The weeks passed slowly, each day a blend of tension and reluctant camaraderie between Lise and Kael. The initial animosity between them was far from gone, but the hostility had given way to a complex dance of guarded interactions. The dungeons remained cold and unforgiving, but within the confines of Kael's cell, a strange warmth began to flicker.
One afternoon, the demon queen Morgathia summoned Lise to the throne room. Her heart pounded with anxiety as she stood before the queen, the air thick with the scent of burning incense and dark magic.
"Lise," Morgathia's voice echoed through the grand hall, commanding and cold, "I have decided to allow the human prisoner some limited freedom. He is to be taken outside the dungeons under your strict supervision. He may prove useful yet."
Lise's eyes widened in surprise. "Your Majesty, are you certain? Allowing him outside could be dangerous."