The King's Reborn Protector

PROLOGUE
Rain hammered the palace roofs like war drums as Avenya ran through the smoke-filled corridors, her breath ragged, her dagger dripping with the blood of the men she had cut down. The flames roared behind her-louder, angrier, chasing her like the shadow of fate itself.
She could hear him.
"AVENYA!"
Abhimaan's voice tore through the burning chaos.
She pushed herself harder.
Her body was breaking, but her heart... her heart beat only for him.
She reached the grand hall-a battlefield painted in blood. Abhimaan fought like a storm at its peak, his sword a blur of silver, his hair loose, his eyes wild with fear.
She screamed his name.
He turned-just as a masked assassin stepped from the shadows behind him.
Avenya didn't think.
Didn't breathe.
Didn't exist.
She moved-one final act of destiny.
Her body collided with Abhimaan's, pushing him out of the blade's path. Pain tore through her as steel sank into her side, ripping her breath away. She fell into his arms, hearing his broken cry.
"No... no, stay with me-Avenya, look at me!"
She tried. She really tried.
But darkness swallowed her.
Her last thought was simple.
If he lives... then my life was worth it.
A tear slipped from Abhimaan's eyes onto her cheek.
And then-before her soul left her body-a glow appeared.
Golden. Ancient. Alive.
The book materialized beside her... its pages fluttering like wings.
A gust of wind lifted her spirit.
The King's scream echoed through the halls as her body dissolved into light.
And the book closed.
Waiting for her to return.