be the death of us and I could not be more proud.

— DRAVENHART ESTATE — STUDY —

Kenneth Dravenhart read the article twice. Then he laughed. Not a polite chuckle. A full, genuine, delighted laugh that echoed through the study and brought his wife Everleigh through the door in approximately four seconds.

it was.

— CAFE —

Lilinoe Solomere was having the best afternoon of her week. She had not checked her phone in 40 minutes.

She had, however, consumed one bowl of truffle pasta, half a basket of sourdough, and was currently eyeing the dessert menu like it contained classified information she needed immediately.Charlize sat across from her doing the exact same thing.

This was their tradition. Once a month. Best restaurant they could find. Order without guilt. Talk about everything. Today Charlize had many things to say about the article. She was deciding which one to lead with.

The desserts arrived.

Outside the cafe window, Soltherra glittered in its usual golden afternoon light.

Somewhere across the city, two families were making phone calls. And somewhere in a glass tower, a man with deep green eyes was reading a journalist's profile with quiet, unhurried interest. Lilinoe ate her chocolate fondant in peace. For now.

— TO BE CONTINUED —

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