ELARA'S POV
The wine glass slipped from my hand.
It shattered on the marble floor, red liquid spreading like blood. Every eye in the Grand Hall turned to me. My heart hammered so hard I thought everyone could hear it.
"Princess Elara?" Queen Isolde's voice cut through the silence. My mother—no, the woman who raised me—stared from her throne with cold blue eyes. "Are you quite well?"
I couldn't breathe. Couldn't think. Couldn't do anything but stare at the words still echoing in my head.
*Princess Elara will marry the Dragon King of the North.*
"I... yes, Your Majesty." I forced my lips into a smile. The princess mask. I'd worn it for twenty-three years. I could wear it now, even as my world crumbled. "Forgive me. I'm just... surprised by this honor."
Lies. Pretty lies wrapped in silk and jewels.
Around me, the court whispered like angry bees.
"The North? They're sending her to the North?"
"Poor thing. Human brides don't survive there."
"I heard the last one was eaten by dragons."
"The Dragon King is a monster. Eight hundred years old and still hunting for his mate."
Each word stabbed like a knife. I wanted to run. To scream. To rip off this heavy crown and throw it at Isolde's feet.
But princesses didn't run. They smiled and nodded and died with grace.
"The alliance will bring peace," Isolde announced, her voice ringing through the hall. "Princess Elara will wed King Kael Draven in three months. It is a great honor for Veridia."
A great honor. Right. An honor to be fed to a monster.
I curtsied low, my legs shaking. "I live to serve the kingdom, Your Majesty."
More lies. But what else did I have?
The feast continued around me, but I tasted nothing. Lords and ladies offered congratulations that sounded like condolences. Lady Marissa actually cried while hugging me. "You're so brave," she whispered.
Brave. I wasn't brave. I was terrified.
By the time the feast ended, my face hurt from fake smiling. My chest felt tight, like invisible hands were squeezing. I escaped to my chambers, desperate for air, for space, for anything that felt real.
I'd barely closed the door when a knock sounded.
"Come," I called, thinking it was my maid.
Queen Isolde swept in instead.
My stomach dropped. She never came to my chambers. Never sought me out unless something was terribly wrong.
"Your Majesty." I curtsied quickly. "I didn't expect—"
"Sit down, Elara."
Her voice was different. Not the public voice she used in court. This was colder. Sharper. Real.
I sat on the edge of my bed, hands folded in my lap like a good princess. Inside, my thoughts screamed.
Isolde studied me for a long moment. Then she spoke words that changed everything.
"You are not my daughter."
The world tilted. "What?"
"You are not Princess Elara Ashford. You are not royal blood." She said it like discussing the weather. Calm. Matter-of-fact. "You're a commoner's child. We switched you at birth with the real princess."
I couldn't breathe. Couldn't move. The words made no sense.
"I... I don't understand."
"It's quite simple." Isolde walked to my window, looking out at the city below. "The real Princess Seraphine was born weak. We feared assassination attempts, so we hid her away. You were born the same night to a woman in the lower city. We made the swap. You've been living Seraphine's life for twenty-three years."
My hands started shaking. "That's impossible. You're lying."
"Am I?" She turned, and her eyes held no warmth. No love. Nothing. "You never fit in, did you? Always felt like an outsider. Always wondered why I was so cold to you. Now you know. You're not mine."
Tears burned my eyes. Every lonely childhood memory suddenly made horrible sense. The distance. The coldness. The way she looked at me like I was a disappointing purchase.
Because I wasn't her daughter. I was just... a placeholder.
"Why tell me now?" My voice cracked.
"Because you're going North as planned. But your mission isn't to be a bride." Isolde's smile was ice. "You're going to seduce the Dragon King. Make him fall in love with you. Keep him attached to you for three months."
"I don't understand—"
"In three months, we'll reveal Seraphine. The real princess. His actual fated mate." She stepped closer, and I saw the cruel intelligence in her eyes. "The Dragon King needs his mate to break his curse. When we produce Seraphine, he'll be grateful. Obligated. He'll give us everything we want in the peace treaty."
My blood turned cold. "You're using me as bait."
"I'm using you as you were always meant to be used. A tool." She gripped my chin, forcing me to meet her eyes. "You'll go North. You'll charm him. You'll make the monster love you. And when we bring Seraphine, you'll step aside gracefully."
"And if I refuse?" I whispered.
Her smile turned cruel. "Your real parents—the commoners who birthed you—are alive. They live in a village called Millbrook. If you refuse this mission, or if you fail, I'll have them executed for treason. The entire village will burn."
Horror crashed over me. "You can't—"
"I can. I will." She released my chin. "You have three months, false princess. Seduce a dragon. Make him love a lie. Or watch innocent people die for your failure."
She walked to the door, then paused. "Oh, and Elara? If you tell him the truth—if you reveal you're not really a princess—I'll know. And your parents will die screaming."
The door closed behind her with a soft click.
I sat frozen, her words echoing in my head.
Not a princess. Never a princess. Just a commoner girl wearing a stolen crown.
And now I had to make a monster fall in love with me, or people would die.
My hands wouldn't stop shaking. I looked at my reflection in the mirror—auburn hair, green eyes, delicate features. A stranger's face. A lie's face.
Who was I really?
A soft knock interrupted my spiraling thoughts.
"Princess?" My maid's voice, nervous. "There's... there's a man here to see you. He says he's from the North. He says
the Dragon King sent him to fetch his bride."
My heart stopped.
They were here already. Tonight.
I was out of time.