The palace woke to whispers.
By dawn, the shattered testing chamber had become a secret everyone knew and no one dared to speak aloud. Servants avoided the eastern wing. Guards were doubled. The royal mage had not been seen since midnight.
Aelira sat before her vanity, letting Mara braid her hair.
"Everyone is saying different things," Mara whispered nervously. "Some claim the magic circle malfunctioned. Others say…" She trailed off.
"Say it," Aelira said calmly.
Mara swallowed. "They say the circle reacted to you."
Aelira met her reflection's gaze.
Let them wonder.
"That's ridiculous," Aelira replied mildly. "You were there. I fainted, remember?"
Mara nodded quickly, relief flashing across her face. "Of course, Your Highness."
But doubt lingered.
It always did.
The summons came before noon.
This time, it wasn't polite.
Two guards arrived at her chamber door, armored and expressionless. "Her Majesty requests Princess Aelira's presence. Immediately."
Aelira rose without protest.
Fear was expected.
Obedience was required.
She gave them both.
The solar was smaller than the throne hall—intimate, private, dangerous.
Queen Seraphine stood near the tall windows, sunlight outlining her figure like a halo. She did not turn as Aelira entered.
"You caused quite a disturbance last night," the queen said softly.
Aelira lowered her head. "I apologize, Your Majesty."
"For what, exactly?" Seraphine asked.
A trap.
Aelira chose her words carefully. "For being weak."
Silence followed.
Then—a soft laugh.
Seraphine finally turned, her eyes sharp and assessing. "Weakness is forgivable," she said. "Deception is not."
Aelira felt it then.
The weight.
The queen was watching her closely now.
"We tested you because we were curious," Seraphine continued. "And curiosity is rarely satisfied by fainting spells."
Aelira met her gaze, calm and empty. "I can't control what I don't have."
The queen studied her for a long moment.
Then she smiled.
"Very well," she said. "You will remain under observation."
Observation.
A prettier word for surveillance.
"You are dismissed."
Aelira bowed and turned to leave.
As the doors opened—
She felt it.
That familiar, unnerving pressure.
Someone was watching her.
He stood at the end of the corridor, half-hidden in shadow.
Kael Draven.
Arms crossed. Expression unreadable. Black armor catching the light like a blade waiting to strike.
He did not bow.
He did not speak.
He simply watched her.
Aelira walked past him without slowing, pulse steady.
Only when she reached the turn in the hall did she hear his voice—low, quiet, meant only for her.
"You're being watched."
"I know," she replied without turning.
A pause.
Then, softer, more dangerous: "By more than just the queen."
Aelira stopped.
She looked back.
For the first time, Kael's gaze was not cold.
It was intent.
Focused.
Possessive in a way that made her skin prickle.
"You should be afraid," he said.
Aelira smiled faintly. "I was afraid once."
Their eyes locked.
Something unspoken passed between them—an understanding forged not from trust, but from mutual awareness of how deadly the palace truly was.
Kael stepped aside, allowing her to pass.
But his gaze followed her long after she was gone.
In the solar above, Queen Seraphine watched from the window.
And for the first time since her rebirth, Aelira understood one thing with terrifying clarity—
The game had begun.