By morning, I had already made up my mind. I wasn't going to have breakfast with Alexander.
When his invitation reached me, I pressed a hand to my forehead and told Lady Evelyn that I had a slight headache. It wasn't entirely a lie. After everything that had happened, my head really did hurt.
But the real reason was simpler. I needed to talk to Sir Gregory without Alexander hovering nearby. More importantly, I needed answers.
The previous night, Tumblefluff had given me one piece of the puzzle. My ability to communicate with monsters might be connected to my bloodline. That alone was strange enough. What I hadn't expected was to discover that the people who had supposedly known Elysia all her life might already have the answer.
Sir Gregory arrived with Lady Evelyn shortly afterward. They settled across from me inside my tent, and I waited until Evelyn had poured the tea before speaking.
"Sir Gregory, there is something I've been meaning to ask."
He lowered his cup. "Of course, Your Highness."
I wrapped both hands around mine, letting the warmth settle into my fingers. "I've been thinking about my ability to communicate with monsters."
His eyes flickered briefly toward Lady Evelyn. That tiny movement caught my attention. I continued before either of them could interrupt.
"Last night, I met a small monster in the forest. It told me that this ability might have something to do with my bloodline. I thought perhaps..." I hesitated, choosing my words carefully. "Perhaps you might know something about it."
Sir Gregory didn't look surprised. That was my first clue. Lady Evelyn remained quiet beside him, her expression thoughtful rather than shocked.
I sat straighter. "You do know."
Sir Gregory sighed. "We suspected that your memory loss might eventually lead you to ask."
I frowned. "Then why didn't anyone tell me?"
"Because you had only just returned to us." His answer was gentle, but there was something guarded beneath it. He placed his cup down. "In Astoria, Your Highness, there are monsters that live alongside humans peacefully. Some are kept as companions. Others live freely among our communities. Our people have learned to coexist with them for generations."
I stared at him. That was not the Astoria I remembered from the novel. Then again, the Astoria in the novel had barely existed beyond a few paragraphs.
Sir Gregory continued. "We have an organisation responsible for maintaining that relationship. The Monster Conservation Unit oversees interactions between humans and monsters and protects both sides when conflicts arise."
I looked from him to Evelyn. "And what does that have to do with me?"
Sir Gregory's expression softened. "Everything." He paused before giving me the answer. "You are the head of the Monster Conservation Unit."
For a moment, I thought I had misunderstood him. "Me?"
"Yes, Your Highness."
I stared at him. The woman who had spent the past few days trying to figure out how to survive in a world she didn't understand was apparently responsible for an entire organisation. I almost laughed. Instead, I looked down at my hands. So this was why the monsters trusted me.
Why Tumblefluff had spoken to me without fear. Why something inside me seemed to recognise them even when my mind didn't. My chest loosened. For the first time since waking up in this world, something actually made sense. A strange sense of relief settled over me.
Maybe I wasn't completely lost. Maybe Elysia's life had left me something I could understand. "What about my family?" I asked. "Is this ability hereditary?"
"That is what we believe," Sir Gregory replied. "The royal bloodline of Astoria has a long history with monsters, although very few people outside the kingdom know about it."
I nodded slowly. So there was a reason. Not magic randomly assigned to me by some convenient plot device. Not a coincidence. A part of Elysia's life that had existed long before Samantha Lindsey ever arrived.
Then Lady Evelyn spoke. "And that is why you should not travel any farther with Prince Alexander."
The relief inside me disappeared almost as quickly as it had come. I looked at her. "Because he doesn't know?"
"Because he is not from Astoria." She folded her hands in her lap. "Prince Alexander has spent much of his life fighting monsters. His kingdom does not share our customs. If he learns how important your ability is to Astoria, he may not see it as something that belongs to your people. He may see it as something useful."
Useful. The word stayed with me. I glanced toward the tent entrance. Alexander had been kind to me. He had protected me. He carried me when I couldn't walk. He had sat beside me by the river. He had given me tea. He had tucked a blanket around me when I was too tired to protest. But none of those things answered the question that suddenly mattered. What would he do if he knew what I could really do?
I swallowed. "Then we need to leave."
Sir Gregory nodded. "That would be wise."
"But how?" I stared at him. "If I simply tell him I don't want him to accompany me, he'll ask why. I can't tell him about the Monster Conservation Unit. I can't tell him what my ability means to Astoria."
"We don't need to tell him." Sir Gregory leaned forward slightly. "There is a temple near the border. Men are not permitted inside. You can tell Prince Alexander that you intend to make a pilgrimage there. It may take several days."
I considered it. It was simple. Plausible. And most importantly, it gave us time.
"While you are there," Sir Gregory continued, "I can send several men ahead to Astoria. We can arrange a larger escort to bring you home safely once your pilgrimage is complete."
I felt the tension in my shoulders ease. For once, I had a plan. "Let's do it." I stood. "We shouldn't waste any more time."
The decision felt right. Until I remembered that I still had to tell Alexander. That part did not feel right at all.
***
Liam told me Alexander was still in his tent. I stopped outside for a moment. My palms were damp. Ridiculous. I had faced a Frostbane. I had spoken to monsters. I had woken up in another world. And somehow, telling one prince that I didn't want him following me was making my heart pound.
I took a breath and entered. Alexander was seated near the small makeshift table made from cloth and woods. He looked up almost immediately. A smile appeared on his face. "Good morning, Princess."
He rose and pulled out a folded chair for me. The gesture was so familiar by now that it almost made me hesitate. Almost.
I remained standing. "I need to tell you something."
His hand stayed on the back of the chair. "That sounds serious."
"It is." I forced myself to meet his eyes.
"We're going to have to part ways."
The smile disappeared.
I continued before he could respond. "I've decided to make a pilgrimage to a temple near the Astorian border. It's close enough that I won't be putting myself in unnecessary danger, and Sir Gregory will arrange an escort for me afterward."
I gave him the explanation exactly as we'd planned. Then, because I wanted the conversation to end before it became complicated, I bowed. "On behalf of Astoria, thank you for everything you've done for me since the Frostbane attack." I turned toward the entrance.
"Elysia." His voice stopped me.
Not Princess. Elysia.
I turned around. Something had changed in his face. The easy warmth was gone. His expression was still controlled, but his eyes had hardened. "Is that all?"
I didn't answer immediately. There was something in his voice I hadn't heard before. Not concern. Not amusement. Something colder. "I believe I've said everything that needs to be said." I tried to keep my voice steady.
Alexander stepped away from the chair that he pulled for me. "You've made a decision without discussing it with me."
"I didn't realise I needed your permission."
His jaw tightened. "You don't." The answer came too quickly. He looked away for a moment, then back at me. "But I had expected you to come with me."
My stomach tightened. "Why?"
He was silent. That silence told me more than his words had. I took a step backward. "Alexander?"
His gaze remained fixed on me. "I need your help."
I frowned. "My help with what?"
He didn't answer immediately. Instead, he walked toward me. Two steps. That was all. But I felt myself tense as he crossed the distance between us. "I know about your ability."
The room seemed to shrink. My thoughts stopped. "What?"
"You heard me."
I stared at him. The word ability echoed in my head. Nobody outside Astoria was supposed to know. Not Alexander. Not anyone. "How?" My voice came out quieter than I intended.
Alexander stopped a few feet away. "I've been watching you."
A chill moved through me. "Since when?"
"Since the Frostbane." That wasn't possible.
I searched his face, trying to find some sign that he was lying. There wasn't one. "You knew?"
"I suspected." He glanced toward the tent entrance before continuing. "When I saw how the monsters reacted to you, I realised there was more to you than what you'd told me."
I shook my head. "I didn't tell you anything."
"No. You didn't." His voice was calm. Almost too calm.
"That's why I needed to know for myself." Something cold settled in my stomach. All those moments suddenly looked different. His questions. His attention. The way he watched me. The way he seemed to appear whenever I wandered somewhere alone.
Had I been imagining things? Or had I simply failed to notice? "What exactly do you want from me?"
Alexander's expression hardened. "I want you to help me find the King of Monsters." The name came next. "Aetheron."
I had heard the name before. In stories. In legends. But hearing it from Alexander made my skin prickle. "Aetheron isn't some ordinary monster," I said.
"No." He took another step. "He is ancient. Powerful. Every monster in these realms knows his name."
"And you want to find him."
"I want to hunt him." The words landed heavily.
I stared at him. "Why?"
Alexander's eyes remained fixed on mine. "Because if Aetheron truly exists, he has power that no human ruler possesses."
I could hear the conviction in his voice. This wasn't revenge. It wasn't self-defence. He wanted power. Realisation hit me slowly. My ability wasn't merely interesting to him. It was useful. "You think I can lead you to him."
"I know you can communicate with monsters. That gives you access to information no ordinary hunter could obtain."
I took another step back. "So that's what this is."
His expression changed slightly. "What?"
"You weren't helping me because you trusted me."
He didn't answer. My chest tightened. "The tea. The breakfast. Taking care of me. Everything..."
I stopped. I didn't want to hear the answer. But I already knew.
Alexander's voice was quieter when he finally spoke. "I never said those things were false." That somehow hurt more.
I looked away. For a moment, I thought about the river. His hand over mine. His quiet smile. The way he'd told me I didn't have to face everything alone. Had any of it been real? I forced myself to look back at him. "Then what happens if I refuse?"
His expression became unreadable. "You won't."
"That's not an answer."
"No." He took another step. "If you refuse, I will have to keep you here."
My stomach dropped. "Keep me?"
His silence was enough.
"You mean imprison me."
"I mean protect you."
I almost laughed. "Those are two very different things."
"You don't understand what you're carrying."
"Then explain it to me." My voice rose despite myself.
"You know what I can do, you know where I come from, and apparently you know more about my ability than I do. So explain it."
Alexander's jaw tightened. "You are a valuable target."
"To whom?"
"To anyone who understands what your bloodline means."
I stared at him. "You're talking about me as though I'm a weapon."
"Because there are people who would use you as one."
"And you're not?" That stopped him. For a moment, neither of us moved. Then I saw something flicker across his face.
Anger. Not at the question. At the truth behind it.
I folded my arms. "You want to use my ability to find Aetheron."
"Yes."
"And if I don't agree?"
His answer was quiet. "Then I won't let you leave."
The words settled between us. There it was. The truth I'd been trying not to see. The prince who had smiled at me across breakfast. The man who had carried me through the forest. The man who had tucked a blanket around me when I was too tired to protest. He was willing to keep me against my will. I was wrong. Or perhaps I had been right all along. I just hadn't known which version of him I was looking at.
I took a slow breath. "My duty is to Astoria." I could hear my own voice trembling, but I refused to let it break. "That includes the monsters who live there. They aren't yours to hunt simply because you want their power."
Alexander's expression hardened. "You are naive."
"Maybe." I held his gaze. "But at least I'm not pretending that hunting an entire species is the same thing as protecting people."
His eyes narrowed. "You don't understand what Aetheron is capable of."
"Neither do you." I paused. "Because you've never seen him."
Something changed in his expression. A flicker of doubt? No. Something else. I couldn't identify it. That frightened me more.
Alexander looked away. "I will find him." His voice was quiet now. "And when I do, I will not allow anyone to stand in my way."
I stared at him. I had no answer. My mind was moving too quickly. This wasn't the Alexander I remembered. In the novel, he had been the centre of a tragic love story involving Seraphina and Ariella. His relationships with them were supposed to drive the story toward its inevitable disaster.
He wasn't supposed to be standing in front of me, planning to hunt Aetheron. He wasn't supposed to know about Elysia's bloodline. And Elysia wasn't supposed to be here. None of this was supposed to happen.
I suddenly felt as though the ground beneath the entire story had disappeared. What had I actually been relying on all this time? The novel? It was no longer the novel.
Alexander? I didn't know him. Even Elysia herself was beginning to feel like someone I had only borrowed. I took a slow breath, but it did nothing to settle the panic spreading through my chest. I had entered this world believing I knew the ending. Now I wasn't even sure I knew the beginning. And for the first time since waking up as Princess Elysia, I understood something that terrified me more than any monster in the forest.
I wasn't simply trapped inside a story. The story had changed. And I had no idea what came next.