The Cipher of Grieze Citadel

Vija was once a prodigy of the Spire, the Vesmenian Empire's most ruthless intelligence agency, until a failed mission cost her everything. Now an outcast, she lives only to protect her younger brother, Juris. But when their starving village demands a sacrifice to the monstrous Ravener of the Grieze Citadel, Vija offers herself to spare him. She expects a swift death, but finds a paradox: a terrifying, instinct-driven beast by night, and by day, a tormented man named Stasys who has no memory of his own monstrosity. He is a prisoner in his own home, his curse worsening with each moon. The only cure is the Heart of the Sunkentree, a lost artifact. Bound by a shared cage of shadow and stone, Vija's cold, calculating mind sees a path to freedom. If she can cure him before the winter solstice makes his condition permanent, she can escape. But the Citadel holds secrets darker than its master's curse, and the Heart of the Sunkentree is more than a cure - it's a trigger. Will Vija succeed in saving the man, or will she unleash the far more dangerous monster she was trained to be?