Cage Called Castle

Cassandra was silent as she avoided Duke Salvador's gaze. She knew that she had to go and prove the value of her words but Cassandra was afraid.

"Is Princess afraid of me?" Aiden asked as he looked into the fifth Princess's gaze. Her hands were shivering. It was not evident but it was there.

Cassandra was frightened as she clenched her hands over. "No …. Why would I be .." Cassandra's voice trembled.

Duke Salvador knew that it was not the truth. He looked around only to realize that they had come a long way into the library. "Let's see the book that will make me believe your words."

Cassandra swallowed hard at Aiden's words as she nodded. She looked around the shelves where she usually keeps the dairy. Soon Cassandra found it as she extended her hand to take it out.

Cassandra took it as she looked at it before looking at Duke Salvador. "It's this." Cassandra was nervous. The Duke needed to believe her words but whether he really believed it or not was a mystery to Cassandra.

'Let's not think about it anymore.'

'All I have to do is show the Duke this book and tell him to grant me a favor, then I will marry and go away from this cage called the castle.'

Aiden looked at the book in Cassandra's hand. It was a small book with a worn-out black cover the same way that was described by Cassandra.

Duke Salvador nodded his head as he waited for Cassandra to take the book. They sat at the very end looking at what was written in it.

Duke Salvador looked through the book as Cassandra's eyes were filled with excitement. With her expression, she was hoping that Duke Salvador would now believe her. But the Duke's gaze was filled with anxiety.

Duke Salvador was looking between the fifth Princess and the book. He did not know if he should trust Cassandra's words or not.

"Does the princess have brought me here to show this to me?" Duke Salvador asked as he looked into Cassandra's eyes. He could not understand why she was so excited about something like this.

Cassandra who was confused by this question looked at the Duke with a shiver in her eyes. "Yes, it took me a long time to understand the writing. But now I know a little bit of this." Cassandra's fingers clenched on the book.

"You took a long time to understand this?" Duke Salvador raised her eyebrows. "Does the Princess think this is a language that is hard to understand?"

Cassandra tilted her head as she looked at Duke Salvador to continue.

Duke Salvador shook his head as he looked at Cassandra. "It is the language used in the Empire before. The words have just been modified over the years but if you pay attention you can still read it and understand." Duke Salvador said.

Aiden could still remember that Cassandra had told him that the book was in a language unknown to them. Something she had never seen before but what he looked at now was the complete opposite.

Cassandra twisted her eyebrows. She looked at the Duke as if he was talking nonsense.

'What a little modification over the years?'

'What she was reading was a completely different thing.'

Cassandra's gaze shifted towards the book. Something in Cassandra's mind clicked. Her mind was a mess before she controlled her emotions and asked. "What is the Duke seeing?"

Seeing the confusion in Cassandra's eyes Aiden felt a little unsure. "What am I seeing? Isn't this a book about using a different type of needlework? Does the princess think this is a joke?"

Cassandra's eyes widened as she looked at the Duke's words. She was sure that the two of them were seeing something else.

"Are you sure, you cannot read anything else?" Cassandra asked with a tone filled with anxiously.

Duke Salvador nodded as he saw Cassandra close the book in a hurry. "Duke, are there any words written on the cover?"

Aiden looked at the cover. "Yes," He said as he read the words. It was written in a twisted letter, usually used in ancient books.

"You can ...." Cassandra murmured in a low voice.

Cassandra did not see any words written on them. She was afraid as her eyes widened. "Then why can't I ..."

They both realized that they both were reading different things. Even though the book was the same, the contents in their eyes differed.

Cassandra's breathing increased. If her guess was true then things might get very complicated in the future.

'What if the Duke does not believe my words.' That was the first thought that came into Cassandra's mind.

It was true that Cassandra was here to show the Duke the book that had helped her to understand the powers but if the man who would help her in the future could not understand it and did not believe her, all her efforts would be in vain.

Aiden Salvatore was silent. He never believed Cassandra's words to the fullest but he knew that she was not lying to him. His experience on the battlefield has made him sensitive to the changes and the surroundings.

Aiden knew from Cassandra's expressions that she was telling the truth and even now when she looked at the book, it was not as if she was trying to fool him. Cassandra really was seeing something else which baffled Aiden.

Duke Aiden tried to remember something of the past. A sudden realization made his eyes narrow. One of his aid Blazh had told him that some of the books in the Royal Library are magically sealed so that only the emperor could read them.

'They say that the most powerful mage could read the real content.'

'So then how could the fifth Princess ...'

'Isn't the fifth Princess powerless?'

Aiden was confused and irritated. If his thoughts were true then the Princess in front of him had many secrets.

'I should ask Blazh about it.'

'But I have to make sure that the Emperor can also read this book.'

'Can the other Royals also read this book?'

Aiden looked at the book again with a complicated gaze.

Duke Salvador had so many questions he wanted to ask but before he had a chance his wrist was held by a soft touch pulling him away.