"I ca to speak with Marcus," he said, voice calm.
Evelisse looked between them. "I should go."
Marcus shook his head. "You don’t have to—"
But she was already moving, brushing past Lucien with a polite bow. "I’ll be in the west courtyard if anyone needs ."
Lucien waited until her footsteps faded.
Then he stepped fully into the greenhouse.
"Is there sothing you’d like to share with your big bro?" he asked.
Marcus’s shoulders tensed.
The soft scent of lilies filled the air, thick with humidity. The glass panes of the greenhouse reflected golden shafts of morning light, warming the tiled floor. Birds chirped faintly outside, but inside, the silence buzzed with tension.
Lucien strolled forward, his gloved hands clasped behind his back. "You’ve been quiet lately. Ever since that little encounter during the festival of the stars."
Marcus bent slightly over a row of potted asters. "I’m always quiet."
"Not like this," Lucien said. "You flinch when Father talks about military deploynts. You stall during council briefings."
Marcus didn’t look up. "Maybe I’m just tired."
Lucien’s tone dropped, low and pointed. "She told you sothing, didn’t she?"
Marcus froze.
The pause was short, but it told Lucien everything.
He walked around the planter, standing across from Marcus. The sun hit his pale hair like polished silver, but his expression remained shadowed.
"Evelisse is still a child," he said. "Whatever she’s stumbled into, she shouldn’t be carrying it alone."
Marcus finally t his eyes. "And if it’s not her burden, is it yours?"
Lucien didn’t flinch, but his jaw tightened.
Marcus stepped back, wiping soil from his hands. "She’s not a threat."
"That’s not what I asked."
"Then what are you asking, Brother?" Marcus’s voice was calm, but his eyes held challenge.
Lucien studied him for a long mont, then sighed. "Be careful. That’s all."
He turned and left, his boots clicking sharply against the tiles.
As soon as he was gone, Marcus pulled out the sunflower pin Evelisse had dropped during their visit the day before.
He turned it over in his palm, then whispered, "Why did you look so afraid, Eve?"
♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡
The castle library stood like a sleeping beast on the north end of the grounds. Towering shelves, enchanted scrolls, and centuries-old tos filled its echoing halls.
Evelisse tiptoed inside, Fluffy floating behind her with a dramatic sigh.
"You know," Fluffy whispered, "for soone who claims she hates reading, you sure love breaking into libraries."
"I’m not breaking in," Evelisse hissed. "I’m just... aggressively borrowing."
She adjusted her ribbon and made her way toward the restricted archives.
The plan was simple: find out where Snugglewuff ca from, figure out what kind of magical beast he really was, and why the system had bound them together.
She needed answers.
Snugglewuff, now napping in her oversized satchel, let out a muffled snore.
The mont Evelisse reached the forbidden shelves, a sleepy old mage startled awake from his desk.
"Princess Evelisse!" he yelped.
She put a finger to her lips. "Ssh. I’m on royal research business."
"Is that a muffin in your bag?"
"Two, if you let through."
The mage considered this for a long, noble second.
"Make it three."
She handed over a wrapped blueberry tart and slipped past.
Fluffy muttered, "You really are getting better at this."
They ducked behind a dusty row of enchanted bestiary books. Evelisse pulled down anything with titles like Magical Bonds & Beasts, Ancient Familiars, or You, Your Pet, and the Magical Cataclysm.
Hours passed. Pages turned.
Then—
She found it.
A faded, ink-worn page near the back of a text on pre-Dreylen magical theory.
"...a creature of unasured mana, said to be born in the northern forests of Draylen. This companion spirit did not answer to any master—but chose one. Only once. When its bonded master perished, it vanished."
Evelisse’s fingers trembled.
The sketch was faint but unmistakable.
Big eyes. Round paws. A tail shaped like a blooming feather.
"It’s Snugglewuff," she whispered.
Fluffy floated closer, wide-eyed.
"That’s not possible," he said slowly. "Those records were destroyed."
"Destroyed? Why?"
Fluffy hesitated. "Because the last ti that creature bonded... a war broke out."
Evelisse clutched the book. ’Then why did he co to ?’
"Maybe it’s because you’re a princess," Fluffy said. "Or maybe... it’s sothing else."
Her eyes narrowed. ’Does this connect to Mother?’
Before she could say more, heavy footsteps echoed from the front of the library.
A royal guard.
He was holding a scroll sealed with golden wax.
He spotted Evelisse imdiately and bowed low. "Princess. A ssage from the throne."
She stood and took it, breaking the seal.
Her eyes scanned the elegant, curled script.
Then again.
Then a third ti.
Her hands shook.
"Is sothing wrong?" Fluffy asked.
She whispered one word.
"Caelith?"
♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡
Crown Prince Caelith of Elaris.
His na echoed like a drumbeat through Evelisse’s thoughts the entire walk back to her quarters.
He was a legend.
Heir to the southern empire. A swordsman prodigy. Rumored to have tad wyverns by age nine.
And now he was coming here.
"Why would Caelith visit our kingdom when it’s just been a few days since the festival?" she muttered.
"Trade? Marriage talks?" Fluffy offered.
Evelisse nearly choked. "Marriage?!"
"You’re of noble blood. These things happen."
"I’m seven! And we’re just friends."
Fluffy smirked. "In so countries, that’s halfway to a political engagent."
She groaned and buried her face in a pillow.
Snugglewuff sneezed beside her, causing the nearby bookshelf to rattle.
Books fell.
One landed open.
Evelisse peeked over.
Inside was a passage titled: "Echoes of Magic: When Mana Recognizes Mana."
Fluffy glanced at it, then at her. "You really think this all connects to your mother?"
Evelisse nodded slowly. "I have to ask her. Tonight."
♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡
The royal dining hall was unusually quiet.
Only Queen Seraphina remained, seated near the window with a goblet of rose tea. The other siblings had retired.
Evelisse hesitated in the doorway.
Seraphina looked up. "Co in, dear."
She walked forward. Every step felt heavier.
"Mother..."
The queen smiled. "You’ve been busy today."
Evelisse’s fingers curled at her sides. "I have a question."
Seraphina tilted her head. "Go ahead."
Evelisse stood before her mother with all the grace she could muster, shoulders squared, expression thoughtful. She’d practiced how she was going to say this in the mirror three tis. Fluffy had even pretended to be the Queen once, dramatically fainting into a chair just to throw her off.
"Mother," she began, brushing an invisible speck of dust from her skirt, "do you happen to know anything about magical animals that originated in Draylen? Especially any that were rumored to bond with people or... have mana cores?"
Queen Seraphina blinked, caught slightly off guard. She set down her teacup, the soft chi of porcelain breaking the silence. "That’s rather specific. Is this for a storybook you’re reading again?"
Evelisse gave a winso smile, twirling a ribbon strand around her finger like it was no big deal. "Sort of. I ca across a few passages about ancient creatures that only bonded once. And sothing about a dormant mana core in a non-mage being. It felt... oddly detailed. Like soone might’ve witnessed it."
Seraphina’s gaze lingered on her daughter a mont longer, her expression unreadable. Then she leaned back, a wistful smile touching her lips. "Draylen was once ho to many things before the Great War. Magical beasts, ancient groves, forgotten ruins. So say there were creatures so old, even the stars knew their nas. But most of that knowledge was lost—or buried. No one’s seen such beings in generations."
Evelisse nodded slowly, her heart hamring.
"So... no one’s t one in person?"
"Not in my lifeti," Seraphina replied, a glint of sadness in her eyes. "If there were any left, they’ve long since hidden or passed into myth."
Evelisse forced a laugh. "Wow. I was hoping it might’ve been real. The creature in my story looked a lot like Snugglewuff. Guess it was just imagination after all."
The Queen chuckled, gently reaching over to brush a lock of hair behind Evelisse’s ear. "You’ve always had a vivid mind, darling. Just like your father."
"Thanks for clarifying," Evelisse said, lowering her gaze with practiced innocence. "I guess I just got caught up in the fantasy."
But inside, her thoughts raced.
’What if no one had t one... because they never recognized them as infants? What if they only ever saw the adults—and by then it was too late to understand them?’
She glanced at Fluffy, who hovered near the ceiling, nodding faintly.
’And what if he chose because... I’m not what they expected either?’
"Is sothing bothering you, Eve?" Seraphina asked gently, watching her daughter’s shifting expression.
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