I jolted awake, my breath caught in my throat, panic rising as I gasped for air. My fingers instinctively flew to my neck, feeling the pulse beneath my skin, as if checking for something that wasn't there—or something I feared might be. Was it a nightmare? It felt so real. I can still feel the steel cutting through my skin. Goosebumps surged across my skin as the maniacal laughter of the tyrant echoed in my ears, relentless and haunting.
I looked down at my trembling hands, my eyes drawn to the scars on my wrists. My breath caught as disbelief washed over me. I had never seen these marks before. Not before that tyrant seized control of our kingdom. These were the scars I inflicted upon myself to escape his harsh ruling.
It wasn't a dream.
Many questions raced through my mind, but one truth stood clear — I went back in time before Eldoria waged a war against us.
"Princess?"
My eyes widened at the sound of a familiar voice. I looked up and saw Anna, my ever-loyal and devoted maid, carrying my breakfast with careful hands. Her gaze, filled with concern, met mine as she quickly crossed the room. Without a word, she hurried to my side, grasping my hand gently but with an undeniable urgency.
"Are you alright? You looked... weary."
I nodded, though my voice caught in my throat. Tears welled up in my eyes, silently tracing down my cheeks as I felt the warmth of her gentle, calloused hands holding mine. "Yes... e-everything's fine," I whispered, though the tremor in my voice betrayed the lie.
"Why are you crying, Your Highness?"
"I'm just so glad to see you." Ignoring all the formalities and royal protocol, I pulled Anna into a tight hug. She stiffened at first, clearly surprised, but after a moment, she awkwardly patted my back, unsure of how to respond. Pulling away just enough to look at her, I asked, "What year is it now?"
"Uhm..." Anna hesitated, her brow furrowing as she glanced at me with a puzzled expression. "I-It's the twenty-second year of King Theon's reign," she stammered, her voice trailing off uncertainly.
"The date, exactly."
"The twelveth day of the fourth moon."
Yes, I've returned. Exactly one year before the invasion—before everything went to hell. I still have time, months even, to prepare for what's coming. I can still save them. I can still stop the worst from happening.
"You need to help me prepare," I said, my voice urgent, as I scrambled off the bed and hurried toward my closet. Every second counts now. I had to meet with my father and tell him everything I knew—everything I had to do to change the future. To save my kingdom.
"W-Where are you going, Your Highness?" Anna's voice wavered, confusion written all over her face. She didn't know what to make of my sudden urgency.
"I'm going to meet my brother and father at the Council," I replied, my tone firm. I yanked the best dress I could find from the wardrobe, the fabric cool and heavy in my hands. There was no time for hesitation now. The countdown had already begun.
---
"No."
"What?" My voice rose, a mix of confusion and disbelief, as I stared at my brother. I had specifically asked him to join the Council Meeting this afternoon, but his response was anything but what I expected. "What do you mean 'no'?"
Kyros — my older brother and the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Syrindall — didn't even look up from the stack of documents he was sifting through. His tone was calm, yet unwavering, as he spoke. "As I said, I won't let you into the Council Room. You have a tendency to speak your mind in ways that could put us in a precarious position."
"No, I don't." I argued.
My brother and I are worlds apart. He's headstrong, intelligent, and always a few steps ahead, carefully weighing every decision before acting. Kyros grew up with all the support and privilege anyone could ask for, perfectly groomed to be the future ruler of Syrindall. I admire him for that—his calm control, his confidence—but sometimes, his cold, distant nature feels like a wall I can't breach. I love him, but it's like he's already so far removed from me that he can't even hear what I'm trying to say.
But I would make him listen—no matter the cost. The thought burned in my mind as I moved closer to his desk, each step heavier than the last.
Visions of the future collided in my mind, brutal and unforgiving. I saw my brother, bloodied and broken, dying to protect me and our father. His lifeless body sprawled on the cold ground, the life draining from his eyes, and my heart shattered all over again. I swallowed the lump in my throat, fighting to push the memory down as I gazed at his youthful face—so full of life, so unaware of the storm looming ahead.
He looked up from his papers, his gaze meeting mine with that familiar, disinterested flicker. But the edge in my expression must have caught his attention. His brow furrowed slightly, confusion crossing his features.
"What is it?" he asked, his voice guarded, the distance between us widening with every word.
I wasn't sure how to answer. How could I make him understand? How could I convey the weight of what was coming without sounding insane? But I had no choice. Time was running out.
"Are you and the Council going to address the possibility of Eldorian spies in our city?" I asked, my voice steady, though every word felt like a spark in the air.
My brother froze. He immediately looked up from his documents, his gaze locking onto mine with an intensity that seemed to strip away the quiet tension in the room. For a moment, we simply stared at each other, the weight of my question hanging in the air, unspoken fears rising between us like a shadow.
Kyros once again composed himself. "What are you even talking about?"
"You know what I mean, brother." My heart skipped a beat as I met my brother's calm, but piercing gaze. His eyes narrowed slightly, the weight of unspoken understanding hanging in the air. "Walls talk," I said, my voice steady despite the knot of tension in my chest.
He raised an eyebrow, a smirk playing at the corners of his lips. "I never knew your walls could talk," he quipped, carefully setting the stack of documents aside. His fingers brushed the edges as if weighing the gravity of what I had just said. "I don't know how you came by that information, but..." He paused, his tone shifting to something darker, more serious. "There's a chance... a real chance they're here, in our city."
The words hung in the air between us, heavy with the implication of what it meant.
"How come no one detected them?" I asked, my voice low as I carefully lowered myself into one of the chairs near his desk, the worn leather creaking under my weight. The room felt suddenly smaller, as if the very walls were closing in with the weight of the question.
Kyros didn't answer immediately. He looked down, his brow furrowed as if the answer were just out of reach. "That, I do not know," he muttered. "We are still investigating the matter, my dear sister."
A flicker of thought crossed my mind. "Maybe... someone let them," I suggested, my words hanging in the air, charged with the possibility of betrayal.
Kyros's gaze shifted to me, sharp and calculating, the quiet intensity of his stare making my skin prickle. "If someone is conspiring with the Eldorians," he said slowly, "who do you think that might be?" His voice was steady, but there was an edge to it, as though he were testing my reaction.
The thought gnawed at my mind, relentless. I tried to sift through the memories of the previous timeline, grasping at fragments, but the idea of a traitor had never even crossed my thoughts before. I had never dared to consider that one of us might turn against the cause. My eyebrows furrowed in concentration, the tension building in my chest.
Who could it be? Think, Karina. Think.
The faces of the nobility flooded my mind, each one more indistinct than the last. There were countless possibilities, but only one figure lingered, looming like a shadow in the back of my mind. The man who had knelt without hesitation before the tyrant, his loyalty unquestionable... or so it seemed.
"Marquess Bryonfort," I breathed, the name slipping from my lips in a shocked gasp.
Kyros's gaze snapped to me, sharp and inquisitive. "Why?" he asked, his voice steady but tinged with curiosity.
"I-I don't know," I stammered, uncertainty clouding my thoughts. But deep down, something about Bryonfort felt wrong, like a puzzle piece that didn't quite fit.
In the previous timeline, Marquess Bryonfort's land bordered the Eldorian territory. His estate was the only one left untouched, the only one not ravaged by the Eldorians' invasion. At the time, I had brushed it off as mere fortune—his proximity to the border, perhaps, offering him some kind of protection. But as I replayed those days in my mind, the pieces began to fall into place with a cold, creeping certainty.
It was Bryonfort who had not hesitated to kneel before the tyrant after he had murdered my brother and father. He had bent the knee without a flicker of remorse, his actions stark against the horrors we had all witnessed. He had been the one to suggest that I be spared, to suggest that the tyrant and I should marry—a means, he claimed, to secure my survival. And, his land became wealthier on the days of the invasion.
At the time, I had believed him. I thought he had acted out of necessity, to save his land and perhaps protect me from the worst of it. But now, with the weight of the past pressing down on me, I saw it differently. The way his eyes had gleamed in those moments, the way his words had been carefully calculated—it all pointed to something darker. Something far more sinister. A conspiracy.
A chill ran through me at the thought. My blood turned cold as the truth began to unfild right before my naïve eyes. Bryonfort had not been a reluctant ally; he had been complicit. And I had been too blind to see it until now.
"That's impossible, Karina." My brother said quietly, disbelieving the fact that there might be a mole in our country.
"Everything is possible, brother," I said solemnly, my voice steady but heavy with the weight of what we were discussing. I took a deep breath, the air thick with the unspoken tension between us. "Well..." I stood up, straightening my back as I turned to face my brother, his stone-faced expression giving nothing away. "Think about it, brother. You may want to raise that thought at the Council Meeting."
I curtsied, my movements deliberate, and forced a smile—one that barely touched my eyes. "I'll be taking my leave now, brother."
With that, I turned, my heels clicking softly against the stone floor as I made my way toward the door. The quiet of the room settled around me, but as I closed the door behind me, a thought suddenly struck me, sharp and unsettling.
This was the twelfth day of the fourth moon—exactly one year from the invasion. The day when I had overheard the guards whispering about foreigners in the marketplace, their voices hushed, full of suspicion.
If I wasn't mistaken, those foreigners were the ones who had been allowed into the city. They had crossed through the border, through Marquess Bryonfort's territory.
I paused, the thought settling over me like a weight. Could it be? Had Bryonfort been involved all along, allowing the Eldorians to infiltrate through his lands? The pieces were starting to fit, and the realization sent a chill creeping down my spine.
I had no hold over the royal guards, and without my brother's approval, I couldn't command the Captain to investigate this matter. But there was still one thing I could do. I could use my position, my influence, to quietly investigate these foreigners myself.
In the previous timeline, I had been around Eldorians enough to recognize them on sight. Their mannerisms, their accents, the way they moved—it was all etched into my memory. I smiled to myself, the thrill of taking control settling into my chest as I saw Anna scurrying toward me, her face bright with concern.
"Your Highness, how was your meeting with the Crown Prince?" she asked, falling into step beside me as we made our way back to my room.
"It was... fruitful," I said, my voice steady, though the words felt hollow. "But I know my brother too well." We passed a group of guards, and I kept my expression neutral. "He won't take it seriously. He never does."
Anna gave me a worried look, but I continued walking, my pace never faltering. "What are you going to do, Your Highness?" she asked, her voice soft but eager for an answer.
I glanced at her, a small, knowing smile crossing my face. "We'll discuss it in my room, Anna. Let's go."
As we moved toward my chambers, my heart raced in my chest, each beat louder than the last. A plan was forming in my mind, swift and calculated. My brother would not investigate this, not unless he had already spoken with Father. So, it was up to me. I, Karina Liliannia Mignionette, would take this matter into my own hands.
The path ahead wasn't clear, but I knew one thing for certain: I wasn't going to wait for my brother's approval or for Father's involvement. If anyone was going to uncover the truth, it would be me. And I would do whatever it took to ensure I wasn't left in the dark again