Chapter 10| Assassins and Mysteries

I laid in bed all day, as per the request of Julian. He was anxious when he left earlier this morning to attend his duties as the king.

It was now mid-afternoon, and I just spent the day looking at the ceiling. Meredith did not come either because she said that she had some things that Julian told her to do.

Julian already apologized to her but both of them were still tense as the assassin who was sent to kill me on the coronation still wasn't found. Julian was still upset, but thankfully, he listened to me when I said that we will catch the assassin when the right time comes.

The people were really shocked by the accident. Especially when I caught the first arrow that was aimed at me. I thought that after I caught the arrow, the assassin would run, but seeing as what came out of it, I was shot to the chest. Whoever paid him or her must have really wanted me dead.

My thoughts wandered back to the widowed wife of one of the princes. 'You will pay for this, all of you,' the princess said just as when she was going to go inside the carriage. Those words were what kept me alert throughout the coronation.

Freeing my self from more thoughts that gathered in my brain, I got up and went to my mirror. I was surprised by my reflection. My once tanned skin was so pale, and there were large dark circles on my eyes even though I slept the whole day. My brown hair was unruly, and it looked like a bird's nest. I pretty much look like a ghost.

There was a basin of water at the side so I used it to rinse my face.

The sound of the door opening and closing reached my ears. My back was turned towards the door, but I suppose it was Julian. I was confused as to why he got here so early, but I guess that's okay.

"You came earlier than I expected," I turned towards him, but my eyes widened when it was not him. It was a tall, buff man. He wore a hood, so I did not see his face.

"Who are you?" I asked. My hand was slowly creeping to the basin of water behind me. The man did not answer. He only kept stalking in my direction. Judging from his clothes, he was not a royal.

My heart skipped a beat when I saw that he was holding a dagger in his left hand.

"Help!!" I ducked when he raised the dagger and aimed it at me. Luckily, I ducked out in time and avoided it being plunged in my heart. I grabbed the candlelight and threw it at him, but seeing his buff stature, I doubt it caused an injury.

"Help!! Julian! Anybody!" I ran to the door but was stopped when he grabbed me by the waist and threw me. I crashed in the mirror, causing it to break to a million pieces.

I groaned, feeling my breath being knocked out of me. Shards of glass dug in my skin, and I screamed in pain. The man was still not satisfied. He sauntered towards my injured body.

"Please don't..."

He wrapped his large hands around my throat and gripped it. "You need to die,"

I thrashed and attempted to free my self, but it was really hard. His grip was suffocating me, cutting off my air. I felt my face turning blue. I could see black dots appear on my vision, and at that moment, I knew that I needed to fight. I was not going down just because I was choked to death. No. My hands roamed around me. I hoped that I could get something as a weapon. As if my prayers were answered, my hand caught a long, sharp broken piece of glass.

I held it in my hands and gripped it, not caring about the wound that would probably leave a scar on my hands. My survival was more important right now.

The man did not notice this, so I took the opportunity and wasted no time to dig it deep in his throat. His blood splashed on my face, but I couldn't care less. His grip loosened and was eventually gone. He gargled blood, his hand raising up to hold his throat.

Tears were streaming on my eyes as I gasped for breath. This was the first time that I killed a man up close. I have no problem killing him with an arrow and a bow, but this. This is beyond me. I scrambled to his body.

The hood he was wearing was removed, revealing his face. He had midnight blue eyes and white long hair. He was middle-aged.

"Who sent you?" I asked him.

"H-he wants you d-dead," he struggled to say it out loud.

"Who wants me dead? Answer me!" I was enraged. Who wants me dead? Did I do something? Is he from this kingdom? The blue-eyed man stopped breathing. He was dead.

"Answer me! Please..." I tapped his face, but he refused to open his eyes. He was truly dead. I exhaled a breath and moved away from his body. I crawled in the direction of the door. I did not have enough strength to walk, but I willed my self, even though I kept falling to the ground. My body was screaming in pain. Something wet trickled at the side of my head. It dripped on the floor and my eyes widened when I saw what it was. It was blood.

Finally, I got outside. The guards that were standing post in my door was lying on the floor. Blood was seeping through their clothes.

"Help! Julian!"

Not a single soul was in sight. Where are the guards? My question was soon answered when I passed a few posts. They were lying on the floor, unconscious. Just like the guards in my room.

I kept crying as I struggled to walk. I was in the hallways, and I could spot Julian's chambers. It was not far from me. For what seemed like forever, I finally arrived. I opened the door, but when I saw what was in front of me, my heart broke into a million pieces. The pain I felt on my body was nothing compared to my heart breaking.

Julian was kissing one of the widowed wives of the dead princes. She was the one who threatened me when she was sent to her kingdom.

"NO!" I screamed. They pulled back from each other. Julian looked at me with guilt-filled eyes. The princess turned to me and smirked, an evil glint in her eyes. I was frozen in spot. All I wanted at that moment was to wipe that smirk off her face and kill her. Besides, I already killed a man with my own hands, so why not add her to my list? Before I can charge at her, my crystal blue eyes looked at Julian with pain, anger, and betrayal.

I knew that I would have to wait until I have the strength to kill the woman. I also knew that if I killed her, it would mean war between two kingdoms, but I could care less. She was in my territory, in my kingdom, where I am the queen.

"Aurora... Let me explain..." Julian started, but when he saw my beat and bloodied body, he ran to me. Julian's voice was faint in my ears. I struggled to keep my consciousness, but the pain from my heart and the injuries of my body were making it hard.

I could not take it anymore. I should have let the man choke me to death. I should have let him. I let my self succumb to unconsciousness, before feeling my body fall into the cold, hard floor.

"Aurora!"

That was what the last thing I heard before my senses shut down completely.

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