The letter arrived just before sunset.
Princess Evelyn was sitting beside the window of her chamber when she heard a soft knock.
She turned.
“Come in.”
A young palace maiden entered, carrying a small sealed envelope.
“Princess, this came for you.”
Evelyn recognized the handwriting before the maiden had even finished speaking.
Edward.
Her heart began to beat faster.
She reached for the letter.
“Thank you.”
The maiden bowed and left.
Evelyn remained still for several seconds, staring at the envelope.
Edward’s final year of service was almost over.
The thought should have filled her with happiness.
Instead, it frightened her.
She slowly broke the seal.
“My beloved Evelyn,
The time has finally come.
Tomorrow, my final assignment will be completed.
After that, I will begin my journey back to the palace.
I cannot describe what I feel as I write these words.
For seven years, I have imagined this day.
Seven years of service.
Seven years of waiting.
Seven years of dreaming about you.
Tomorrow, the road that separated us will finally come to an end.
I am coming home.
Wait for me.
Edward.”
Evelyn read the letter once.
Then again.
Then a third time.
Her hands trembled.
“He is coming home.”
Tears filled her eyes.
For years, those words had been nothing more than a dream.
Now they were real.
Edward was coming back.
The man she had loved from the beginning was finally returning.
But behind her happiness was a terrible fear.
The royal law.
She could not forget it.
If Lilian remained unmarried, Edward could not marry her.
And if Edward refused to marry Lilian, he would have to serve another seven years before he could marry Evelyn.
Another seven years.
Evelyn pressed the letter against her chest.
“No.”
She shook her head.
“I cannot wait another seven years.”
She had already waited seven.
She could not imagine beginning again.
And she knew Edward had sacrificed too much.
That night, Evelyn barely slept.
She walked around her chamber for hours.
She looked at Edward’s letter.
She read it repeatedly.
Each time she reached the words I am coming home, her heart filled with joy.
But each time she remembered the council’s decision, that joy disappeared.
She thought about Lilian.
Her sister had received several proposals during the years of Edward’s service.
Princes.
Nobles.
Young men from powerful families.
Some were wealthy.
Some were handsome.
Some were respected throughout the kingdom.
Yet Lilian had refused them all.
Evelyn had always defended her sister.
She had never wanted Lilian to marry a man she did not love.
But now everything was different.
Edward was returning.
There was no longer time to wait.
Evelyn knew what she had to do.
She had to speak to Lilian.
The next morning, Evelyn went to her sister’s chamber.
She knocked.
“Lilian?”
“Come in.”
Evelyn entered.
Lilian was standing before her mirror, arranging her hair.
She turned.
“Evelyn.”
Evelyn closed the door behind her.
“I need to speak with you.”
Lilian immediately noticed the seriousness in her sister’s expression.
“What happened?”
Evelyn walked toward her.
“Edward’s coming home.”
Lilian froze.
For a moment, neither sister spoke.
“When?” Lilian finally asked.
“Tomorrow.”
Lilian’s eyes lowered.
“Tomorrow.”
Evelyn nodded.
“He has completed his seven years.”
Lilian turned toward the window.
“I know.”
Evelyn took a breath.
“Lilian, I need to ask you something.”
Her sister remained silent.
“Please.”
Lilian turned back.
“What do you want me to do?”
Evelyn’s voice trembled. New chapters come out on g.com first.
“Choose someone.”
Lilian stared at her.
“What?”
“Choose one of the men who have proposed.”
Lilian shook her head.
“Evelyn…”
“Please listen to me.”
“I have been listening to this for years.”
“I know.”
“No, you don’t.”
There was pain in Lilian’s voice.
“You don’t know what it feels like to have everyone in the palace discussing your marriage as though you are a problem that needs to be solved.”
Evelyn stepped closer.
“I don’t want you to marry someone you don’t love.”
“Then what are you asking?”
“To choose someone you can accept.”
Lilian stared at her.
“Why?”
Evelyn’s eyes filled with tears.
“Because Edward is coming home.”
Silence.
Lilian looked away.
Evelyn continued.
“If you remain unmarried, the law will prevent us from marrying.”
“I know.”
“And if Edward refuses to marry you, he will have to serve another seven years.”
Lilian closed her eyes.
“I know.”
“Please, Lilian.”
Evelyn’s voice broke.
“Please choose someone.”
Lilian turned away from her sister.
She could not bear to look into Evelyn’s eyes.
Because there was something Evelyn did not know.
Something Lilian had kept hidden for years.
She liked Edward.
More than she had ever admitted.
At first, she had simply admired him.
She had admired his courage.
His determination.
The way he had sacrificed seven years for Evelyn.
She had watched his story from a distance.
She had heard the reports of his bravery.
She had heard about the secret tests.
She had learned that he had remained faithful even when temptation had been placed before him.
And somewhere along the way, admiration had become affection.
Affection had become something deeper.
Lilian had never confessed it.
Not to Evelyn.
Not to Queen Amelia.
Not even to herself completely.
But whenever Edward’s name was mentioned, her heart reacted.
When his letters arrived for Evelyn, Lilian sometimes wondered what it would feel like to receive a letter written specifically for her.
When she heard that he had survived another dangerous assignment, she felt relief.
And when she learned that he was returning, something inside her had quietly awakened.
The possibility that the royal law could place Edward in her life had frightened her.
But it had also secretly pleased her.
She hated herself for feeling that way.
Because Edward loved Evelyn.
And Evelyn loved him.
Lilian could not willingly destroy her sister’s happiness.
Yet the thought of Edward becoming her husband had begun to live secretly inside her heart.
Now Evelyn was standing before her, begging her to choose another man.
Lilian’s heart twisted.
“Which one?” Lilian asked quietly.
Evelyn looked surprised.
“Anyone you believe you can be happy with.”
“Do you really think it is that simple?”
“No.”
Evelyn shook her head.
“I know it isn’t.”
“Then why are you asking me?”
“Because I am afraid.”
Lilian looked at her.
“What are you afraid of?”
“That I will lose Edward.”
Those words broke something inside Lilian.
She looked away quickly so Evelyn would not see the emotion in her eyes.
“You love him very much.”
“More than anything.”
“I know.”
“I have waited seven years.”
“I know.”
“I don’t want to lose him because of a law neither of us created.”
Lilian remained silent.
Evelyn took her hands.
“Please, sister.”
Lilian looked into her eyes.
“You’re asking me to marry someone so that you can marry Edward.”
Evelyn’s tears fell.
“I am asking you to choose your own future before the law chooses it for you.”
Lilian stared at her.
That sentence struck her deeply.
Because it was true.
If she chose a husband now, the problem would disappear.
But if she waited, Edward could become hers according to the law.
And her heart really wanted that, as she had secretly wished Edward would be her husband.
Lilian walked toward the window.
She stared at the palace gardens.
“What if I don’t love any of them?”
Evelyn stood behind her.
“Then choose the one you can build a life with.”
“And if I cannot?”
“Then I will understand.”
“Would you?”
Evelyn nodded.
“I would rather wait for you to find happiness than have you marry someone you hate.”
Lilian’s eyes filled with tears.
“But you are asking me to do this because you are afraid.”
“Yes.”
Evelyn did not hide it.
“I am terrified.”
Lilian walked toward her.
“What if Edward returns and refuses to marry me?”
Evelyn swallowed.
“Then I will wait for him.”
“Another seven years?”
Evelyn closed her eyes.
“I don’t know.”
Lilian touched her sister’s cheek.
“I am sorry.”
Evelyn leaned into her hand.
“I don’t want to lose you either.”
After Evelyn left, Lilian remained alone.
She sat beside the window.
Her thoughts became tangled.
She imagined Edward returning.
She imagined seeing him in the palace again after seven years.
She imagined his eyes searching for Evelyn.
She imagined the joy on her sister’s face.
Then another image appeared.
Edward standing beside her.
Edward calling her his wife.
Edward holding her hand.
The image frightened her.
But it also filled her with a strange warmth.
Lilian quickly pushed it away.
“No.”
She whispered.
“He loves Evelyn.”
She stood.
“I cannot take him from her.”
But another voice inside her answered.
What if the law gives him to you?
She closed her eyes.
“No.”
Yet the thought would not disappear.
That evening, Lilian received a list of the men who had formally expressed interest in marrying her.
She studied each name.
One was a prince.
Another was a powerful noble.
Another was a respected military commander.
She had rejected them all before.
But now she looked at them differently.
Not because she suddenly loved them.
But because she understood what was at stake.
Her sister’s future.
Edward’s sacrifice.
Her own future.
She picked up one of the letters.
Then another.
Then another.
Still, her heart remained uncertain.
Somewhere inside her heart, she is in love with Edward and will be happy if the royal law will put him in her hands as husband.
Finally, she put them down.
“I need more time.”
But there was no more time.
Edward was returning tomorrow.
That same night, Evelyn stood in the garden.
She looked toward the road beyond the palace.
Tomorrow.
He would be on that road.
The man she had waited seven years for.
Her Edward.
She imagined him riding toward the palace.
She imagined running to him.
She imagined his arms around her.
She smiled through her tears.
But then the council’s decision returned to her mind.
Lilian.
She loved her sister.
She did not want to pressure her.
Yet she could not deny the truth.
If Lilian remained unmarried, everything Evelyn had dreamed about could disappear.
Seven years of waiting.
Seven years of letters.
Seven years of Edward’s service.
Everything could be delayed again.
Evelyn clasped her hands.
“Please, Lilian.”
She looked toward the sky.
“Please choose someone.”
Far away, Edward was preparing for his return.
His final assignment was complete.
His seven years of service were over.
He packed his belongings carefully.
Among them was every letter Evelyn had sent him.
He had kept them all.
He touched the small bundle and smiled.
Tomorrow, he would see her.
Tomorrow, the waiting would end.
Or so he believed.
He knew nothing about the council’s decision.
He knew nothing about Lilian’s hidden feelings.
He knew nothing about the fear growing inside Evelyn.
He only knew that after seven years of sacrifice, he was finally going home.
And the next day, Edward would cross the palace gates again.
But the woman waiting for him might not be the only person whose future would be changed by his return.
Because Princess Lilian now stood at the center of a decision that could determine the destiny of all three of them.
And when Edward finally arrived, the royal law would demand an answer.