"Don't leave yet."
Astron raised an eyebrow at Lilia's firm request, his dark purple eyes flicking to her face with mild curiosity. "Why?" he asked, his tone straightforward but carrying enough weight to make the single word feel heavier than it should have.
The question hung in the air, simple yet disarming, and for a brief moment, Lilia found herself at a loss. Why did I say that? she thought, her lips pressing into a thin line. She wasn't close to Astron, not really. Sure, they had shared a few conversations—discussions about archery techniques, mana control, and other intellectual topics that he seemed to excel at—but their relationship was surface-level at best. Nothing about it was personal.
