When the Mad Dog Bites the Leash

Adrian Dew is a contradiction wrapped in steel and spite. To the Asellan kingdom, she is a decorated knight, an undefeated warrior, and the noble daughter of House Dew—but to everyone who knows her, she is simply the second prince's "mad dog." With a tongue sharper than her blade and a disposition that has exasperated nobles and royalty alike, Adrian is anything but diplomatic. Yet beneath the belligerence burns an unwavering loyalty to Prince Ethan, her sole purpose being to carve a path to the throne through sheer martial might, countering the formidable political machinery of his rival sister, Princess Della. Victory after victory she secures in his name, until one fateful battle on the rocky plains of the East crosses a line that not even royal favor can erase. Her sentence is exile dressed as duty: five years serving as an assistant to the regent of Jolkyacarta, a newly conquered territory where the people despise her kingdom, her customs, and her very presence. Banished in all but name, Adrian must endure a foreign land steeped in hostility, far from the prince who depends on her strength. Survival becomes a daily grind against suspicion and hatred. Yet amid the cold stares, one pair of eyes watches her with unsettling intrigue. A figure whose gaze holds no malice, only a strange recognition, poses a question that haunts her: "Have I seen you before?... in a dream?"