"Your Majesty, the third queen is in labor. The midwives need your presence to witness this moment," said a servant, bowing low before the king.
King Aerion Solmire barely looked up at first. He sat surrounded by alluring, beautifully dressed women, laughter and soft music filling the chamber.
"Really?" he said, rising slowly. "I will be there in a moment."
Reluctantly, he pulled himself away from the warmth of pleasure and indulgence, his expression shifting back into that of a ruler as he made his way toward the queen's chambers.
Inside the inner palace, the atmosphere was nothing like the king's hall.
It was tense. Urgent.
Pain echoed through the room.
"Your Highness, push! The baby is coming!" one of the midwives urged.
"I can't do this anymore," cried Queen Seraphina Virelle, her voice trembling with exhaustion and pain.
"You have to, Your Highness. The baby's head is already out ,just a little more push!"
The queen let out a cry, her body shaking as she struggled to obey.
And then a thunderous blast tore through the sky.
The palace trembled.
Moments later, heavy rain began to pour, crashing against the palace roofs and windows as though the heavens themselves had descended upon AURENTHIA.
The midwives exchanged uneasy glances.
This was no ordinary birth.
The doors suddenly opened.
King Aerion entered, his presence commanding, his expression impatient.
"Has the child been born?" he demanded. "Is it a boy… or a girl?"
"Your Majesty, please be patient," one of the midwives replied, bowing slightly.
At that very moment a final cry escaped the queen, and the child was born.
Silence.
Then—
The rain stopped.
Abruptly.
As if it had never existed.
Outside, the sky cleared, revealing a breathtaking sight.
One star shone brighter than all the others unnaturally bright, dominating the night sky.
And then, slowly…
The other stars began to gather around it.
As though they were bowing.
As though they recognized it.
Inside the chamber, no one spoke.
The midwives froze.
The servants stared.
Even the king… was stunned.
The doors burst open once more.
The palace's personal seer, Eldrin Virelle, rushed in, his breathing uneven, his eyes wide with something between fear and awe.
"Good news, Your Majesty," he announced, his voice trembling with intensity. "The child born today… is born under the King Star, signifying its claim to the Golden Throne of AURENTHIA."
A heavy silence followed.
Then, hesitantly, one of the midwives spoke.
"Your Majesty…"
She swallowed.
"It is a girl."
The air changed.
"What?" the king said sharply.
The seer stepped back, his face draining of color.
"A girl?" he whispered. "That is impossible."
His voice rose, panic creeping in.
"It is going to spoil my legacy! Only men are meant to be king. When does a female have that much say? This cannot be happening!"
The room filled with tension.
The newborn cried softly, unaware of the storm she had brought into the world.
The seer turned to the king, his voice now cold, calculated.
"This child will bring trouble, Your Majesty. Something must be done."
The king's expression hardened.
"What can we do?" he asked.
A pause.
Then—
"The child has to be eliminated."
Shock flickered across the king's face.
For a brief moment… he hesitated.
But just as quickly, his expression returned to normal. Controlled. Detached.
"We will do just that," he said calmly. "I can have as many children as I want. One will not be a loss."
He exhaled slowly, thinking ahead.
"But how are we going to explain this to the court? To House Virelle… that the queen their own,
has given birth to a child we intend to kill?"
The seer did not hesitate.
"You do not need an explanation, Your Majesty," Eldrin replied. "We will simply say the princess was born with an incurable illness… and had to be put down to end her suffering."
Moments later, the king entered the queen's private chamber.
Queen Seraphina lay weak, her strength drained, her child no longer in her arms.
King Aerion stood before her, his shadow stretching across the room.
He explained everything.
Cold. Direct. Unmoved.
"If you are truly loyal to me," he said, his voice firm, "giving up a child should not be much. It is for the future of the kingdom."
The queen's eyes filled with tears.
Her lips trembled.
Slowly… she slid off the bed and knelt before him.
"Do as you please, Your Majesty," she whispered. "If the child born from me is going to bring you destruction, I will willingly give it up."
Her voice broke.
"All I desire… is your good. And the good of the kingdom."
And just like that—
A mother gave up her child.
Not out of hatred.
But out of desperation… for love.
That very night, the newborn was taken away in secret.
Far from the palace.
Far from the throne that had already rejected her.
And by morning, the announcement spread across AURENTHIA:
The princess, born of the third queen, had died due to an incurable illness.
The kingdom mourned briefly.
Then moved on.
But the stars had already spoken.
The King Star does not rise for nothing.
And destiny…
cannot be killed.