The sun beamed, extending its rays through the tiny cracks of the curtain. The figure on the bed stretched out his body, but stopped midway due to immense pain. His muscles burned as though he had been run through by a thousand war carriages. Slowly, he opened his eyes. With the flash of the sun's rays, he closed them, then slowly opened them again after a few seconds.
Prince Liang Chen yawned and climbed down from the bed, but his steps faltered, his body swaying as new memories clashed in his mind. He glanced around his surroundings—it was all too familiar. The mirror was in the same position, the curtains were in his favorite color, and the crown on his nightstand was that of the crown prince…, it was his crown after coronation.
"Wh... what is happening?"
"I died... he took it all, he killed them, he ruined us."
Prince Liang Chen's hands trembled as he stepped before the mirror. The face staring back at him was different. His long gray hair had not been cut to shoulder length, and his hands had not suffered the blisters of war.
"This is a dream... it has to be a dream," he mumbled. But before he could gather himself, the door slammed open and a man stepped in.
"Your Highness!" Eunuch Lian Hua chirped like a morning bird. "Why aren't you ready? ... we will be late ... we can't be late." He mumbled hastily, picking out an attire for the day's event.
Prince Liang Chen froze, his breath hitched. Liang Hua had died…. He took an arrow for him. Liang Chen stepped closer, but the man before him went about his morning duties effortlessly as if unaware of the impending doom they had suffered. Prince Liang Chen sighed and walked over to the balcony. Whatever this was, it was sure to end soon.
The morning air of Yunzhou's capital was colder than he remembered. The city burst with echoes of laughter and happiness—the same cheers that had once resounded over the walls but had drowned in silence after his fall... his failure.
Liang Chen's fist clenched, his gaze darkened, but something caught his eye. Flying banners—those that bore the name of the man he hated.
"Ji Mingyuan!"
Prince Liang Chen's body trembled. His hand slowly touched his chest, his heartbeat rising rapidly, but the pain could not be forgotten.
"Your Highness," a voice called.
Liang Chen turned, but Lian Hua was still busily sorting out clothes and talking to himself.
"Who—"
"The heavens deem you fit for another chance...
Main quest: prevent the flood.
Sub-directive: secure alliance with Prince Ji Mingyuan of Yelan. Warning—failure will result in total annihilation."
"I am Xiayue… your ordained guide."
"You... no." Liang Chen's fist twisted. Secure an alliance with the man who killed him?
"Alliance?" he whispered, his breath cold as the morning dew. "Or entrapment?"
Whichever it meant, he would rather a second death.
"Your Highness?"
"What?" Liang Chen yelled, his voice resounding over the roofs.
"Y-your dress is ready," Lian Hua whispered and disappeared behind the door. He had not known his prince to be this disoriented, more so in the morning.
Prince Liang Chen drew in a long breath and walked over to the bathroom.
"Alliance day..." he murmured. The memory was vivid as daylight. Two years ago, he remembered every action, every word—how he had rejected Ji Mingyuan's peace alliance, torn the treaty, and tossed it to his face, vowing never to give in to Yelan's oppression. But in the end, he was dragged like a dog around his city and tossed into the river like a yearly sacrifice.
It couldn't happen again. Not in this lifetime.
That afternoon, the court was restless. Rumors had already spread of the envoys from Yelan arriving early, demanding an audience with Yunzhou's prince. But Prince Liang Chen was in no hurry. He had gotten ready within the early hours of dawn, but no one had set eyes on him since.
Behind the giant doors of the secret library, Liang Chen sat at his usual spot of solace, but this time his mind was more chaotic than ever.
How can I prevent my doom? The words lingered on his mind like a curse, but time brought him no answers.
Tired, he stood up and walked his way out.
Liang Chen walked into the golden hall, his robes trailing behind him like a war storm. His face was calm yet sharp, and his gaze flickered with knowledge. He looked at everything in the past, and yet nothing of it.
The hall attendants rose and bowed, yet behind their smiles and kind eyes, Liang Chen could see it—the same greed and ambition that would one day drive them to betray him. His jaw tightened.
"Not again," he murmured. He would not allow history to repeat itself. Two years would be enough to change the course of destiny and have his revenge.
As Prince Liang Chen took his seat, the Yelan delegation was summoned. They all walked in, and there he was... Ji Mingyuan. The devil in human clothing.
Clothed in dark silk embroidered with a silver dragon, he moved with arrogance, his steps echoing like war drums. Just like that day—quiet, dangerous, alarming.
Liang Chen studied his every move, every sign, every glance as it swept around the court before settling on him. Their eyes locked, and tension hovered in the air.
To Liang Chen, it was the sting of betrayal. His body and mind remembered every wound, every stab, every humiliation.
But to Prince Ji Mingyuan, it was something deeper... something he dared not name.
"Prince of Yunzhou," Ji Mingyuan's lips curved into a sinister grin, his eyes flickered with a thousand emotions. "I greet you." Every word cut like venom laced with honey.
And Liang Chen hated it.
He detested those eyes that lingered a second too long, those perfect green eyes that searched his soul. He hated those perfect lips that spoke one thing but meant another. He hated everything about the man before him.
"Prince of Yelan," Liang Chen replied evenly, matching every cut with steel.
"Yunzhou welcomes you."
But in his mind, another voice whispered— Your enemy... your mission... your only chance.
"I refuse." Prince Liang Chen lunged forward, his dagger aimed for Ji Mingyuan's heart.