a vow so bold and deadly

In the fog-choked steam city of Verlock, Chloe Ashborne survives a brutal family massacre and hides herself as a disfigured, mute maid sneaking into the obsidian Clock Tower Manor—the stronghold of the cold and powerful Duke Liam. Covered in wax scars and pretending to be timid and clumsy, she hides her true identity as the last heir of the Ashborne mechanical clan, a master toxic healer, top gear decoder, and deadly combat fighter. Her only goal is to retrieve the sealed case files that record the truth of her family's murder from the manor's confidential machine room. As she lurks in the shadows, she repeatedly arouses Liam's suspicion and curiosity. She narrowly escapes frame-up and fatal traps set by the jealous captain of the female guards, saves Liam from fatal steam poison and assassin attacks, and secretly controls the manor's defense gear system in crisis. While the line between hatred and attraction blurs, Chloe's layered disguises are gradually stripped away one by one. When she finally breaks into the secret chamber to obtain the files, she falls into a carefully laid trap, and her true face and identity are completely exposed to Liam. The two fall into misunderstanding and confrontation, until the real murderer behind the massacre launches a full-scale attack on Clock Tower. Standing amid fire, gunsmoke and collapsing steam machinery, Chloe and Liam lay down their hatred, fight side by side to defeat the evil guild, uncover the buried truth, and turn a revenge disguise into a fated love bonded by gears, steam and redemption.

In the Valenti Family, you're born with a chip. It's fused into the bio-watch on your wrist, its digital face counting down every second you have left to live. Everyone could see the numbers ticking down on my twin sister's watch. And on mine. They all knew she would die on our 18th birthday. So Vivian became the untouchable princess of our brutal world. Every diamond-stitched gown was hers. The rarest jewels were hers. Even our father's last shred of humanity was hers. That single sliver of warmth he showed only after his gun was holstered. I used to pity her. Her time was running out. But God, I envied her. She had everything I never did: our parents' love. Then, the night of her 18th birthday party. My parents worried I'd make a scene. That I'd piss off the Don of an allied Family. So they locked me in the cellar. Damp. Cold. While a deadly fever burned through me. I pounded on the heavy oak door, my voice cracking. "Mamma, please! Let me out! I'm burning up. My head is splitting open…" Outside, my mother's voice was a steel trap. "Enough, Sienna! Today is your sister’s 18th birthday. Her last day alive! Stop the theatrics! Can't you suffer in silence for the Family's honor?" "But I'm really sick..." Her footsteps clicked away, fading into nothing. Then the darkness swallowed me whole. And on my wrist, the bio-watch was flashing a critical alert. CRITICAL ALERT: Vital signs mismatch. Paired chip data incompatible. Please verify user.

In a world where the sun has long vanished and eternal winter reigns, fire is condemned as the greatest forbidden power.The all-seeing Snow God rules the frozen world through colossal Snow Dragons, relentless guardians that patrol the skies, hunting down every trace of warmth and anyone guilty of the ancient sin known as fire. When young Lyra is struck by a deadly frost sickness, her father, Aldric, Lord of Winterfall, makes an impossible choice. Defying the Snow God's absolute law, he enters the forbidden ruins of an ancient civilization and awakens a forgotten flame. The fire saves Lyra's life—but at a devastating cost. As the Snow Dragons descend upon Winterfall, Aldric sacrifices himself so his daughter can escape. His final act awakens something far greater than anyone could have imagined. The Snow God has sensed the return of fire. An endless storm of Snow Dragons descends upon the city, reducing Winterfall to ice and ruin. Far away, a young noble named Kael, heir to the Darkhold, witnesses the destruction. Haunted since childhood by mysterious dreams of fire, he begins searching for the truth behind the world's greatest taboo. The deeper he investigates, the more he realizes that history itself may have been rewritten. Perhaps fire was never the true enemy. As Lyra grows older, she discovers that she is no ordinary survivor—she is the only person chosen by the fire itself. And now, the Snow God has turned its gaze toward her. Together, Lyra and Kael embark on a journey across the frozen world, pursued by the ruthless Ravok, the Snow God, and its relentless Snow Dragons. Their path leads them toward the legendary Hollow Sea, where long-buried secrets may finally be revealed. As the truth begins to emerge, Lyra realizes that what the Snow God fears most may not be fire itself—but humanity's ability to reclaim warmth, hope, and freedom. The battle between a god determined to preserve absolute order and the people destined to change the world has only just begun.