Cfvz.
✧ [Elara's POV]
Warmth.
That was the first thing she noticed.
Not the suffocating cold of marble floors.
Not the weight of chains.
Not the silence before death.
Warmth.
It wrapped around her like something fragile—something she didn't deserve to feel again.
Her fingers twitched.
Small.
Too small.
Her eyes fluttered open, adjusting slowly to the golden light spilling across the room. Silk curtains swayed gently by the tall windows, and the faint scent of roses lingered in the air.
For a moment…
She thought it was a dream.
"…Ah."
The sound that left her lips wasn't a word.
It was a soft, broken noise.
Her gaze dropped to her hands.
Tiny.
Unsteady.
A baby's hands.
Her breath hitched.
No…
No, no, no—
This isn't possible.
---
Memories flooded her mind all at once.
The throne.
The cold voice.
The order.
The execution.
Her father.
---
Elara's body trembled.
"I… died."
The realization came slowly, but when it did, it struck deep.
She had died.
At the hands of the same man who had given her life.
And yet—
She was here.
Alive.
Again.
---
A faint creak interrupted her thoughts.
The door opened.
---
✧ [Maid's POV]
"She's awake!"
Lina's eyes lit up with relief as she hurried toward the cradle, her footsteps soft but rushed.
The young princess blinked up at her, those golden eyes shimmering in a way that felt almost… aware.
Too aware.
For a baby.
Lina paused for a moment.
Strange.
"…Your Highness?" she whispered gently, leaning closer.
The child didn't cry.
Didn't fuss.
She simply stared.
Watching.
Observing.
It sent a strange chill down Lina's spine.
"…You're such a quiet one," she murmured, forcing a small smile as she lifted the baby into her arms.
"Just like…"
She stopped.
Her lips pressed together.
Just like the late Empress.
---
✧ [Elara's POV]
She recognized that name without it even being spoken.
Empress.
Her mother.
The woman who died the moment she was born.
The reason—
Everything fell apart.
---
Elara stilled in the maid's arms.
So it's true.
I really went back.
Not just back in time—
But back to the very beginning.
---
Her mind raced.
If this is the start…
Then that means—
Her gaze sharpened slightly.
He hasn't come yet.
---
In her previous life—no, in the story—
The emperor never visited her.
Not once.
Not until—
Her small body stiffened.
Not until the day he decided she was unnecessary.
---
Her tiny fingers curled weakly against the maid's dress.
No.
This time…
I won't let it happen like that.
---
✧ [Emperor Kaelion's POV]
"…The child?"
His voice was quiet.
Too quiet.
The kind of quiet that made the entire room hold its breath.
A servant immediately lowered his head.
"Yes, Your Majesty. The princess is in good health."
Silence followed.
Kaelion stood near the tall window, the empire stretching endlessly beneath him.
Bright.
Prosperous.
Alive.
Unlike her.
---
His eyes darkened.
"…And the Empress."
The question was unnecessary.
He already knew the answer.
"…She has passed, Your Majesty."
---
Something inside him went still.
Not shattered.
Not broken.
Just—
Empty.
---
"…I see."
That was all he said.
No grief.
No anger.
No sorrow.
Just acceptance.
As if her death was nothing more than a report.
---
But the glass in his hand cracked.
Silently.
---
"…The child."
His gaze shifted slightly.
Cold.
Detached.
"…Dispose of it."
---
The entire room froze.
"…Your Majesty—"
"Or," he interrupted, his tone unchanged, "lock it away."
A pause.
"…I have no use for it."
---
✧ [Elara's POV]
She didn't hear the order.
Not directly.
But she didn't need to.
Because she already knew.
---
Her eyes stared blankly at the ceiling as the maid gently rocked her.
So it begins.
---
This was the starting point of everything.
Neglect.
Distance.
Silence.
---
Elara closed her eyes slowly.
In her past life, she had done nothing.
She had simply existed.
Waited.
Hoped.
Died.
---
But this time…
Her small hand tightened slightly.
I won't wait to be loved.
---
Her gaze opened again.
Clear.
Sharp.
Unfitting for a child.
---
I'll survive.
Even if I have to—
Her lips parted slightly.
Become something he cannot ignore.
---
✧ [Narration]
And so, in a palace filled with gold and ghosts…
A forgotten princess opened her eyes for the second time.
Not as a child seeking love—
But as someone who had already learned how the story ends.
---
✧
This time…
She would not die quietly.