A thick silence settled in the impossibly long corridor, a space that felt like a bridge between eras. The ceiling soared to a gothic peak, while the polished black and white checkered floor gleamed under the soft glow of automated gas lamps lining the walls. Above, on wrought-iron balconies that laced the upper reaches of the hall, maids adjusted their lace caps, butlers polished silver trays, and uniformed guards maintained an unblinking watch, their movements a muted backdrop to the procession below.
A sentinel, his tailored black uniform sharp against the antique stone, paced forward, his polished long staff held stiffly. With three measured, echoing taps against the marble floor—thump-thump-thump—he commanded the attention of every soul in the vast hall. Conversation died instantly.
Patrick, a rigid figure in his ceremonial robes, prepared to lead the princesses to their first official challenge. A familiar, corrosive sense of dissolution was already creeping through him. Could these women truly not gain attention and affection without mindless bloodshed? Every year was the same: privileged young ladies, their eyes gleaming with avarice, ready to tear apart any prettily dressed competitor who dared cross their path. It was a terrible shame to lose such youth, only for them to be given over to the necromancers. Their parents believed they had been laid to rest among the other royalty—just another pretty lie upholding this rotten marriage market.
Patrick turned to the gaggle of princesses, his voice flat and formal. "It is time, to show your power. And declare for a prince. Follow me." He gestured down the hall with a curt flick of his wrist.
Before he could take a step, a manservant, Hermes, glided to the side of Prince Jasper. "Princess," Hermes interrupted, bowing deeply in the direction of Jasper. The prince simply gave a curt nod of acknowledgment, excusing himself without a word. He, along with the other princes, peeled away from the procession, taking a separate, less-guarded exit, seemingly following a different, unwritten set of rules.
As Patrick began to lead the remaining women forward, Princess Daniela hung back with her three maids—Lola, Ida, and Josephine. Her gaze remained fixed on the closing door the princes had just vanished through. "Explain what happens next," she demanded, her voice a low, gravelly current, contrasting sharply with the stiff silence of the hall.
Lola, the most practiced in courtly procedure, stepped forward and lowered her voice to a discreet murmur. "It is somewhat of a talent show, Princess. Every princess will show off her power. How she can use it in unique, interesting ways, proving herself strong and powerful. But before that, each princess is required to choose a prince. It doesn't mean that they cannot change their mind, but it is their top choice. It shows the level of commitment to the prince in question." Lola had been well briefed, as had the others, on every task and its inner workings, ready to relay the information only if asked.
Daniela continued her slow walk, intentionally lagging a bit further behind the main pack of princesses. "Tell me about the men. Each of them," she commanded.
The three servants exchanged a swift look—a flicker of new-found respect for their princess. The other ladies in waiting had whispered that no one had bothered to ask about the princes.
Ida, who had made the most thorough study of the available royalty, took the lead, adjusting the stiff cuff of her uniform. "Prince Jasper is most likely the strongest of the princes. He is the Crown Prince of Doloria. He has no siblings, and their kingdom is multi-dimensional. He is a bit of an enigma. His power is mostly unknown to the public. All he has offered is that he uses soul magic."
"What do people say about him?" Daniela wondered aloud as they deliberately fell further behind the main pack, ensuring no one could overhear their hushed exchange.
Lola shifted nervously, her young face earnest. "He is deemed dangerous, even among his own kin, which is a rarity." She watched her princess's impassive face, curious if the whispers would discourage her, but Daniela's expression remained utterly blank.
Daniela simply gestured with a brief tilt of her chin for Ida to continue.
"Prince Miguel would be the next," Ida continued smoothly. "As you may have heard, he is a Wendigo, one of the few fully formed. His kingdom is Dazos, and he is the second Prince; his father hasn't yet chosen a Crown Prince. His abilities are varied. His form is hard to harm with elemental magic. He is extremely strong. He can also affect the minds of the greedy, but we are unaware of exactly how his power works. His kind have… eccentric tastes."
"Cannibalism," Daniela supplied, the word a flat stone dropped into a well. "They eat the weaker of their kind. That is what I have heard." She felt like the unwanted bearer of bad news, but the Princess had asked for the truth.
As long as he didn't have a palate for human flesh, she didn't care. Daniela's morals had long since vanished during her second life. They weren't useful in her circumstances. Her hands hadn't been clean for years; every life, they only got bloodier.
"Prince Eric—" Ida began.
Daniela suddenly rested her hand on her stomach, her steps faltering momentarily. She could feel the raised scar from her previous lives—every life had gifted her the present of the fatal blow, a living reminder of the past. Not that she needed one. It felt like some sick deity's masochistic punishment.
"Princess Daniela?" Ida's voice was a high, thin thread of worry.
Daniela's ember eyes snapped up to meet Ida's, sending a distinct jolt of fear down the maid's spine. The Princess looked, for a terrifying instant, as if she would kill her.
Continuing her steps down the long hall, Daniela silently wished she could skip him, but she needed to know how dangerous he was.
Josephine gave Ida an encouraging, silent pat on her arm. She didn't want the maid to suffer their princess's wrath.
"He is the son of the Imperial King. They are vampires," Ida continued, her words rushing slightly. "His senses are heightened. What makes him exceptional is his ability to control blood; it's a familiar trait exclusive to his family. His political influence is exceptionally high because of his father. He has five brothers. He is uncrowned."
Lola noticed how Ida had scrupulously avoided speaking Eric's name and decided to do the same. Her hand gripped her skirt tighter, creasing the fine fabric, before she quickly tried to smooth the wrinkles she'd made. "Er—the Prince is known for his unsual kindness, given the perception of h—"
"I know him well," Daniela hissed, the only emotion that felt truly real—her fierce hatred and fear—finally breaking the surface of her cold composure. Every other emotion in her had been muted. Survival had made her cold and shallow; she lacked the depth of a real person. Whatever she was, it wasn't as human as she once was. Even in her first and second lives, she had felt real emotion. But as time went on, emotions felt forced. If it wasn't anger or fear, she felt nothing for anyone. Everyone was a tool to help her survive, and nothing else really mattered.
"Deacon Murdock, would be the next Prince, if I'm not mistaken, Ida?" Josephine cut into the dangerous tension, wanting to escape the treacherous situation they had somehow found their way into.
"Yes, Prince Deacon Murdock," Ida confirmed, grateful for the interruption. "He is a Shade, part of the Cartwright Kingdom.
Shades can be deadly in a battle, but they are best known for their political strengths. They have the ability to turn into shadow. They can control their own shadow or anyone else's. There is more to it than that, but I am not fully aware. The danger with Prince Deacon is less of his ability and more of his ears." Ida began smoothly, her earlier nerves dissipating as she focused on doing her duty to the best of her ability.
"Shades deal in secrets," Lola took over, covering the rumors. "Being able to be attached to anybody's shadow means they can hear anything. We all must be careful with our secrets when we see a shadow."
"The last Princes are Linden and Landon Corbus," Ida finished. "They are brothers, both from the Beastmen Kingdom."
The lack of creativity in the name was telling, but the name alone gave Daniela a clear indication of what kind of kingdom this was. She assumed that they were all animalistic in power and shape. Her father was a lord in the Beastmen Kingdom. Like others, he held animalistic traits, but Daniela had never seen them herself. Unlike the King's main families, who held the most power and the strongest resemblance to their forefathers, the other men of the various kingdoms paled in comparison. It all depended on the level of power in their bodies that would manifest as their specific species dictated. Her father was one of those who had very little power inside of him, but he was a Lord because, in his union, he had been able to produce daughters. There were far more men than women in this population, and those who could create daughters were lifted to positions of power—a small token of gratitude for what they planned to do to their daughters once they were fully grown.
Every eligible daughter of a Lord had to participate in the marriage market.
Even though her family was part of the Beastmen Kingdom, it didn't mean she had any exposure to the King and Queen. Their family wasn't important enough. The only thing that gave access from one lady to another was their schooling. All ladies that would participate in the marriage market attended the same schools, had the same tutors, and on occasion, they would see the princes. Their school was very nearby their own—an obvious temptation to make the girls clamor for the attention of the few boys.
"Linden is a snake Beastman, and Landon is a bear Beastman," Ida explained. "They are considered the weakest of the princes. They are both extremely strong, high in stamina, but they have a low ability to wield any sort of long-range attacks. But they are formidable in close-range attacks."
"Beastmen can be suffocating and obsessive in their attachment to their partners," Lola finished, looking wistful. "It is a well-known fact. But I am told it is a genuinely beautiful thing."
The heavy, carved oak doors, grand enough to grace a cathedral, had been pulled open far ahead of them, ushering Daniela and her three attendants from the thralls of their conversation, into the slightly more intimate, yet grand cavernous, Princesses' shared chambers accommodations.
Josephine trailed slightly behind, her gaze fixed on the resolute stiffness in Daniela's I spine. A tremor of curiosity ran through her. Now that she had the full breadth of understanding about the princes, who would her princess choose? Daniela was an enigma wrapped in an expensive gown. She had reacted with unexpectedly frigid at the mention of Prince Eric, yet had shown only clinical, detached interest in the cannibalistic Prince Miguel and the homicidal tendencies of Prince Jasper. Her focus wasn't on affection or political alliance. She couldn't discover her princesses ultimate goal.
Josephine had quickly surmised that her princess was not someone who could be easily understood. Daniela did not operate on sentimentality or even conventional ambition. She had a feeling daniela's decisions would be tactical, and made with the clear eyes.
A deep, calculating hum began to spin inside Daniela's mind. This world was simple in nature still. Though draped in fantasy and advanced tech, its political and social structures didn't hold the same convoluted complexities of her previous world. That reality—the one she carried locked in her memory—had been a viper's nest of double-crosses, unspoken rules, and layers of bureaucratic deceit. Here, the rules were brutal, clear, and based on visible power.
This simplicity, however, gave her a distinct advantage. The knowledge she kept from her old life—the intricate understanding of political leverage, historical patterns, and the subtle art of emotional manipulation—would be irreplaceable. While these princesses were busy focusing on showcasing raw power, Daniela would focus on the manipulation.
"I need a few items." She smirked.