Bound by the Dark Prince

The echoes of the past clung to Evelyn like a second skin, refusing to fade even as the chamber settled into silence. She could still feel the weight of the memory—the fire, the betrayal, the raw power coursing through her past self's veins. Her fingers curled around the dagger at her waist, its presence grounding her in the present.

Kael watched her closely, his crimson eyes filled with something unreadable. "You saw it, didn't you?"

Evelyn nodded, exhaling a shaky breath. "She—I—was betrayed."

Kael's gaze darkened. "Not just betrayed. She was erased. Her name, her kingdom, her legacy—wiped from history as if she had never existed."

A chill crawled down Evelyn's spine. "Then how do you know about her?"

Kael stepped closer, his voice low. "Because I was there."

Evelyn's breath hitched. "What?"

Kael's expression was unreadable, but his voice carried the weight of centuries. "I was sworn to her. To you. And when the traitors came, I fought until the very end."

The room seemed to shrink around them as the truth settled. The connection she had felt with him, the strange familiarity—it all made sense now. He wasn't just guiding her. He was waiting for her to remember.

Evelyn swallowed hard. "Then why didn't I survive?"

Kael's jaw tightened. "Because your enemies made sure you wouldn't."

A heavy silence filled the space between them, thick with unspoken truths. Evelyn's hands trembled slightly as she tried to process everything. If what he said was true, then she wasn't just some lost heir to an ancient bloodline.

She was the last piece of a story that had been deliberately buried.

She met Kael's gaze, her voice steady despite the storm inside her. "Who betrayed me?"

Kael hesitated for a moment before answering. "Your own council. Those who feared your power."

Evelyn clenched her fists. "And they succeeded in destroying me."

Kael's lips curled into a grim smile. "For a time. But fate is not so easily rewritten."

A sudden knock at the chamber's entrance shattered the tense quiet. Evelyn turned sharply, hand instinctively going to her dagger. A robed figure stood in the doorway, their face hidden beneath a deep hood.

"My lord," the figure said, addressing Kael. "They have arrived."

Kael's posture stiffened, but his expression remained unreadable. He glanced at Evelyn. "It seems we are out of time."

Evelyn's pulse quickened. "Who's arrived?"

Kael turned fully to her, his gaze sharp. "The ones who still serve your bloodline. The ones who have waited for your return."

Evelyn's heart pounded. Everything was moving too fast, but there was no stopping it now. She had been thrust into this world of shadows, power, and betrayals, and the weight of her past was demanding to be answered.

Kael extended his hand. "Are you ready?"

Evelyn took a deep breath, steadying herself. The fear was still there, lurking at the edges of her mind. But beneath it, something stronger burned—a need for truth, for justice, for revenge.

She placed her hand in Kael's.

"Let's finish what they tried to end."