1 Chapter 1 : Snowfall

The snow were falling from the sky that day. The small flakes glitter before falling into the child's hands and melt. Surely, it was a spectacular sight for a child who had experienced playing under the snow for the first time in her life. The fogs forming under her breathe and her cheeks redden because of the cold. Nevertheless, she still watched the snowfall at the open window.

She was waiting for her uncle to come back home after joining the group, that would hunt in the forest. Auntie told her not to be worried as her uncle does that now and then. But, he hasn't come back, and they had been waiting for 3 days.

Auntie told her not to worry about it. But she can't help but does. The first day was bearable, as she thought he would come back after the night came. Yet, he didn't. The firewood sparkles under the chimney as it continues to burn from the fire that warms them up. She wondered if he was having a warm night. It is safe for them to sleep in the forest?

Bears are hibernating in winter, but there are still foxes that hunt the restless animals in the woods. Auntie told her not to be worried, but she couldn't help but does.

The second night came, there's no knock from the supposed messenger if something happened to her uncle's group. The soup was unbearably hot that day, she burned her tongue after not blowing it. Her auntie was quiet, yet she still does her chores.

The fire kept burning to warm them up.

And now, today is the third day. There's no messenger, no shadows, and even the forest is quiet as there are no howls from the wolves. It was surprisingly quiet, and that halted as a plate slipped from her auntie's hand. The child heard a noise, it's getting closer to their house. It was a sound of horse's feet running in their direction. Frantic, and almost in desperate speed.

She looked at her started auntie who just stared outside the door, not moving. 'Is her uncle coming home?' she thought. But, they never used the horse in their journey, how could it be them?

The question was answered as a carriage stopped in front of the house. The horses are as white as the snow, and the gold plates in the decoration shine as the snow hits them. It was magical. A man exited the carriage and knocked on the door of their house.

He already had seen the child peeking at the window, but out of courtesy, he still knocks as to announce his presence.

The door opened and her auntie bowed at the noble. It was somehow a knight with a majestic white sword in its waist. Although his hair was the same color of darkness, that stark contrast with his outfit and carriage tells that a person could also be an angel without having the holy golden hair.

"Where's Delphin?" The man asked. The child jumped from the chair she was sitting on in front of the window and walked behind her auntie. The hands were still cold, she noticed. Her auntie was washing the plates when the visitor came.

"He hasn't come back."

"Then this child?"

"It was Ivrit's child."

"She does resemble him."

It was somehow a conversation with limited words as an answer. The child soon got scared as the man stares at her, the hem of her auntie's dress had gone crumpled.

"This child, she had the ability of a mermaid. She also inherited the dragon's vast pool of mana. As I've written in the recommendation letter, I-I could not give her the education she needed..."

It was a child loved by nature, the elementals dances along with her voice. She could make a tree bloom even in winter, or make people love her using her voice. She was talented, that's scary. She would not develop if she stayed under their guidance, and her talent will only lead to 2 paths. A path where her ability will not be recognized, and a path where her ability will be used for wrongdoings.

She's a Castros, even though his father relinquishes his right as the successor of the family and vanished after the war ended. Delphin was only there as they promised to raise her. Yet, they still need to push her back to her family as they are lacking as a guardian.

"I'll sponsor her. She'll go back with me," he answered shortly. The lady nodded and immediately packs up all the child's things.

The child is clueless as to what is happening. Her uncle is gone, her auntie is in frantic movements of collecting her clothes from the closet, and there's this man in front of her who keeps on staring at her.

"What was her real name again?"

The man asked as her auntie came back with the large luggage. She looked at the child and sighed before answering.

"Her name is Alexandria Estrel von Castros."

"Princess?" The child became more confused as people gathered in front of her and calls her in a title that she didn't grow up with. 'Why am I a princess?' She thought. The maids smiled at her at guided her in the hallway. It was spacious, and their footsteps echoed in every corner. It sounded eerie for a five-year-old child but she can only grasp the skirt of one of the adults beside her.

Her auntie was not there, she was also not able to see her uncle before leaving. The man who introduced himself as his real uncle and a duke brought him to the mansion. She doesn't understand anything. They gave her clothes, warm food, and was served by maids. But her mind wasn't there. She still remembers the woods where she grew up, the small stream near the wisteria trees, and the rabbits she saw when playing.

Alexandria, a child who wasn't able to adapt to the new environment, cried that moment.

It was a piercing cry. Everyone in the mansion stopped doing their task, even the duke who was signing some documents in his office. Oddly, even though the soundproofing is installed in the mansion, they were still able to hear the cries of the child.

It is both heartbreaking and bewildering, for the places near that child started to grow thorns.

Thorns... there are so many thorns that hindered them to move. A prick would make them bleed easily as if they were a fragile animal in an unknown environment. The servants stopped and looked at the crying child in the middle. All of them, bewildered at what happened.

The cries didn't stop, as no-one tried to comfort her. Alexandria sniffled more and as she regrets going to the place where she is now. There's nothing familiar, her auntie and uncle weren't there, and people stormed into her and kept on introducing themselves. Trying to be significant in her attention. She doesn't like what she was experiencing. She doesn't want anything she has now.

The expensive dress, the luxury meal, and even the soft bed where she sleeps. As long as she doesn't feel safe in something, it will always question her validity in that place.

"Princess Alexa, please calm down."

She covered her ears after hearing a male's voice. No! Who's the princess?! I'm not! Her thoughts became more chaotic as time passes by. The people around her couldn't move anymore, as the thorns became longer and some became vines and clings onto the floor and wall.

A shattering sound was heard soon after that. She was startled and felt a sudden pain in her stomach. The cries stopped but it had changed into suppressed moans. The thorns retracted as the child kneeled on the floor, holding her stomach in one hand and her mouth in the other.

"You should calm down while you are in my manor."

The steps are getting nearer, it was heavy and full of dominance. She saw magnificent white boots and the snow-white blade of a sword. Her eyes widen because of realization.

Alexandria's chin was held by the duke and force her to look at him. The purples eyes met her's, but it was different with her imagination. She thought that he would be mad, as she was writhing in pain, she realizes the damage she had caused. But, the duke didn't express his anger. She was somehow ashamed of that.

"You're my niece, and you are the Ducal's Princess. This will be your new house. Accept it."

The duke's eyes glistened under the lamp's light, it's dark yet beautiful at the same time; those eyes, that has the same shade that she has, was embedded in her mind like that day.

She knows her affinity with magic is somewhat lacking than what she had read in the history books. Her weakness is time and shortness of judgment, but the duke still adopted her as she was the daughter of his dead brother. They said that the Castros' family lives for war and blood, but she thought differently.

He is different from what they say.