Chapter 195 - After Party

Chapter 195 - After Party
ADELINE
My eyes did not turn back. They remained black, depthless, endless, reflecting every flicker of firelight that danced across the courtyard. My chest rose and fell in sharp, uneven breaths as chaos erupted around me.
Nobles scattered like leaves in a storm. The sound of panic filled the night, shouts, clattering shoes, the metallic clash of dropped ornaments. The air grew heavy with the scent of smoke and fear as the spirit beast descended, its shadow crawling across the courtyard walls.
Through the blur, I caught sight of my mother. Eloise was struggling to lift Ivan’s limp body, her gown torn and streaked with blood stains. “Adeline!” she screamed, her voice cracking. “Adeline, come on! Follow me!”
Her voice echoed strangely in my mind, not through my ears, but through the hollow ringing in my head. Each word sounded doubled, distorted, as though it came from both near and far.
I tried to move. My feet felt heavy, my vision swimming. The whispers had returned, louder now, their language curling through my mind like smoke.
Eloise turned again, glancing toward her daughter. Her face was pale, eyes wild with both fear and hope. “Come alone!” she shouted, thinking the girl was behind her. She hoisted Ivan’s arm over her shoulder and began to move toward the east wing where the gates stood open, hiding from the spirit beast’s gaze.
I took a step forward, then another, but the world tilted beneath me. My hand brushed the cold marble that had once been Caelum, and a faint spark of magic shivered up my arm, draining what little strength remained.
The sound of the beast’s roar thundered through the air, shaking my bones. The lights blurred, twisting in circles. My pulse slowed. The whispers faded into a single, soft voice I couldn’t place, calm, familiar, almost comforting.
Then everything went white.
I swayed once, my hand slipping from the altar.
My body hit the stone floor with a faint thud, red skirts pooling around me like spilled ink as the world fell away into silence.

I woke with a gasp, clutching at the air as though I was still falling. My heart thundered wildly, my skin damp with cold sweat. For a second, I couldn’t breathe, my chest constricted, my vision flickering between shadow and light. The name that slipped from my lips was a whisper, broken and trembling.
“Kieran…”
I froze. Who was that?  That wasn’t who I meant to call. Ivan. I meant Ivan. But somehow, Kieran’s name was the first that came to my tongue, echoing softly in the quiet room.
“Welcome back, sleeping beauty,” a deep voice said from somewhere to my left.
My eyes darted in the direction of the sound. There, by the dim firelight, sat the hooded prince, I still don’t know his name yet. But no hood this time, no shadow hiding him. The faint light revealed the black mark that trailed faintly along his face, softer now, like dying ink rather than deep scars. He was seated by a worn table, casually carving a small piece of wood with a thin knife, shavings falling like dust onto the floor.
I blinked, disoriented. The room smelled faintly of cedar and smoke, old stone and damp air. The walls were cracked, the curtains faded. It didn’t look like the palace I had known.
“Where am I?” I managed to ask, my voice rasping as though it hadn’t been used in weeks.
He shrugged without looking up. “You’re in the palace.”
I frowned, scanning the old beams and dusty shelves. “I never expected to see a room like this in a palace.”
That made him smirk faintly. “Things get old when the important things are lost,” he said, his tone slow and deliberate like a man speaking in riddles to keep truth hidden.
I didn’t answer. I didn’t have the strength for riddles. My throat tightened, and I forced out the question that burned in my chest.
“My brother—” I started, my voice trembling. “Ivan. Where is he?”
My hands paused for a brief moment over the small carving, then resumed. “The wedding at the duchess’s mansion,” he said slowly, “spread through Lykos like wildfire. Every noble and commoner’s house is whispering about it. About the duchess's daughter being alive, and organising a wedding at night… and the duchess who vanished with her son.”
My pulse raced. I sat up, ignoring the sharp ache in my limbs. “How long…  how long have I been asleep?”
He set the knife down, meeting my gaze for the first time. His eyes were calm… very calm. “Long enough…” he shrugged, “...I didn’t count the days you’ve been sleeping,” he said quietly. “But long enough for those who haven’t forgotten… to start looking.”
I swallowed hard. “Looking for me?”
He nodded his head. “Yes, also your brother and your mother. The people of Lykos, even the king himself  have sent word. They’re searching for the three of you.”
My breath hitched. “The king?”
He leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms. “Seems your family’s made quite the impression on Lykos. Whatever happened that night… didn’t stay buried.”
I turned my gaze toward the small fire burning low in the hearth. My reflection flickered in the light, my face pale, my eyes shadowed with exhaustion and confusion.
My heart sank as memories of that night clawed their way back, the vows, the chaos, Ivan’s blood, the beast, the screams. My hands began to tremble.
My throat tightened with words I didn’t yet understand how to form.
Finally, I forced out a whisper. “How did you find me?”