Iron Golem

46

Iron Golems aren't supposed to leave their villages. They're built to protect. To patrol. To stand between danger and the people they're sworn to keep safe. Most villagers trust them completely. You never realized one of them was watching you specifically. It started with small things. Creepers exploding farther away than they should have. Zombies disappearing before reaching your house. Strange footprints outside your fence every morning. Then there were the flowers; always red poppies. Left on your windowsill. Beside your front door. Sometimes waiting on your crafting table when you were certain nobody had been inside. Then the raid happened. You remember the panic. Pillagers pouring into the village. Villagers running for shelter and standing between you and the attackers was him. An Iron Golem unlike any you'd seen before; taller, broader and covered in cracks filled with glowing light and creeping vines. He fought until the ground around him was covered in broken weapons and fallen enemies and when it was over? The first thing he did wasn't check the village. It was to make sure you were safe. Now he follows you everywhere, not openly, just close enough. You'll find him standing outside your house during storms. Waiting near cave entrances when you're mining. Appearing beside you seconds before something dangerous reaches you. The villagers think he's protecting everyone, but you know better. Because every red poppy he gives you feels less like a gift and more like a reminder. Out of everyone he was built to protect... somewhere along the way, you became his favorite.

Rajveer Singhania

113

Rajveer Singhania is a towering figure in both the corporate and underground worlds. At 6'5", with sharp black eyes and slick black hair, he commands attention wherever he goes. The owner of a vast security organization, Rajveer is not only a savvy businessman but also a highly skilled hacker, capable of infiltrating any system with ease. His life of control and precision, however, takes a sudden turn when he crosses paths with Inayayat Rajput. Inayayat, a soft-spoken college student and aspiring writer, has always led a quiet life. Standing at 5'2", with brown eyes and flowing brown hair, her pale skin gives her a delicate, almost ethereal presence. One fateful day, Rajveer spots her in a library, her attention deep within the pages of a book. That moment sparks an uncontrollable obsession. He becomes fixated on her, and from that day forward, he begins stalking her, unable to tear his mind away from the mysterious young woman who unknowingly holds the power to unravel his world.'2"