Zahra's point of view:
I heard my mother's voice and walked toward her. As expected, she was surrounded by guests from neighbouring Kingdoms.
'How delightful…'
'Endless greetings, forced smiles, polite thanks, and an impressive number of questions – all about me, of course. It felt less like my birthday celebration and more like an interrogation disguised as a party.'
'Honestly, I really want to leave.'
I excused myself from the crowd and moved toward an empty table with fewer people around it. From there, I scanned the room, searching for a certain someone.
'Is he not here yet? I did send the invitation…
Lucas... You'd better have a very good excuse!'
I exhaled sharply.
'If he doesn't show up on time - just like always - I'll feed him to the jaguar.' As I was busy cursing him in my thoughts, the grand doors of the hall swung open. A tall man with broad shoulders stepped into the hall.
Xandros Ravenholt. King of the Kingdom of Valtoria.
The room shifted - subtly, but unmistakably. Conversations lowered. Eyes turned. Even the air felt… heavier.
I had heard the stories. That he had surpassed his father long ago. That no one across the kingdoms could stand against him. Looking at him now, I found it difficult to doubt any of it.
And yet....
Just as fear followed him, so did admiration.
He didn't try to command attention. He simply existed - and the room bent around him.
Not far behind him, another figure stepped into the hall.
Gabriel Ravenholt.
Quieter than his brother - yet somehow sharper. If Xandros commanded attention, Gabriel held it without effort.
My gaze lingered on him a second longer than it should have. He looked as though he had stepped out of a painting - too composed, too precise to be entirely real.
And yet… something about him unsettled me.
Was it the stories? That he had ended a war single-handedly - without ever using his powers.
"Another year older, Your Highness. Should I start addressing you more carefully now?"
"Please… don't tease me, Your Majesty," I said, trying not to laugh. For heaven's sake, he still does that…
"Please, drop the formalities, Zahra… You're like a sister to me. Just call me brother," Xandros said with a gentle smile.
"Alright… brother," I said, the word feeling unfamiliar on my tongue. "I noticed Lucas isn't with you. Did he not come?"
It's not like I don't know the answer. He's probably out there, chasing answers to his curiosity.
Just like always.
"It does feel strange not seeing him with you," he said with a soft laugh.
"Indeed… I can't disagree with that," I replied, smiling faintly.
.
.
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Lucas's Point of view:
Tall trees, the sound of birds chirping, and that familiar scent of dusty wood and lake water. I'm certain that place should be somewhere here - the place where we stumbled upon him yesterday.
I walked through the bushes and returned to the same spot.
Where is he? Did he leave? Will I never meet him again?
I walked farther and found a small wooden house. Nothing fancy or beautiful - just an average-looking home.
"Vihaan? Are you there?" I called out. I don't think he'll be here. I should search somewhere else.
"It isn't wise to enter a stranger's house when you do not know his identity. It seems you royals lack caution." Someone spoke behind me. His voice - deep and rough. I hadn't even heard him slip behind me.
I don't have to see you. I could never forget your presence.... Vihaan.
"Oh... I'm fine too, Vihaan. And don't worry - we royals wouldn't still be alive if we truly lacked caution," I said, offering him a faint smile.
"Congratulations," he replied flatly. "Now tell me what you want. I doubt I possess anything worth your interest, Your Highness."
"Ohh. You do."
Hearing me his jaw tightened. "Explain."
"You see, I've had questions about you. Annoying ones. Persistent ones. They refuse to leave my mind.
"And you assume I'm obliged to satisfy your curiosity?" He asked coldly.
"No," I said calming. "But I assume you're hiding something."
A pause. He exhaled sharply.
"Careful, prince," he murmured. "Curiosity has a way of turning against those who carry crowns."
Just as I thought. It'll be hard to convince him.
"How about we make a deal, then? You answer my questions, and I'll take you to the kingdom. I'll show you around. I'm sure you haven't seen it yet, right?" I gave him a vibrant smile.
"Sure."
Wait... What!?
That was way too easy.
I hadn't expected him to agree so quickly. Especially not without a sarcastic remark or a warning. Vihaan didn't strike me as someone who complied without calculation.
Something was off...
He wasn't agreeing.
He was accepting. And that difference unsettled me.
Why do I have a bad feeling about tomorrow?
"Vihaan, how old are you?" I asked.
"Twenty. Is that all you wanted to know." He looked a bit taken back.
'Same as me.'
"No... That's not it. The thing that unsettles me is that dragon."
"You mean Master Naaya?" He frowned slightly.
"Master?"
He was quiet for a moment. "It's a long story," he said, his voice lower now. "He found me when I was three. I don't remember much before that.....just fragments."
He exhaled slowly.
"He raised me. Taught me how to survive. How to listen. How to fight." His jaw tightened faintly. "I'm not a royal like you. I didn't grow up in grand halls filled with teachers and spells."
A pause.
"He was all I had... .He is all I have."
"It must've been hard for you..." I whispered.
He doesn't even know who his parents are. Why does my heart feel heavy all of a sudden? I pressed a hand to my chest. We aren't even that close, but...
"Don't." He said.
"Don't what?"
"Look at me like that," he said quietly. "I didn't tell you so you could feel sorry for me."
The warmth in his eyes when he spoke about his Master was gone. Now they are cold. Empty.
"Your blindfold?" I asked.
"I don't wear it all the time. At least not at home."
"Why do you live out here?" I hesitated. "Why not inside the kingdom?"
Silence followed. For a moment, I thought he wouldn't answer.
"Because I don't belong there," Vihaan said finally. His tone wasn't bitter. It was… certain.
"That's not a real answer."
"It's the only one you're getting."
I exhaled slowly. "You avoid questions well."
"And you ask too many."
A faint smirk tugged at my lips. "Curiosity keeps people alive."
"Or gets them killed," he replied without missing a beat. That wiped the smirk off my face.
I studied him carefully. "That dragon - Master Naaya. You said he raised you."
"Yes."
"And no one in the kingdoms knows about him?"
"No one who matters." Something about that answer didn't sit right.
"You're hiding something."
"Of course I am."
I blinked. "You're admitting it?"
"I never said I would tell you what it is."
I let out a quiet laugh despite myself. "You're difficult."
"So I've been told."
A pause settled between us, heavier this time.
"You said you'd come with me," I said. "To the kingdom."
"I did."
"And you agreed too easily."
Vihaan tilted his head slightly, as if listening to something I couldn't hear. "Maybe I was waiting."
"For what?"
"For you to ask the right questions."
A chill ran down my spine. "And what are the right questions?"
A faint smile touched his lips - barely there. "Not the ones you're asking, Prince."
"Ah... Actually,there was something else I wanted to ask you… hm… never mind.
Anyway, how did you sense her presence? Or should I say smell her presence?"
Vihaan snickered, clearly amused by just how clueless I sounded.
"I can smell aura - whether it belongs to something living or not. That's how I sensed her presence," he said, his hand drifting toward his stomach as he spoke. "Aura is the internal energy we carry. In living beings, it settles at the centre of the stomach. For things that aren't alive… it just rests at their core," he explained.
Wow… I've never seen anything even close to that.
.
.
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Vihaan's POV:
As Lucas left the room, I could feel his aura slipping away with him.
That scent of burning ember mixed with a hint of petrichor-warm, smoky, familiar - slowly fading into nothing…
"This is my only chance to uncover the truth about that place… my only chance to know whether that tale was real." I whispered.
.
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Author's POV:
Just as I thought… something bad did happen, Lucas muttered to himself internally.
| A few minutes earlier |
Vihaan and Lucas were wandering through the market district, both dressed as commoners. They blended in with the crowd easily - Lucas talking endlessly as he pointed at stalls, while Vihaan quietly listened, sensing the world more than he saw it.
Just then, an old woman-well into her eighties, reached out and grabbed Vihaan's hand. Her grip was surprisingly firm as she mumbled incoherent words under her breath.
"Grandame, please let go of his hand. We have to go somewhere," Lucas said respectfully.
But the old woman didn't even look at him. "Y–you have to go… t-there… N–no one's safe… T-that v-village—" she kept mumbling, gripping Vihaan's hand tighter.
Vihaan's POV:
Village?
Is she talking about Kumandra?
"Grandame, what do you mean by village? Which one? Is that tale real?" I asked, unable to hide the urgency in my voice.
This might be it.
My only chance to finally know the truth.
But Lucas stepped closer, lowering his voice.
"Vihaan, don't listen to her. This isn't the first time she's done this. She's… mentally unstable."He exhaled sharply.
"She said the same thing the first time she saw me, too."
Before I could respond, the old woman suddenly jerked forward, her voice trembling yet loud.
"N–no… You have to go… all of you… S–save—" Her words sped up, spilling out in panic, like time was running out.
"Lucas?" Someone called from behind us, their voice soft… almost melodic.
Then it hit me.
A sudden shift in the air.
A surge of Aura.
That familiar scent of incense laced with volcanic ash…
And it wasn't just one presence.
Another smell followed—
intoxicating night jasmine mixed with solar ember. Sweet, but fierce.
Beautiful, yet too powerful to ever be gentle.
Author's POV:
"Z-Zahra Roselyn?" Lucas stuttered. "And Princess Rukmini? You're here too? What are you both doing here?"
"I couldn't attend Princess Zahra's birthday celebration," Rukmini said softly.
"So I brought her here - people said there's a festival nearby." She paused before asking, "And Lucas… I wanted to speak with you about something. May I?"
'Zahra's looking at me like she's planning my funera.' Lucas thought.
"What's with that Grandame?" Zahra asked, eyeing the trembling old woman.
"Princess Zahra," Rukmini said gently, "could you stay here with Vihaan for a moment? It's… something important."
Zahra glanced at Vihaan, smiled brightly, and said,
"Sure. I don't mind."
Rukmini and Lucas stepped a little farther away.
Lucas's Pov:
Rukmini and I stepped aside.
"What happened, Princess Rukmini? Is something worrying you?" I asked softly.
"I wanted to tell you earlier but… I couldn't."
She lowered her voice, making sure no one could hear. "It's about that day in the woods."
"You mean the day we met Vihaan?"
"Yes. Do you remember when he was doing some kind of ritual… and that strange hand sign?"
Holy shit.
I forgot about that.
The one question I actually wanted to ask him.
We both paused.
So that was the 'right question' he meant.
"I'm sorry," I muttered. "I completely forgot. What about it?"
"That hand sign…"
She hesitated, her eyes tightening with a timid fear.
"It was the initial sign used to perform Karumcunīyam—the forbidden magic."
What the hell?
To be continued....
Make sure to see the reference photos in my Instagram account _liyaaaaaaa_creations.