Mark of the Exiled Prince

Chapter Two:Lies That Bleed

I sat on the balcony, one leg pulled up to my chest, staring down at the street below.

People walked past like nothing had changed.

Like the world was still normal.

Like I was still normal.

A quiet chuckle slipped from my lips.

Funny.

Just hours ago, I was being chased like an animal. Called a rapist. Hunted.

Now I was here… sitting under the evening sky like everything was fine.

But it wasn’t.

Nothing was.

I didn’t know what I was feeling.

Anger. Confusion. Pain.

It all mixed together until I couldn’t separate any of it anymore.

But one thing stood out clearly.

I wanted revenge.

On all of them.

On my real parents—for deciding my life wasn’t worth keeping.

On Elizabeth—for destroying everything I had with one lie.

On everyone who believed her… who chased me… who hurt me.

My fingers tightened against the metal railing.

“They’re all going to regret it,” I whispered under my breath.

A soft presence settled beside me.

Warm.

Familiar.

My mum.

Her hand gently found mine, her thumb brushing over my knuckles in that way she always did—like she could calm every storm inside me without even trying.

“Thae, baby… how are you?” she asked softly.

Her voice…

It always made everything feel quieter.

Safer.

I swallowed.

“I’m fine,” I said, even though we both knew it was a lie. “I just… don’t know how to feel.”

My gaze stayed fixed ahead.

“But I know one thing,” I added, my voice dropping. “I want revenge.”

The word felt heavy on my tongue.

“I want them to feel what I felt. All of them.”

Silence.

Then—

“Sometimes revenge only leaves you empty, baby,” she said gently. “Don’t feed that part of you.”

I scoffed lightly, shaking my head.

“Why did they leave me?” I asked, my voice breaking slightly despite myself. “Did they really think I was that useless?”

Her grip on my hand tightened.

“In our kingdom,” she began carefully, “the weak are targeted. They are the first to fall.”

I frowned.

“So that was their solution?” I turned to her, anger flashing in my eyes. “To kill me?”

“No,” she said softly. “To save you.”

I let out a bitter laugh.

“That’s a funny way of saving someone.”

“They believed you wouldn’t survive there,” she continued. “That the court… the nobles… would tear you apart the moment they sensed weakness.”

Her eyes softened.

“They made a cruel choice. But in their eyes… it was the only one.”

I looked away.

“Don’t defend them,” I muttered. “There were other options. They could’ve hidden me. Protected me. Waited.”

“That is not how that world works,” she said with a sad smile.

I stayed quiet.

“If you were a commoner, maybe,” she added. “But you are royalty, Thae.”

The word still felt strange.

Heavy.

“Royalty is not allowed to be weak,” she continued. “It reflects on the king. On the throne. On the entire kingdom.”

My jaw tightened.

“So their reputation mattered more than my life?”

She didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, she lifted her hand and gently brushed my hair back.

“You didn’t die,” she said softly. “You were protected. Guided.”

I frowned slightly.

“By who?”

She smiled faintly.

“By fate.”

I rolled my eyes, letting out a quiet sigh.

“Yeah… right.”

Silence settled between us again.

Comfortable.

But heavy.

“You’ve been hiding your pain for a long time,” she said after a moment. “I’ve seen it, even when you thought I didn’t.”

My throat tightened.

“But don’t let it turn you into something you’re not,” she continued. “Revenge may feel good now… but it won’t heal you.”

Her lips pressed gently against my forehead.

A soft, lingering kiss.

Then she stood.

“Get some rest, okay?” she whispered.

And just like that…

She was gone.

Leaving me alone with my thoughts.

Again.

The night grew quieter.

Colder.

I leaned back in my chair, staring up at the dark sky.

“Fate…” I muttered.

The word felt distant.

Unreal.

“Yeah, right.”

But then—

Something shifted.

A sharp pain shot through my side.

I froze.

My breath caught.

Slowly… my hand moved to my waist.

To the mark.

The snake.

It burned.

Not like before.

This was different.

Alive.

Glowing faintly beneath my skin.

“What…?” I whispered.

The air around me felt heavier.

Charged.

Like something was watching.

Waiting.

My heartbeat quickened.

Then—

A whisper brushed against my ear.

Low.

Dark.

Not human.

“Finally…”

My body went rigid.

My eyes widened.

“What the hell—?”

The mark pulsed.

Once.

Twice.

Then pain exploded through my body.

I gasped, doubling over as something surged beneath my skin—something ancient, something powerful—

Something that had been sleeping…

Until now.