The palace was a garden of illusions — beautiful on the outside, deadly underneath. Diana quickly learned to move carefully, speak little, and observe everything. Each day in the estate brought new insults and dangers, most of them orchestrated by Lady Seraphina. But Diana refused to break.
Instead, she listened.
She noticed how the guards spoke to each other when they thought no one was around. She memorized the layout of the palace. She learned who Seraphina trusted — and who she feared. And slowly, through whispered conversations and careful steps, she began to gather pieces of the puzzle that might one day lead her home — or to justice.
Mei remained her closest ally.
"Lady Seraphina's influence is waning," Mei whispered one evening as they folded linens in the moonlight. "The court is beginning to favor General Kael. The people love him."
Diana paused. "Why?"
"He fights for the poor. He speaks plainly. And he doesn't bow to corrupt ministers."
Diana smiled faintly. "He sounds like the kind of man who doesn't belong here."
"Like you," Mei replied.
One morning, Diana was sent to deliver scrolls to the war chamber. As she approached, she heard voices inside.
"This rebellion in the east cannot be ignored," a gruff man said.
"They are starving," said another. "What choice do they have but to rise?"
Then a familiar voice cut through — deep, steady, commanding.
"We need reform, not blood. If we keep crushing the people, there will be no kingdom left to defend."
It was General Kael.
Diana froze at the doorway, her heart beating strangely in her chest.
She knocked lightly and stepped inside. Kael glanced at her — then did something shocking.
He smiled.
"You again," he said after the meeting, catching up to her as she walked through the courtyard. "You look less frightened than the first time I saw you."
"Maybe I'm getting used to being terrified," she replied without thinking.
Kael raised an eyebrow, amused. "You're not from around here, are you?"
Diana hesitated. "Not really."
"You speak with strange turns of phrase. You don't bow. You question everything."
She looked up at him. "Is that dangerous?"
He didn't answer right away. Then he said, "It's rare."
Their eyes locked, and for a moment, time seemed to pause.
But peace never lasted long in Seraphina's world.
The next day, Diana found her belongings torn to shreds. Mei's lip was bruised. Seraphina had clearly discovered their friendship.
"She says you're trying to seduce General Kael," Mei whispered. "She wants you gone."
Diana's hands clenched. "Let her try."
That night, Diana crept into the estate's records room. With Mei keeping watch, she searched through scrolls, maps, and letters. Hidden behind a tapestry, she found a chest — inside, letters addressed to foreign courts, sealed with Seraphina's crest.
She's been conspiring with enemies of the kingdom.
Diana stared at the proof in her hands. This could destroy her.
But before she could act, the door burst open.
Guards swarmed in.
The next morning, Diana stood in chains before the palace tribunal. Seraphina sat like a queen beside the council, her voice dripping with false concern.
"This girl is not who she claims to be," she said. "She broke into restricted archives and stole documents. Who knows what she's planning? Perhaps she is a spy after all."
Diana held her head high. "I only uncovered what you didn't want anyone to see."
"Enough," snapped one of the ministers. "This girl will be sent to the city prison until further notice."
As they dragged her away, Kael appeared in the crowd. Their eyes met.
He looked furious — but not at her.
The prison was cold and dark, filled with the scent of mold and hopelessness. Diana was thrown into a cell with nothing but straw and stone. Her body ached, but her mind raced.
This is not the end. It can't be.
That night, she whispered to herself again: "I've survived worse. I'll survive this too."
She didn't know yet that Kael had already begun working behind the scenes. That Mei was secretly sending messages to his trusted allies. That Seraphina's grip on power was slipping faster than anyone realized.
But in that moment, Diana held onto the only thing she could:
Hope.