Chapter 30: A Kingdom Divided
Emily did not sleep.
No matter how many times she closed her eyes, the words refused to leave her mind.
Every first love of the royal family dies… by their own hand.
She sat by the window as the night stretched on, her thoughts restless, her chest tight with something she could not ignore.
By morning, she had made her decision.
The letter was sealed before sunrise.
"My lady… are you certain?" her maid asked quietly.
Emily's expression was calm—but her eyes were firm.
"Yes."
The message was simple, but heavy with implication.
She wrote to her father, the king of her homeland, informing him of what she had learnedof the curse tied to the royal bloodline she had been married into.
She did not exaggerate.
She did not beg.
She simply told the truth.
And that was enough.
The response came faster than expected.
Too fast.
Which meant one thing
Her father had been furious.
In the great hall, tension hung thick in the air.
Kira stood beside his father as the royal messenger finished reading the letter aloud.
Silence followed.
Then
"This is an insult," Kira's father said, his voice cold with restrained anger.
But the messenger did not flinch.
"I was also instructed to deliver this message directly," he added.
The king's gaze sharpened. "Speak."
The messenger bowed his head slightly.
"His Majesty, the King, demands the immediate separation of his daughter from this union."
The room froze.
Kira's eyes darkened slightly.
"The union," the messenger continued carefully, "was formed under the promise of peace not under the threat of death."
A pause.
Then, more firmly
"If the safety of Princess Emily cannot be guaranteed, then this alliance is no longer acceptable."
The meaning was clear.
This was not just a request.
It was a warning.
---
Within days, Emily was gone.
No dramatic farewell.
No confrontation.
Just a quiet departure that carried the weight of a breaking alliance.
The palace felt… different.
Colder.
---
The rumor spread faster than anyone could control.
At first, it was whispers among servants.
Then guards.
Then nobles.
Until it reached every corner of the kingdom—
A curse…
A royal curse…
Every first love… dies by their hand.
Fear followed quickly.
Those who once admired Kira from afar began to step back.
The quiet glances stopped.
The hopeful smiles disappeared.
No one wanted to be chosen.
No one wanted to risk becoming a victim of something they could not understand.
---
Kira remained unchanged.
Or at least
That was what it looked like.
But the silence around him had grown heavier.
Lonelier.
---
Damon watched it all unfold with a quiet understanding.
"They're afraid of you now," he said one evening.
Kira didn't respond.
"They were always afraid," Damon added, "but now… it's different."
Still, no answer.
But Damon noticed the shift.
Because despite everything
Despite the broken alliance, the whispers, the distance
There was only one person Kira still seemed aware of.
Even when he said nothing.
Even when he looked away.
Even when he tried to deny it.
Helena.
---
Somewhere within the palace grounds
Unaware of the storm her existence had stirred
Helena walked quietly, lost in her own thoughts.
But something had changed.
She could feel it.
The way people looked at her.
The way the air itself felt… tense.
Like something was coming.
Something she couldn't yet understand.
---
And far away, in another kingdom
Emily stood by her window once more.
Safe.
But not at peace.
Because deep down
She knew this wasn't over.
Not yet.