Chapter 47: The Hope III

It took longer than she expected, but Alexander finally realized that Raxithak wasn't coming back.

Killing Raxithak was hard, but convincing Alexander to go find the Abbot's corpse was harder.

Of course, Princess Aurelia had to sacrifice herself just for the king to snap and find his other half. It was five months after Raxithak was drowned, and both the princess and the demon were getting impatient. Thus, Princess Aurelia decided to pick out her best wine and best poison. She knew poison won't do shit to Alexander, but what matters was the message that she's sending. Well, if the poison managed to kill the king, then her work would be easier than expected. But luck was never on her side, so she just had to hope that her message was sent.

For the first time in months, she properly brushed her hair, which grew a few inches longer since her last haircut. Then, she got a fur cloak and ran to the stables. No knight accompanied her as she made her way to the kingdom next door.

Her death was as quick as she expected, and the new king was too angry to notice that Aurelia's soul was taken away as soon as her blood splattered the floor. Her physical body died, her heart stopped beating and she couldn't feel the coolness of the night nor the warmth of her cloak. However, at least she got to watch Alexander ordering his troops around. It's hard not having a physical body, and she sympathized with the ghosts in stories her father used to read to her.

So yes, Princess Aurelia was murdered by her once friend King Alexander, but she intentionally put herself in that position, so it's more like she committed suicide.

Suicide or murder questions aside, the demon Silvester kept his word that he had a backup plan for just in case Aurelia was hurt and couldn't "attend" their "big event".

After existing in between planes or in simpler terms, as a ghost, following her dear friend Alexander for a while, she made it to their "big event", and yes, it was hard to watch the demon Silvester frantically bounce around as soon as Alexander's last breath left him.

It's also harder to watch an entire king strip her friend Raxithak naked. For a moment there, Princess Aurelia genuinely thought Alexander wasn't above raping his dead best friend, but...

They did it.

The demon Silvester gave her one last salute before he activated his spell.

And then everything went black, like she was knocked out and ripped apart.

Once she woke up again, she was in her bedroom, in the castle that Alexander destroyed.

Her father, alive and breathing, his pale cheeks flushed red as he came into her room and lectured her about being careful with her health because she caught a very bad fever. Her brother was also alive and standing behind her father. His wide smile was genuine and his blue eyes matched hers, unlike when he was running after her with a sword and bloodlust clear on his face.

"What day is it today?" She asked her older brother as soon as their father left the room.

It's only her and her brother in the room since the maid and healer left. The princess remembered being scared of her own flesh and blood, scared of his wide blue-green eyes dissecting her soul while a hundred schemes ran through his head.

But now she's twelve and vulnerable again, her heart beating quicker and quicker as time stretched while her brother was quiet. Her older brother is seventeen and preparing to be the next king once their father retires. She knew somewhere in the future, maybe two-three years, Leonard will change, and Aurelia will have to seek shelter from Xiao Lan and Raxithak.

"What? Did the fever affect your memory?" His long and slender finger poked her forehead, his voice was mocking her.

"Maybe." She shrugged and giggled. "Who knows?"

Her brother patted her head, messing up her already messy platinum blonde hair. Of course, the princess kept her hair very long when she was younger. Her older brother's death was when she chopped it to her shoulder instead of letting it dangle down past her hips. Cutting it now would seem out of character for her young soul, and her father would no doubt be angry, her brother would no doubt take advantage of her mistake.

There are people she can't save in this world, and one of them is her own brother.

Leonard Savellyn didn't change because of hardship, he changed because of his privileges. He was given everything, and he wanted more. He was the cause of the plague, which was the beginning of everything...

If only Aurelia knew magic back then, she would've known what her brother was up to and warned her father.

That's it!

Princess Aurelia needs to learn magic so that she can warn her father about her brother's shit before it's too late!

Oh, no... She got the potty mouth infection from the demon Silvester... But who cares! She can curse as much as she wants in her head, and she has a lot to do!

Starting with going to the Monastery and seeking out Xiao Lan. If Princess Aurelia remembers her past life, maybe Xiao does too, right?

After all, Xiao is smarter and more mature than Aurelia can ever be, so she must remember. That means the princess must write her an apology...

No, writing a letter is too suspicious, her father would stop her and question her. So, she'll go to the Monastery and apologize to Xiao personally!

Yes! That's a great plan!

As soon as Prince Leonard left her room, Princess Aurelia giddily jumped off her bed and ran towards the calendar which sat on her study desk.

According to the calendar, it's in the middle of summer. The Monastery holds a Ranking Competition at the end of every season, and every noble from anywhere is allowed to participate as spectators. Xiao Lan no doubt made it into the top ten. The princess can always ask her father to go, and then she'll get Xiao alone to talk.

With her plan in mind, she began preparing for things, starting with visiting the tailor and commissioning a dress with pockets.