Chapter.6
1666 Words
The next morning, in the Dryat princesses’ classroom, a royal elder arrived. He stood by the tall pillar, staring at Aurora for a long time. His gaze was sharp, as if he were trying to read her soul. Feeling someone’s presence, Aurora turned toward him—and the moment the elder saw her bright green eyes shimmering, he staggered back.
“Impossible! Y-you’re really Aurora Victoria?” he stammered. His eyes were filled with fear and confusion.
Without warning, a long-buried memory returned to Theo’s mind—something he had witnessed when he was only ten years old.
“Queen Victoria… Queen Victoria!”
Advisors and members of the Dryat family shouted in terror.
“Stop this chaos! You’re endangering your own people!”
But Queen Victoria refused to listen. She wore the silk gown of the Dryat queens, a symbol of pride and power. Violent winds roared through the castle. Everyone inside shielded their faces and crouched. Several guards were blown back, transforming into fallen leaves caught in the storm. Objects shattered, scattered, and flew as the wind intensified.
With both hands, Queen Victoria lifted her uncle off the ground. A black fire engulfed his body. He screamed as the flames consumed him.
“How dare you deceive me! I never thought you were capable of something so vile. Watch—your soul will perish along with your treacherous mother!”
Queen Victoria wiped her tears, but the black fire only grew stronger. It was a flame no one else possessed, a fire that burned until the body it touched turned to ash.
A sudden flash of light disrupted her sight, and she prepared to disperse into petals—yet her movement froze when a metal dagger pierced her back. Shock crossed her face. Blood slipped from her lips.
---
The elder’s sudden appearance made Aurora uneasy. She could no longer focus on Dayang Mira’s lessons. She knew she was considered beautiful, but she had zero interest in old men—especially Dryat men who, due to their long lifespans, could easily be two hundred years old. Though ancient by human standards, the elder still looked like a sixty-year-old man.
Aurora snapped her fingers in front of him. The elder blinked back to awareness.
Dayang Mira approached. Her age wasn’t far off from Theo’s.
“Ahem… Dayang Mira?” the elder cleared his throat.
“Yes, Theo. You came early,” Dayang Mira replied as she stood.
“Aurora,” Dayang Mira called.
Aurora stepped closer. “Is something wrong, Madam?”
“You don’t have to accept this… but I cannot protect you completely.”
Worry was carved onto Dayang Mira’s face.
“What do you mean?” Aurora’s heart tightened. She prayed the thing she feared last night wasn’t happening. She did not want to marry the Dryat Commander. Not now, not ever.
Before Dayang Mira could answer, footsteps echoed through the hall.
“You have been summoned by the king,” a soldier said.
Dayang Mira exchanged glances with Theo.
What now? Aurora’s chest tightened.
“Very well,” she said, following the soldier with Mira and Theo behind her.
---
Upon arriving at the palace, King Niar—the highest ruler, wearing a gleaming crown and long mantle—welcomed her. He sat on the grand throne of Dryat royalty. Beside him sat his queen, Margaretta. This was Aurora’s first time seeing King Niar face-to-face.
His stare felt like a blade.
Advisors lined up neatly. Two of the king’s concubines stood at his sides.
King Niar rose. His long white beard brushed against his chest as he stroked it.
“Aurora… You will become part of this kingdom. My commander’s companion.”
Aurora’s eyes widened.
“I refuse,” she said, her voice nearly cracking. She didn’t care if she was an outsider. She would not accept a forced marriage.
“I do not belong to anyone.”
The room dropped into silence.
Her heartbeat pounded painfully.
“Oh? Truly?” King Niar asked without looking at her.
The advisors lowered their heads.
Dayang Mira—King Niar’s fourth wife—stepped forward.
“Aurora is not ready, Your Majesty,” she said with respectful firmness.
The king smirked faintly.
“She does not need to be ready,” he replied calmly. “She only needs to obey.”
Two soldiers grabbed Aurora. One exchanged a nod with the other.
Aurora gasped and struggled.
“Let me go! I don’t want this!” she shouted.
A spear pressed against her throat.
“Release me!” Aurora fought, biting a guard’s hand and kicking wildly. “You can’t do this to me! I said no—and my word is final!”
Queen Margaretta rose from her seat.
“Your Majesty, didn’t we make a promise with Commander Xander?”
King Niar didn’t answer. He only stared at her with deadly coldness.
“Commander Xander should know that the rebellion in the west was caused by the outcasts,” he said. Margaretta bowed her head. The king laughed, and the room felt colder.
“Commander Xander cannot protect you, girl. I have absolute rights over my people.”
Then he said something nobody expected.
The prophecy of the first Dryat queen’s child—one who possessed eternal healing power—was true. And somehow, the girl before him had returned to life.
“I… will marry you myself.”
Gasps erupted throughout the hall.
Aurora’s knees buckled.
Queen Margaretta fainted on the spot. Servants rushed her out. Shock rippled across the room.
“What does this mean, Your Majesty?” one concubine asked.
“I wish to marry her. That is all. You may leave.”
Aurora looked at Dayang Mira with desperate pleading. But the woman turned away.
Anger surged in Aurora’s chest. A strange pulse rippled through her soul.
In the next second, her body burst into delicate pink petals.
The entire hall recoiled in shock.
Only those of royal blood could transform into petals.
How could an outsider do it?
Theo shut his eyes and chanted. A surge of lightning shot from his hands toward Aurora. She screamed as the energy wrapped around her. She reverted into her human form and collapsed. Her arm was scraped, glowing faintly with lingering sparks.
“H-help! Let me go!” she cried.
“Your Majesty! I am ready to bear witness to Princess Aurora’s marriage!” Theo knelt.
One by one, the advisors followed.
Dayang Mira lowered her gaze, guilt written on her face.
“The wedding will be held tomorrow,” King Niar declared before leaving.
Aurora shook her head weakly. She did not want to marry him.
A tear slipped down her cheek.
She looked at the bracelet Xander gave her—the man who brought her to Dryat.
Her vision blurred. Her eyes shut completely.
She fainted into Dayang Mira’s arms while Theo withdrew his power.
---
“How should we proceed, Commander Xander?”
A man in a knee-length white robe asked. Thirty pirates had been captured near the kingdom’s outskirts. Roby placed an aluminum dagger onto the table. Aluminum—the Dryat race’s only weakness. The pirates claimed they acted under Dryat military orders. Their rebellion had been funded by the kingdom. Their leader had escaped—and likely already delivered the news to the palace.
Albert entered, sitting down without a word. Roby didn’t need to ask; he could see Xander was barely keeping himself together. His fists were clenched hard enough to draw blood. And there was no doubt: part of his rage was tied to the girl he had brought to Dryat.
Albert leaned back.
“I heard the flowers in the Dryat Palace are blooming beautifully. Farmers and thieves are fighting to pick them,” he remarked darkly.
Roby nodded.
“If you drink it, it becomes a potion that heals any disease.”
Xander stood abruptly. His eyes burned with fury.
“We leave tonight,” he said. His voice was low, promising vengeance.
Albert clapped his shoulder before heading out to oversee the pirates’ interrogation.
---
Morning arrived. Birds chirped as if announcing Aurora’s wedding.
Light seeped into her chamber. Aurora groaned as she woke up, her head heavy. Servants moved in and out, decorating the room, carrying clothes, food, jewelry.
Then she saw it—her dress had been changed.
And everything came back to her.
She was going to be married.
Her heart pounded. Her body trembled.
She bolted toward the door and threw it open—only to meet five guards.
“You cannot run from your wedding, Lady Aurora,” one said, pushing her back inside and locking the door.
“Open the door! I don’t want this marriage!” Aurora pounded on the wood.
Servants tried to restrain her.
She transformed into petals, racing toward the window—but lightning struck her mid-air, forcing her back into human form. She collapsed, pain searing through her body.
She saw her reflection in the mirror—golden royal makeup, an elegant Dryat gown, and eyes full of despair.
“No,” she whispered. “This isn’t who I am.”
“I want to leave! You have no right over me!” she screamed.
One servant stepped closer.
Aurora recognized her—Bella, Dayang Mira’s most trusted aide. Her expression was sorrowful.
“I’m sorry, Lady Aurora. But soon you will be the king’s wife. There is nothing you can do,” Bella said, hugging her.
A mocking smile curled on Bella’s lips.
Aurora’s sobs grew louder.
“My life is over… I don’t want this, Bella. I don’t want to be married.”
She was still speaking when Bella was suddenly flung across the room.
Aurora gasped.
X
ander stood at the doorway—eyes blue and slightly swollen, staring at her like she was the only thing in the world he could not lose.
And for the first time since yesterday, hope returned to her chest.
- Writer
