John sat silently at the edge of his bed, unable to calm his breathing.
The memories of his execution still haunted him like a nightmare that refused to end.
Every time he closed his eyes, he could still hear the screams of the citizens… still see his father raising the sword.
And today—
Today was the day the princess would come to meet him for the first time.
John’s hands tightened instantly.
“No…” he whispered to himself.
He still remembered her smile.
Beautiful.
Warm.
And dangerous.
Everything had begun after meeting her.
The wars.
The betrayals.
The destruction of the kingdom.
Even now, just thinking about her made fear crawl down his spine.
“I can’t meet her,” John muttered.
At least not yet.
But refusing the meeting suddenly would only make the royal family suspicious.
The eastern kingdom was extremely sensitive when it came to diplomacy, especially with the princess involved.
John quickly forced himself to think calmly.
He needed an excuse.
A believable one.
Suddenly, he remembered someone.
“Guards,” John called.
A servant immediately entered the room and bowed respectfully.
“Yes, Your Highness?”
“Call Sir Nick Cannon. Tell him to come immediately.”
“As you command.”
A few minutes later, the large doors opened again.
A young knight entered the room wearing silver armor with a sword hanging by his waist.
Unlike the other knights in the palace, his face looked relaxed and careless.
Nick Cannon.
John’s childhood friend.
The one person who had stayed loyal to him until the very end.
For a moment, John froze while looking at him.
In his previous life, Nick had died protecting him during the fall of the capital.
Yet here he stood alive again.
John suddenly felt a strange pain in his chest.
Nick raised an eyebrow.
“What’s with that face?” he joked lightly.
“You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
John forced a weak smile.
“If only you knew.”
Nick walked closer.
“You called for me?”
John quickly hid his emotions and returned to a calm expression.
“What’s happening in the kingdom today?” he asked.
“Any problems reported?”
Nick crossed his arms thoughtfully.
“Well… there is one thing.”
John immediately focused.
“The mining department reported suspicious activity this morning.”
“What kind of activity?”
Nick’s expression became serious.
“Someone’s been secretly selling our kingdom’s special minerals on the black market.”
John’s eyes narrowed slightly.
In Aerith, the mines were one of the kingdom’s most important resources.
Their rare minerals were the reason the other kingdoms constantly watched them with greedy eyes.
If someone was stealing from the mines…
Then this could become dangerous very quickly.
And more importantly—
It gave him the perfect excuse.
John slowly stood up.
“Prepare the horses,” he said calmly.
Nick blinked in surprise.
“You’re personally going?”
“Yes.”
Nick stared at him strangely.
Normally, the prince hated dealing with mine inspections and political matters.
But today his attitude felt completely different.
John walked toward the wardrobe and began changing into darker traveling clothes instead of royal attire.
As he tied the belts around his coat, his reflection briefly caught his attention in the mirror.
For a split second—
He thought he saw a dark figure standing behind him.
John instantly turned around.
Nothing.
The room was empty.
His heartbeat became uneven.
Again…
That feeling again.
Nick noticed his expression.
“John?”
“…It’s nothing,” John replied quietly.
But deep inside, he knew something was wrong.
The timeline already felt different.
And that terrified him more than anything.
Soon, the two left the palace and headed toward the mines located beyond the western mountains.
Dark clouds slowly gathered above the kingdom as their horses moved across the empty roads.
John silently looked toward the distant horizon.
If he remembered correctly…
This was supposed to be the day everything began.
So why did it already feel like fate was changing?