%d0%98%d0%bc%d0%bf%d0%b5%d1%80%d0%b0%d1%82%d0%be%d1%80%d1%81%d0%ba%d0%b8%d0%b9%2c%d0%be%d1%82%d0%b1%d0%be%d1%80%2c%d0%a4%d0%bb%d0%b8%d0%b1%d1%83%d1%81%d1%82%d0%b0%20 | HD 2027 |

Elara, a minor noble from the frost-bitten Northern Marches, stood among thirty other women in the Great Hall. Each held a silken ribbon; hers was the color of a bruised plum. They weren't just there for their beauty; they were there because the Emperor, a man rumored to be more dragon than human, required a consort whose magic could stabilize the crumbling Heartstone of the realm. The trials were brutal:

In the heart of the Golden Empire, the bells of the Eternal Palace rang for the first time in a century. The "Imperial Selection" had begun. Elara, a minor noble from the frost-bitten Northern

: A direct confrontation with the Emperor himself. they were there because the Emperor

: Predicting the Empire's future using only a bowl of still water. Elara, a minor noble from the frost-bitten Northern