Wing of Illusion - Fifth Flight, #3

She battles behind her beauty. He hides behind a spell. In a land where dragons are bound and loyalties blur, trust may be the only true magic.

Jillian Mermia is a sword-skilled warrior with a queen's guard past—and a face that blinds others to her worth. Kenith Gandomilford-Eichen is a newly minted dragon rider and a powerful thaumaturgist, cloaked in illusion to conceal his strength and identity.

When they're paired for a dangerous mission into ogre-controlled lands, both are wary … of the enemy, and of each other.

Their task is clear: uncover how ogres control their dragons, locate clutches to steal, and, if possible, offer those dragons a chance at freedom through honest bonds.

Nothing about the mission is simple.

A new breed of dragon stalks the skies—larger, deadlier, and bred for war. Their own dragons lack the clutch-bond that makes riding together seamless, leading to missteps and danger.

As Jillian and Eichen battle injuries, ambushes, and dwindling supplies, the line between pretense and truth blurs.

When Eichen offers Jillian a spell to hide her beauty, she's furious. Until she learns the truth of the illusion he's lived behind.

Beneath the facades they wear, something deeper stirs—tenderness, understanding, and a longing neither expected.

But illusions are fragile, and the truths they hide can fracture trust.

Together, they must cross a strait into dragon-held lands, outwit those who pursue them, and convince enslaved dragons that a different future is possible.

As tensions rise and secrets unravel, Jillian and Eichen must ask themselves: Will the truth between them bring choice—or ruin?

Wing of Illusion is a romantasy of slow-burn desire, dangerous magic, and the power of seeing—and being seen—for who we truly are.

The Fifth Flight series is a clean & wholesome, slow-burn romantasy in a challenging fantasy world of dragons, similar to the style of Rebecca Yarros' Fourth Wing.

Tropes:

Forced proximity mission

Hidden identity

Illusion magic

Slow-burn romance

Reluctant allies to lovers

Scars and secrets

Found family

Chosen trust

Dragon riders

Bonded dragons

Clean & wholesome

Romantasy