Clang!
Duke had left the dining hall, and the heavy door closed behind him. Elira watched him with blank eyes, and her hands were shaking.
Three days. The royal ball. Do not shame this family.
The words sliced through Elira's mind like a curse.
Her fingers tightened around the edge of the table. Three days… That was all she had left before the story's first death flag. The night when the heroine would step into the kingdom. The night the villainess...she...was supposed to start her downfall.
Tap… tap… tap…
Elira's heels struck the polished marble as she walked the never-ending corridors of Duskbane Manor. The golden morning light spilled across the floor, but the shadows hung on the walls like predators. Servants bowed as she passed, their eyes moving up for the shortest second.
Whispers of servants "…she is still planning something…" "…arrogant as ever…"
Her jaw tightened. I cannot afford to panic. No, not yet.
The silk dress, as heavy as chains, pressed against the floor. She felt as though accusing eyes followed her through every portrait of long-dead nobles.
According to the story, you will die soon.
Her heartbeat felt louder.
Thump-thump. Thump-thump.
She came to the Royal Library.
Creaaaak!
She opened the huge wooden door. When she stepped inside, dust and candle smoke floated around her.
Rows of old books extended to the arched ceiling.
"Information is power," she whispered under her breath, her voice barely audible. "If I find the right clue, I may be able to cut the strings of this cursed story."
Rustle! Rustle!
She climbed ladders and collected books on treaties, battle accounts, and prohibited incantations. Her hands shook as she flipped fragile pages.
Hours passed, but she found nothing.
No… There must be something here.
Knock. Knock.
Knock! Knock!
Elira stood up. "Who's there?"
A girl was standing in the doorway; she answered with her soft voice. "Your Highness, Lord Kael requests an audience."
Her heart skipped a beat.
Kael… here?
In the initial book, he didn't arrive for another two days. He was the heroine's champion, one of the earliest to uncover the villainess's misdeeds.
The timeline is already falling apart.
"Have him come in," she commanded, maintaining her calmness.
The First Test
Click...
The door was open.
A tall man walked in, sunlight reflecting off his ash-blond hair. His sharp blue eyes conveyed both politeness and deliberation.
He leaned his head slightly. "Princess Elira." "I wish the morning is good to you."
Elira closed a book with a bang, managing a polite smile. "To the best of its ability, Lord Kael."
His eyes roamed over the dispersed books. "Studying history and… magic?" "A captivating manner to pass the day."
"I consider knowledge valuable," she answered effortlessly. "Particularly when dishonesty is widespread throughout the realm."
Kael's smile was a mix of humor and caution. "Judicious statements." "Deceit goes far, even within royal lineages."
He is putting me to the test.
He's testing me.
Elira's amber eyes met his eyes without hesitation. "Truth has a way of revealing itself when the time is right," she said softly.
A pause of quiet. The atmosphere between them became tense.
At last, Kael tilted his head. "Maybe it does." I eagerly expect your presence at the royal ball, Your Highness. "It is sure to be… memorable."
Step. Step.
His boots echoed as he turned and left, the door shutting with a soft smile.
Elira breathed out unsteadily. Her hands vibrated from gripping the book tightly.
"He's arrived early," she murmured. "The knight of the heroine… he shouldn't be here now."
If Kael showed up early, what else might be different? Would the heroine show up before the ball? Would death arrive sooner?
Her heartbeat pounded like battle drums.
Thump-thump. Thump-thump.
A Promise in the Reflection
Across the room stood a tall mirror that revealed a girl nearly too stunning to exist—golden hair resembling sunlight, molten-amber eyes. The villainess the world was expecting to burn to death.
Elira moved nearer, her voice almost a whisper. "I will not die."
Clang!Every sound of the distant bell tower signaled the start of the day.
"Not through their predictions," she murmured intensely. "By no one's writing."
One more sound. Dong… dong… The noise echoed throughout the castle like a timer.
Three days. Or fewer.
Elira stood up, her shoulders level. If destiny were a game, she would master every rule. She would curve the script. Break it. Rewrite it.
The villainess would not fall.
Not this time.
Clang… clang… clang…
The last bell rang out, yet her determination only strengthened.
The game had started.