Elara gripped the small note in her hand so tightly it nearly tore. "The truth is not what it seems."
The shadow she'd seen heading toward her father's wing wasn't just her imagination. It was real, and this note was the proof.
"Be wary of those you trust."
Her father. Lina. The only people she had ever known.
Elara ignored the orders to stay in her room. A mix of anger and curiosity guided her through the moonlit corridors. She had known this palace her whole life as a prison, and now she was beginning to understand why.
She slipped through the shadows, using her knowledge of the secret passages she had discovered during her long years of boredom. She wasn't the "naive princess" her father had described; she was a silent observer.
She reached the hallway leading to her father's study. The heavy door was slightly ajar, which was unusual. She stopped when she heard two familiar voices from within: her father's, and Lina's.
"That was a reckless attack by Ishtar!" King Sal III's voice was sharp, not scared as he had seemed in front of her, but angry. "We almost lost control tonight".
Lina's voice was calm and decisive as always. "They were repelled, Your Majesty. But... Elara. She saw Prince Mil."
"Did he see her?" the King asked with a strange urgency.
"I believe so. And more dangerously, my King, I believe the power is beginning to awaken."
A heavy silence filled the room.
"When I tried to force her to the cellar," Lina continued, "I felt it. That cold... the pulse she used on me. She doesn't realize she's doing it yet, but it's only a matter of time."
"Damn it!" the King whispered. "Not now. She must never know. If she realizes she is the 'Vessel' we've been looking for... if she reaches the 'Forbidden Grimoire' before we can control her..."
"And what of Prince Mil?" Lina asked. "It's clear this wasn't a random assault. He was looking for her."
"He's looking for the Grimoire, and he knows we hold the key," the King said bitterly. "He thinks we are holding her prisoner. He doesn't realize she is the key. That is why she must remain ignorant. Keep her caged, Lina. It is for our own benefit... and for the benefit of our control over Restoria."
"Caged."
"Key."
"Vessel."
The words spun in Elara's head like poison. They had lied to her. Her entire life, her father wasn't protecting her; he was imprisoning her. Lina wasn't training her; she was monitoring her, suppressing her.
She felt that coldness flood her veins again, stronger this time. It wasn't just an involuntary pulse; it was a sense of power gathering in the palms of her hands.
"They are afraid of me," Elara realized.
Suddenly, trembling from the revelation, her elbow bumped an ancient suit of armor standing in the hall.
A faint metallic clang rang out, but it sounded like an explosion in the dead of night.
The voices inside the room stopped abruptly.
"Who's there?" Lina's sharp voice called out.
Elara froze. She saw Lina's shadow move toward the door through the narrow gap. She only had seconds.
She turned and ran. She no longer cared if they heard her. She sprinted back to her room, slammed the door shut, and locked it, her heart pounding violently.
She glanced down at the note in her hand. "Be wary of those you trust."
They were all liars. Her father, Lina... they were all her enemies.
The note left by Mil was the only truth she had heard tonight.
And now, Elara knew what she had to do. She was no longer a prisoner. If she was the key, and if there was a Forbidden Grimoire...
She would find it before they did.