June Dey
A sharp pain cracked through my back, leaving me tense and terrified. It was a sensation I could not fight; I couldn't move, couldn't breathe, couldn't do anything. My body remained perfectly still, even as every nerve desperately tried to stir.Then, I suddenly woke up. It was just a terrifying dream.
Lying in bed, I tried to remember what had happened in the nightmare, but the details slipped away. I felt completely isolated in my dark, dusty room, where a pale ray of moonlight cut through the window, casting sharp patterns across the wooden floor. I got up, drank a cup of water, and walked over to the door.
"Your Majesty," my personal knight, Mey, said as he stepped forward from his post.
"I told you to call me June," I replied softly.
"My apologies, June. But where are you headed at this hour?"
"I am going to the garden."
"It's midnight, june." He said wih his hands cossing oer hs chest, leaning against the wall.
"And?", i replied, raising my eyebrows.
"Normal people sleep" he says, with a grin on his face.
I rolled my eyes.
Without waiting for a response, I headed straight for the backyard. I knew Mey couldn't truly forbid me from going, even if wandering around at midnight was frowned upon. The backyard wasn't far from my quarters, and I arrived in no time. Without a doubt, this was the best place in the castle.
The castle garden was both beautiful and unsettling. A quiet lake shimmered under the moonlight, surrounded by silver willows and pale flowers. Soft lanterns glowed along winding stone paths, their reflections dancing on the dark water. The air was calm and sweet with the scent of jasmine, offering a strange sense of comfort. Yet beneath its beauty lingered an eerie silence, as though the garden was guarding secrets long forgotten. The fresh, greenish night air and the willow weeping at the edge of the lake were breathtaking.
I sat by the water, watching the stars twinkle above. Suddenly, a wave of memories flooded my mind—memories I desperately wished I could forget. They were painful enough to tighten my throat, stealing the air right from my lungs. I felt utterly helpless, trapped in a place where I didn't belong.
I remembered that damn day. The day my own parents sold me to a foreign kingdom, ripping me away from everything I had ever known. It was a tragic betrayal. I could still see the faces of my mother and father as the knights carried me off in the carriage—they were smiling and happy, while I was completely broken and drowning in tears.I am not the true heir to this kingdom. I don't belong here.
But as I dipped my fingers into the cold water, watching the ripples distort my reflection, a cold resolve washed over me. I must prove what I can do. I have to survive. And right now, this is where I belong.Turning back, I quietly returned to my room, where Mey was waiting.
"The King is calling for you, June," Mey said, his voice tense.
"Tell him I'll be there," I replied, smoothing down my clothes. Mey shook his head.
"It's urgent."
