Dawn came quietly.
Too quietly.
Mist rolled through the trees, clinging to the ground like the last breath of night. Birds did not sing. Even the wind felt cautious, as if the world itself was waiting to see what I would become.
Seraphine lay beside the fire, wrapped in a cloak. Her breathing was steady now, but her skin was still pale.
Alive.
That was all that mattered.
I had not slept.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw her bleeding in my arms. Saw my uncle's man smiling as he told me she was never meant to survive.
The healer knelt nearby, packing his tools.
"She will live," he said quietly. "But moving her too soon could reopen the wound."
"We'll move when she's ready," I said.
He hesitated.
"Your Highness… the empire will not forgive what you did."
I looked at the darkened forest.
"I didn't ask it to."
Footsteps approached.
Seraphine stirred.
Her eyes opened slowly.
For one terrifying second, I thought I had lost her again.
Then she whispered, "You're still here."
I exhaled.
"So are you."
She tried to sit up.
I moved instantly, supporting her.
"Easy," I said. "You're not fighting today."
She studied my face.
"You didn't leave."
"Never crossed my mind."
Her gaze softened.
Then reality returned to her eyes.
"You killed him," she said.
"Yes."
She didn't look away.
"Then the empire will hunt you like a beast."
"I know."
Silence stretched between us.
Not fear.
Understanding.
"You chose war for me," she said.
I met her gaze.
"I chose you."
Her breath caught, just slightly.
Before she could speak, one of the soldiers rushed in from the edge of camp.
"Your Highness!" he said urgently. "A message from the capital!"
He handed me a sealed scroll.
Imperial black.
I broke it open.
Read.
Once.
Then again.
Seraphine watched my face.
"What is it?"
I closed my eyes.
"They've moved faster than I expected."
I looked at her.
"They've named me a traitor."
Her expression hardened.
"Publicly?"
"Yes."
I read the words aloud.
"By decree of the Imperial Regent, Kael Viremont is stripped of all titles, accused of treason, murder of an imperial agent, and conspiracy against the throne. All loyal citizens are commanded to apprehend or execute him on sight."
The forest felt suddenly smaller.
Heavier.
"They're offering a bounty," I added. "On my head."
Seraphine pushed herself upright despite the pain.
"Then you can't go back. Not ever."
"I know."
She looked away for a moment.
Her jaw tightened.
"So this is what you've become," she said quietly.
"A hunted man."
I studied her face.
"Is that… a problem?"
She met my eyes.
"No," she said. "It means the empire finally showed its true face."
She took a slow breath.
"And now I must choose mine."
My chest tightened.
"Seraphine—"
"I will not pretend I can return to the capital and stand beside the people who tried to erase you," she said. "Not after what they did. Not after what you chose for me."
The wind stirred the ashes of the fire.
"You don't owe me this," I said.
She looked at me steadily.
"I'm not paying a debt," she said. "I'm choosing a future."
She placed her hand over mine.
"With you."
Something in me steadied.
Not hope.
Resolve.
We were no longer prince and general.
We were fugitives.
Partners.
Enemies of the throne.
"We can't run forever," I said. "Sooner or later, they'll find us."
"Then we don't run," she said. "We move."
"Where?"
Her eyes sharpened.
"To the only place the empire doesn't control."
I knew what she meant.
"The Ashlands," I said.
A lawless territory. Broken cities. Outcasts. Mercenaries. Survivors of imperial purges.
A place the throne pretended did not exist.
A place where rebellions were born.
"If we go there," I said, "we won't just be hiding."
She gave a faint smile.
"We'll be building."
Footsteps approached again.
The scout returned, breathing hard.
"Your Highness," he said. "Imperial riders. Three units. Less than an hour out."
So it begins.
I looked at Seraphine.
"We don't have time."
She struggled to stand.
I caught her.
"We go together," I said.
She nodded.
"Always."
I turned to the soldiers.
"Those who follow me will be hunted," I said. "You will lose your names, your homes, your protection."
They did not move.
One by one, they knelt.
"Then we lose it with you," one said.
I felt something settle inside my chest.
Not pride.
Purpose.
I helped Seraphine onto her horse, climbed up behind her, and took the reins.
As we rode into the forest, the smoke of our camp fading behind us, I looked toward the horizon.
In my first life, I had died as a prince.
In this one…
I was becoming something else.
Not a ruler.
Not a pawn.
A threat.
And the empire had no idea what it had just created.