He swore an oath to protect the kingdom. She swore an oath to destroy it. They did not expect to need each other.

Isadora has spent three years embedded in the Shadowed King's court, waiting for the moment to strike. She knows his weaknesses. She knows his routine. She knows the exact words that make his jaw tighten and his eyes go cold.

What she did not know was that he had known about her from the beginning.

King Aldric rules the Shadowed Realm with an iron oath binding his every action?an ancient vow that forces him to protect what he is given, even enemies who come wrapped in lies. When Isadora's cover is broken, he cannot kill her. The oath will not allow it.

So he keeps her close instead. Close enough to watch. Close enough to question everything he thought he knew about the woman who came to end him.

Somewhere between the surveillance and the slow trust, between the cold throne room and the quiet hours before dawn, the lines between enemy and ally begin to blur. And the oath that bound them may be the only thing that saves them both.

A dark romantasy of enemies bound by ancient vows, morally grey kings, and the slow burn that turns hatred into something far more dangerous.