The heavy silence inside the grand library of the Rosenberg duchy was suffocating.
Evelyn stood frozen in front of the massive mahogany desk, her breaths coming in ragged, painful gasps.
Her royal dress was torn at the hem, her bare feet scratched from the frantic escape, and her hands still trembled as she gripped the edge of the dark wood for support.
Sitting effortlessly in his high leather chair across from her was Grand Duke Killian Von Rosenberg.
His immaculate silver hair caught the dim light, and his midnight-blue eyes locked onto her with a terrifying, stoic calmness.
He closed his heavy book halfway, leaning back as he stared at the uninvited princess.
“Why on earth would the Princess of Eldoria come to someone like me to beg for help?”
Killian spoke, his voice deep, resonant, and dripping with a chilling authority.
Evelyn felt the sheer weight of his aura pressing down on her, but she couldn’t back down.
This man was her absolute last hope.
She looked directly into his handsome, deadly face and bared her soul.
“Please, Your Grace…
only you can help me,” Evelyn gasped out, her voice cracking with pure exhaustion.
Killian didn’t answer immediately.
He slowly stood up, his imposing height casting a long shadow over her, before he moved to sit back down in his chair, adjusting his posture with absolute grace.
Evelyn remained standing right in front of his table, her posture rigid with tension.
“My life is in danger,” Evelyn pressed forward, her amethyst eyes wide with desperate urgency.
Killian casually opened his book again, flipping to a page with utter indifference.
He didn’t even look up as his deep voice cut through the quiet room.
“Who exactly would dare to take the life of Princess Eldoria?
Look, stop playing jokes.
If you want, I can have you escorted back to your palace.”
“My mother and my brother want to kill me!”
Evelyn’s voice rose, sharp and laced with raw terror as she stepped closer to the desk.
“Because I don’t possess any magic!
They even tried to poison me with a glass of milk tonight, but I didn’t drink it!”
Killian paused, his eyes shifting from the pages to face her directly.
His expression remained completely flat, an iron mask of absolute apathy.
“Look, Princess, this is your family matter.
I can’t do anything about this.”
Panic surged through Evelyn’s veins.
He was rejecting her, exactly as she feared.
‘Even in the original novel, this man is never willing to help anyone,’ she thought bitterly, her mind racing.
If she couldn’t offer something invaluable right now, he would throw her out, and the Empress’s blades would find her before morning.
Evelyn clenched her fists, her voice hardening with absolute defiance.
“I…
I will pay you whatever price you ask!
Whatever you demand!”
Killian let out a cold, silent breath.
His midnight-blue eyes turned incredibly dark and piercing as he stared at her.
“Look, I don’t care about money.
And as for what I want…
I only have one demand.” He leaned forward, his voice dropping into a deadly whisper.
“…that you leave and return to your palace right now.”
Evelyn’s chest tightened into a knot of sheer desperation.
He was completely turning her away.
She had to use her ultimate trump card right now, no matter how unbelievable it sounded.
“I can tell you about every single enemy that will come for you in the future!” Evelyn declared loudly, her eyes flashing with absolute certainty.
“And about every single hidden treasure that nobody else knows about!”
Thud.
Killian slammed his book completely shut.
The absolute stillness in the room became terrifying as he leaned forward, his sharp gaze boring directly into her soul.
“You can see the future?” He asked, his voice dripping with dangerous skepticism.
“Look, there is no need to play jokes with me.”
“I am not joking!” Evelyn countered immediately, refusing to break eye contact despite the suffocating pressure radiating from him.
“If you ever feel like I am lying to you, you can do whatever you want with me!”
Killian remained completely quiet for several agonizing seconds.
The grandfather clock ticked loudly in the corner as he evaluated the fragile, disheveled princess standing defiantly before him.
There was no tremor of deceit in her eyes, only a fierce, burning will to survive.
“Very well,” Killian finally broke the silence, his tone smooth and decisive.
“I shall protect you…
but on one condition.”
Evelyn’s heart did a sudden leap.
“What condition?”
Killian didn’t explain.
He reached for a fresh sheet of heavy paper on his desk, dipped his fountain pen in dark ink, and began writing with swift, elegant strokes.
Within a few moments, he lifted the paper and extended his hand, sliding it directly toward her across the dark wood.
Evelyn blinked in confusion, her hands trembling slightly as she picked up the document.
“What…
what is this?”
“Read it,” Killian commanded simply.
Evelyn lowered her gaze to the elegant script, her breath catching in her throat as she read the words aloud: ‘I, Evelyn Eldoria, hereby engage myself to Killian Rosenberg…’
Her eyes widened in absolute shock.
She looked up at him, her voice fluttering with complete bewilderment.
“But what is the need for this?”
Killian didn’t answer verbally.
Instead, he slowly rose from his leather chair and walked around the massive mahogany desk.
His tall, statuesque frame completely dominated the space as he closed the distance between them.
Evelyn felt her breath vanish as he stopped mere inches away from her.
She instinctively flinched, a wave of intense nervousness rushing through her as his hand moved toward her face.
Killian gently placed his large, cool hand directly against her warm cheek.
His touch was firm yet strangely protective, forcing her to look up into his piercing midnight-blue eyes.
Without this, I won’t be able to protect you,” Killian spoke, his voice incredibly deep and low, vibrating close to her ear.
“Because if a girl stays in my palace without any reason, what will people say?
With this contract, I can protect you twenty-four-seven.”
Evelyn’s face flushed a deep, vivid crimson.
The sheer proximity of his chest and the warmth of his hand on her cheek made her mind go completely blank with shyness.
Her heart hammered wildly against her ribs as she looked away, completely overwhelmed.
But amidst the intense blushing, her rational thoughts kicked in.
‘Even in the original novel, Killian Rosenberg was incredibly clever,’ she thought, trying to steady her chaotic breathing.
‘However, this is for my own safety, and it only benefits me.’
Taking a deep breath to calm her racing pulse, she reached out, took the pen from the desk, and signed her name beautifully at the bottom of the engagement paper.
She handed the pen back, her face still burning.
“Will I be staying here from now on, Your Grace?”
Killian let his hand drop from her cheek, stepping even closer until he was completely enveloping her space.
“From today on, you will call me only Killian.
Understood?”
Evelyn’s throat felt dry as she looked up into his mesmerizing, deadly face.
“Y-Yes…”
Killian nodded slightly, his gaze drifting down to her torn, dirt-stained gown.
“Did you bring your clothes?”
Evelyn’s cheeks burned with utter embarrassment.
She looked down at her ruined dress, her voice dropping into a shy mumble.
“Well…
I ran away in a hurry, so I didn’t bring any clothes.”
“Then fine,” Killian replied smoothly, a faint, rare amusement dancing in his eyes.
“Make sure to wake up early tomorrow.
We will go and get clothes for you tomorrow.
And yes, the day after tomorrow will be the celebration of our engagement.”
Evelyn’s eyes snapped open in pure panic.
“A celebration?!
But what is the need to do that?!”
“Because everyone needs to be told so that nobody suspects you,” Killian stated with absolute authority, leaving no room for argument.
Evelyn lowered her head, realizing the absolute calculation behind his move.
“Alright…
K-Killian.”
Killian turned around, walked over to the grand double doors of the library, and pulled them open with a heavy click.
He looked back at her over his broad shoulder.
“Come along, let me show you to your room.”
Evelyn felt a lingering nervousness in her chest.
“Y-Yes…” She stepped carefully, her bare feet moving softly across the floor as she followed him out of the room.
The moment they stepped into the vast, candlelit marble corridor, they were met by a sharp gasp.
Standing right across the hallway was Killian’s head butler, Sebastian.
He had been waiting to attend to his master, but the moment his eyes locked onto the disheveled, breathtakingly beautiful princess walking closely behind the notoriously cold Grand Duke, his professional mask completely shattered.
His jaw literally dropped in pure, unadulterated shock.
“Sebastian,” Killian spoke, his voice entirely calm and unbothered by his butler’s reaction.
“Go and show my fiancée to her room.
And wake us up early tomorrow.”
Sebastian’s eyes looked as though they were about to pop straight out of his head.
He looked from Killian to Evelyn, his voice cracking in pure bewilderment.
“M-My Lord…
Fiancée?!
But you only went in to read a book…!”
Sebastian’s gaze drifted fully toward Evelyn.
The young princess felt the intense warmth rushing back to her face.
She looked down at the floor, blushing deeply, her fingers nervously twisting the fabric of her torn gown as she stood under the butler’s intense scrutiny.
Killian’s eyes narrowed slightly, his tone dropping into a sharp warning.
“Do as much as you are told, understood?
Go and show her to her room.”
Sebastian instantly straightened his vest, clearing his throat frantically as he bowed deeply to hide his lingering shock.
“Yes, My Lord!”
Killian turned his gaze back to the blushing princess.
“Wake up early tomorrow, alright?”
“A-Alright…
Killian,” Evelyn whispered softly, her voice laced with extreme shyness as she refused to look up.
Sebastian stepped forward, offering a respectful bow.
“This way, My Lady.” He turned and led her down the long, winding corridor of the east wing.
Once they arrived at a pair of large, elegant doors, the butler opened them gently.
“Please rest comfortably now.”
Evelyn offered a soft, grateful smile.
“A-Alright…” She stepped inside the luxurious room, the heavy doors closing softly behind her, finally allowing her to collapse onto the soft bed in absolute relief.
Meanwhile, miles away across the mist-shrouded capital, the atmosphere within the grand Imperial Palace of Eldoria was a total inferno.
The heavy mahogany doors of Princess Evelyn’s bedchamber were thrown open with a sharp creak.
The young maid stepped back into the room, holding a fresh, intricately carved crystal glass of warm, poisoned white milk on her silver serving tray.
She walked toward the canopy bed, fully expecting to find the magic-less princess waiting.
However, as her eyes scanned the massive room, the absolute silence felt terrifying.
Her gaze dropped to the floor, but the dark wood was completely dry.
“Pri-Princess…?” the maid called out, her voice trembling.
She rushed forward, looking around the empty space until her eyes locked onto the grand arched window.
The window pane was wide open, swaying gently in the cold midnight wind.
Hanging securely from the heavy iron bedpost was a long, makeshift rope made of torn silk gowns and knotted sleeves, extending down into the dark abyss of the palace gardens.
The maid’s face turned completely translucent, devoid of all color.
The heavy silver tray slipped from her numb fingers.
CRASH!
The glass shattered violently, the white poisoned milk exploding across the floor.
The maid turned on her heel and ran out of the room like a madwoman, her frantic, panicked screams echoing through the silent marble corridors of the inner palace.
“My Lady!
My Lady!
Evelyn is not in her room!” she screamed, violently banging against the gold-leaf doors of the Empress’s private sanctuary.
The doors were opened by the elite royal guards, revealing the opulent interior.
Sitting gracefully upon a crimson velvet lounge was the Empress of Eldoria, her beautiful face tightening into a sharp, venomous scowl at the disturbance.
Her biological son, the young prince, stood nearby, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword.
“What is the meaning of this absolute insolence?!” the Empress hissed, her dark eyes flashing with danger.
“Speak!”
The maid threw herself onto the plush rug, her entire body shaking uncontrollably as she bowed.
“M-My Lady…
Evelyn is not in her room!”
The Empress stiffened, her gaze narrowing into razor-sharp slits as she rose slowly from her lounge.
“Why?
Where would she go so late at night?
Search for her, she must be around here somewhere!”
“No, My Lady!” the maid cried out, tears of pure terror leaking from her eyes.
“She is not in the entire palace…
She ran away!”
“WHAT?!” the Empress roared, her elegant composure completely shattering as her face twisted into a mask of pure, venomous fury.
“Where…
Where did she go?!
Did she find out that we gave her poison in the milk?!”
The young prince stepped forward, his knuckles turning stark white over his sword hilt.
“Mother…
this is a disaster.
If she escapes—”
“Go and search for her in the entire kingdom!” the Empress snarled, her voice dropping into a dangerous, murderous hiss as she commanded her guards.
“Look for her everywhere!”
Thank you for reading!
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