POV: Ismerel Aureventis
---
Today she decided to leave the palace for a visit and there no one dared to question her.
They didn't dare.
Not when the marble beneath her bare feet hummed.
Not when the tea boiled in its cup the moment she passed.
Not when her cold, clean, and powerful voice declared simply:
"Prepare the royal carriage."
She did not elaborate. She didn't need to as she was a princess.
The staff moved like wind under a storm cloud received that order.
---
In her bedroom, a dozen ceremonial gowns remained untouched.
She chose golden dress to paired with her golden eyes. Trimmed in silver only at the cuffs.
No crown. No tiara. Only the imperial seal resting at her necklace.
It not sign of a beauty but burden that she carries.
---
She stared at her reflection while the attendants adjusted her sleeves.
White hair braided into a high twist.
Golden eyes, half-lidded.
Lips pressed so gently they looked painted.
She look perfect without any defect on her appreance.
Except today… she wasn't smiling.
Not like the stories.
Not like the portraits.
Just quiet.
---
This sudden visit happen because of that dream.
The dream still had not faded. Not even after four days.
The clock without hands still ticked behind her eyes.
It had not spoken.
But it had moved.
And so would she.
To uncover the mystery it shrouded itself with
---
She stepped out into the courtyard, already buzzing with preparations.
The knights stood at attention.
Her carriage had been fitted with imperial silks.
A traveling envoy is scheduled to go with her.
She frowned and said
> "Don't accompany me," she said.
A knight hesitated. "Princess, the Dormir house—"
"I will not require others to speak with my fiancé."
Her voice was soft.
The knight bowed instantly.
---
Her younger sister tried to stop her at the gates.
"Is he really that special?" the girl asked, pouting with cheeks puffed like a squirrel.
Ismerel didn't answer.
She knelt once, adjusted the girl's collar, and said
"If the world says someone holds power, I must see if they deserve it. I need to judge him in person"
She kissed her sister's forehead, rose, and added.
"This is not about love."
---
Inside the carriage, she opened her palm.
A silver ring rested there the one she had thrown year ago.
It had reappeared the next morning.
Clean. Dry. Cold.
She didn't wear it.
She placed it inside a black box and shut it.
---
By sunset, the city gates had closed behind her.
The hills rolled wide ahead, leading into the eastern province where the Serene Heir slept behind velvet walls.
Her eyes did not rest.
Her fingers drummed softly on her knee.
She had read reports. Heard rumors. Studied family records.
But none of it told her who Ezrel Dormir truly was.
No ones knows.
---
Dormir Mansion..
The manor gates were opened before she knocked.
The maids and butler lined the path without smiling.
Their movements were precise. Coordinated. Too practiced.
Her shoes didn't echo.
The stone seemed to hush itself for her arrival.
---
Lady Dormir bowed at the front step, dressed in her purple gown.
Lord Dormir stood beside her, hand on his cane, smile like a blade.
"An honor, Princess. We did not expect you."
Ismerel's slowly reply ."You should have.".
She didn't look at the mansion. Or the flowers. Or the maids.
Her eyes were searching for him.
Her fiance.
---
She was taken to the guest solar. Tea was offered.
She didn't drink it but just leave it there on the table.
She stood by the tall window and waited. The curtains stirred slightly despite the lack of wind.
Then
Footsteps.
Soft.
Dragging.
And then her waiting end.
---
Ezrel Dormir entered the room.
He was barefoot.
Wearing a dark robe with no crest.
Hair tousled like he'd just woken from a decade of sleep.
Eyes… half-lidded. The kind of gaze that saw through time but didn't bother reporting back.
He paused when he saw her.
Ismerel stared at him.
Not surprised.
Not nervous.
Just...
Calculating.
---
"I didn't send a letter," he said, before she could speak.
His voice was calm. Low. Dusty.
As if he had used it sparingly his entire life.
"That was rude," she replied.
He nodded once. "I know."
A pause.
"Why?"
He looked at the sky outside the window.
"Because I don't want to trouble you to come ."
---
Silence filled the room like smoke.
Ismerel studied him again.
His posture. His tone. The lazy way he spoke like he owed the world nothing.
And the worst part?
He didn't.
She could feel it.
There was a weight inside him.
---
"You're strange," she said softly.
Ezrel blinked. "I get that a lot."
She took a step forward. Just one.
"I dreamed of you."
Ezrel looked at her, and for the briefest second he frowned.
Then shrugged. "Sorry about that."
She didn't answer.
Because there was nothing to say.
---
Outside the room, Lysette stood near the stairwell.
She hadn't moved in ten minutes.
Her eyes never left the door.
She had smiled when the princess entered.
And now?
She was still smiling.
But her thumb pressed gently into the sleeve seam of her dress.
Right where the thread was stitched.