Warmth, light, breath.
For a long time, Seo Wa floated in a cocoon of stillness. No pain. No chaos. Only the rhythmic beat of a heart—soft, steady, unfamiliar.
When her eyes finally fluttered open, the world that greeted her was unlike any she had ever known.
She lay in a grand chamber carved from polished moonstone. Sunlight spilled through arched windows, filtered through glass panes etched with glowing sigils. The air was fragrant with lilac and starflower. The soft bed beneath her was draped in silks of indigo and gold, threaded with arcane runes that shimmered faintly in her peripheral vision.
She blinked again, slowly taking in her surroundings.
A dome above her stretched into a sky mural filled with twin suns and star-mapped constellations. Beyond the open balcony, the view took her breath: a sprawling kingdom nestled between floating mountains, suspended bridges woven with vines, and a crystalline river that ran in spirals beneath a sky tinged with violet and rose.
This is not the world I knew, she thought. This is something else entirely.
Her body felt strange—lighter, smaller. She sat up, stiff and slow, and saw her hands: slender fingers, delicate wrists, smooth skin untouched by scars or calluses. Her muscles ached from disuse, but the deep wounds she'd died with were gone.
She looked toward a mirror framed in gold at the far end of the room.
She had to see.
Staggering toward it, each step like moving through water, she reached the mirror and gasped. A pale girl stared back—her long black hair cascading like silk, her eyes a startling shade of violet, rimmed with gold. Her face was youthful, noble, and eerily beautiful.
"I'm not… me," she murmured.
She wasn't Seo Wa, the battle-worn general of the Eastern Reaches. She was someone else entirely.
Just then, the doors burst open.
Lady Naelin rushed inside, her royal robes rustling like wind-blown leaves. Her expression crumbled into astonished joy when she saw Seo Wa standing.
"Princess Aelyra!" she exclaimed, voice trembling. "You are… awake!"
Seo Wa froze. The name stung with unfamiliarity. Aelyra. That was who she was now.
Naelin rushed forward and knelt at her feet. "Forgive me, your highness—I should not have left you unattended even for a moment. The court will rejoice. The healers thought the curse had claimed you forever."
Seo Wa blinked. "Curse?"
Naelin looked up, eyes wide. "You don't remember? The Curse of Silence. The sorceress Nira cast it upon you during the Moonlight Procession. You collapsed. The royal mages said your soul had been… displaced."
That word sent a chill through Seo Wa. Displaced. Replaced.
"Everything changed when you fell," Naelin continued softly. "Your father, King Thalen, vanished on a quest to find a cure. The court fractured. The Black Spire's forces grew bold. Without you…"
She broke off, breath catching in her throat. "Forgive me. You must be overwhelmed."
Seo Wa's head swam. Names. Kingdoms. History. All foreign, yet now hers to bear.
Before she could ask more, a chime rang in the corridor, and a young maid entered, carrying a tray of warm spiced tea and fruit. She was no older than sixteen, with wide sapphire eyes and white-blonde hair tied in a braid down her back.
"Y-Your Highness," she whispered, bowing so low her forehead touched the floor.
Seo Wa sat slowly on the edge of the bed, her voice still shaky. "You don't have to kneel."
The girl blinked up at her, startled. "I… I'm sorry. That's not how you used to speak."
Lady Naelin's gaze sharpened, but she said nothing.
Seo Wa looked away. Of course it's not. I'm not who I was.
As she sipped the tea, unfamiliar flavors danced on her tongue—honeyed citrus, herbs that tingled with magic. She felt warmth return to her limbs, clarity to her thoughts.
Then, the chamber doors creaked open again.
A tall man entered, dark-cloaked and imposing. His armor, though formal, shimmered faintly with embedded enchantments. A phoenix sigil burned bright on his chestplate. His features were sharp, his gaze cool—but his eyes betrayed something softer. Something like relief.
"Captain Ren Kael," Naelin said sharply. "This is highly improper—"
"I don't care," he said simply, stepping into the light. "I needed to see her with my own eyes."
Seo Wa met his gaze—and time seemed to stall.
There was something in his eyes that unsettled her. A familiarity not from this world, but the last.
"Princess Aelyra," he said, bowing low. "You may not remember me, but I was your sworn blade before your fall. My loyalty remains unchanged."
Seo Wa studied him. His voice was different. His presence calmer. But the name…
"Kael," she murmured.
He stiffened. "Yes. Ren Kael."
A shadow flickered through her memory. The Kael who had killed her before. The cold eyes. The spear of obsidian. But no… this was not him. This Kael was younger, noble, and perhaps… unknowing of the fate that once bound their names.
"I remember…" she said quietly, "...a different Kael."
Ren's expression darkened. "Then perhaps the gods chose this irony."
Lady Naelin stood straighter. "There will be time for questions and politics later. For now, her highness must regain her strength. Captain Kael, if you would—"
"I'll leave," he said, glancing once more at Seo Wa. "But, Princess… we need you. The realm needs you."
He turned and left without another word.
Seo Wa stared after him, her thoughts spinning.
The curse. The new name. The lost king. A brewing war. And a knight who bore the name of her killer.
Nothing made sense. But in her soul, something had begun to stir.
A dormant power. A purpose. A second life.
And she would not waste it.
If this world needs a princess, they'll have her. But if they need a warrior… they'll have that too.