章 254: Ashes of Hope    

[EVE]

The cold in Germany was bone-chilling, seeping through layers of clothing and biting into my skin.

Yet despite the frigid air outside, the heat between Cole and me had been undeniable just moments ago, the car's fogged-up windows a testament to our earlier . . . mysteries.

But all of that warmth dissipated the moment we arrived at our destination. My initial excitement, the flicker of hope that had carried me through the long drive, shattered like fragile glass as I took in the sight before me.

What once might have been a vibrant place was now a field of devastation—nothing but ruins and rubble scattered across the snowy landscape. No walls remained standing, no roofs to offer shelter. Only fragments of stone, charred wood, and the skeletal remains of dead trees stood as a grim reminder of what had once been.