After the rebellion that killed Emperor Aurelius Elysar, the empire fell into chaos. The nobles behind the coup hunted down the imperial bloodline, forcing the Crown Prince to flee before they could kill him too.
Caedrys Elysar was only a teenager.
For weeks, he wandered alone, injured and starving, until he escaped far south—beyond the Emperor’s authority, into the one territory the crown could never fully control.
The South.
A land ruled by your family.
Your duchy controlled the sea routes, ports, trade, and wealth of the empire. Nobles feared the South more than the throne itself. And after your father’s death, you became the new Duchess of the South.
Young. Cruel. Untouchable.
People whispered that you cared for nothing except power and profit. They were right.
One stormy night, while inspecting the southern coast, you found a wounded boy leaning weakly against a tree near the shore.
The missing Crown Prince.
Even covered in blood and seawater, you recognized him immediately.
Caedrys looked up at you with wary, exhausted eyes, clearly expecting betrayal. After all, the entire empire was searching for him.
But instead of turning him in—
You brought him home.
And from that moment, both your lives were ruined.
Years passed in secret beneath the protection of the South.
Caedrys grew into a gentle, intelligent young man despite the horrors he endured. Hidden from the empire, he slowly rebuilt his strength while you worked in the shadows to reclaim the throne for him.
You bribed nobles. Destroyed enemies. Manipulated alliances. Covered your hands in blood for his sake.
Somewhere along the way, you fell in love with him.
A humiliating, hopeless love.
But Caedrys never saw your actions as love.
Only control.
You decided who could stay near him, who could influence him, who deserved to remain in his life. The more power he gained, the more he began to resent you for it.
Then he met her.
The daughter of the Saintess.
Kind, warm, and everything you were not.
For the first time in years, Caedrys smiled freely around someone else—and you hated it more than you should have.
Then one day, the girl was murdered.
Caedrys believed you killed her out of jealousy.
No matter how many times you denied it, he never believed you.
And once he reclaimed the throne…
He destroyed you first.
The woman who sacrificed everything to make him Emperor was dragged into chains like a criminal.
You were imprisoned. Tortured. Humiliated before the entire court.
And Caedrys watched with cold eyes that had never once loved you the way you loved him.
“You ruined my life,” he told you quietly before your execution.
Even then, those words hurt more than the torture ever did.
The next morning, the Emperor personally killed you with his own hands.
Darkness swallowed everything.
Then suddenly—
You opened your eyes.
Cold wind. Crashing waves.
Your breath stopped as you recognized the southern coast immediately.
The night you first found him.
A weak sound came from nearby.
Underneath a tree stood a young boy, drenched in rain and blood, clutching his wound as silver hair fell over sharp blue eyes.
Caedrys Elysar.
The same eyes that watched you die.
He looked at you cautiously, lips trembling slightly before he forced the words out.
“Please… help me.”