Elara was quickly taken away to rest her head.The prison corridor was cold and silent, lit only by the soft, flickering flames of the torches on the walls. They cast long, twisted shadows that moved like ghosts dancing across the rough stone. Elara walked slowly, her bare feet making almost no sound on the icy floor. She held her breath with every step, unsure how or why she had come here. Something inside her was leading her forward..like an invisible string pulling her closer to the tower below. She couldn't stop herself, no matter how much her mind told her to turn around.Her thoughts felt strangely calm, too calm. It was the kind of calm that people felt right before something terrible happened..a quiet before a storm.She stopped in front of a heavy door, the last one in the hallway. Everyone in the castle knew this door. It was always guarded, both day and night. No one was allowed through without orders. But tonight… the guards were gone. Not just missing..they had been sent

The kingdom exhaled.For the first time in years,no shadows slithered behind the throne. No whispers of rebellion stirred beneath velvet curtains. The silence stretched long and wide heavy at first,as though no one dared trust it,then gradually softening into a quiet most people welcomed.Elara smiled more.Her laughter returned in pieces soft giggles when playing tag with palace dogs,louder bursts when she caught Adrian off guard with one of her clever remarks. She no longer flinched at the sound of footsteps in the hall. No more nightmares. No more questions about Leona.Evelyn watched her daughter slowly bloom again and felt something unexpected stir in her chest.Hope.And warmth.It had been so long since she’d allowed herself to feel it.She still rose early,still trained with her guards at dawn,still kept her sword sharp but the stiffness in her shoulders was gone. She no longer stood like she was expecting a knife to her back. The kingdom was quiet,and though Evelyn didn’t tru

The air in the palace's lower courtyard was heavy. It smelled of sweat, blood, and silence. Heat rose from the stone ground as the sun bore down like an angry god.Guards knelt in the dust, their heads bowed, backs covered in red welts from the whip. Some had already collapsed, groaning from the pain. Others stood nearby, pale and shaking, waiting for their turn. The whip cracked through the air again, sharp and brutal.King Adrian stood in the center, fury written in every line of his face. His chest rose and fell with ragged breaths, his hand gripping the whip so tightly his knuckles looked like bone.“You call yourselves protectors?” he roared. “You let him escape! Damien vanished right under your noses!”He turned to face them, his eyes wild. One of the younger guards..a boy who looked barely older than Elara..couldn’t take it anymore. His knees buckled, and he fell to the ground with a gasp. His skin was torn and bleeding.“Get up!” Adrian shouted, storming toward him. “Or I’ll f

The wind howled against the palace walls as a storm brewed far off the coast,unsettling even the guards who stood watch. Evelyn paced the halls of the eastern wing,glancing through windows and over her shoulder more often than she liked. Life had begun to feel ordinary again at least on the surface but something in the silence of recent days made her skin crawl.The guards had doubled,the torches never went out,and hounds patrolled every corridor. Yet,despite the illusion of safety,Evelyn felt as if the walls themselves had begun to whisper secrets.She wasn’t the only one.That night,the palace was unusually cold. Evelyn rose from her bed,sensing a presence before hearing it. Padding barefoot down the corridor,she stopped short when she saw a figure in white drifting past the garden corridor.“Elara?” she called gently,voice echoing too loudly in the empty hall.The little girl didn’t stop. She moved like a spirit silent,barefoot,her eyes open but vacant.Evelyn rushed to her. “Elara

Leona stands tall,carrying a baby boy with Adrian’s eyes.The palace courtyard fell into suffocating silence as Leona crossed the threshold. She moved like a phantom of power long buried regal,unbothered,dangerous. The golden torches flickered wildly behind her,but the baby in her arms remained still,resting against her chest.All eyes were on him.The boy had soft golden curls,flushed cheeks,and when he opened his eyes gasps spread like fire.Steel gray. Adrian’s unmistakable eyes.Adrian descended the stairs from the palace,each step louder than the last. Evelyn trailed behind,pale and stiff,as if her bones refused to carry her any further.Leona didn’t bow. She didn’t blink. She met Adrian’s gaze and whispered so only he could hear: “You left something behind.”She tells the crowd,“I bring the true heir to the kingdom.”Then,louder for everyone to hear Leona raised the child slightly in her arms and turned to the gathered nobles,guards,and servants frozen by the spectacle.“I bring