RHEIN'S POINT OF VIEW
Good thing Sister Rona had shown me around earlier; it made navigating the winding halls of the palace easier. Because of Father's enchantments, teleportation mnarill would only get me lost—walking was safer.
It took me nearly ten minutes of walking through a shadowy hallway before I finally reached its end.
Honestly, the silence was unsettling, and I probably wouldn't have had the courage to come here alone. That was why I dragged Forelody along. In hindsight, that might have been a mistake.
"R-Rhein, let's just go back. P-please," she begged, for what must have been the tenth time. "Come back another day instead. Please. Let's leave."
I gave her a lazy side-glance, too tired of repeating myself. "You're my pracien."
Before me stood a plain white wall—the only one without a single painting. Placing my palm flat against it, I felt the surface ripple and shift, the color draining into dull gray as a towering double door of iron emerged. It wasn't locked. I pushed it open and slipped inside.
Sister Rona had told me earlier that only members of the royal family have access here. This is where the palace hides every secret about our world.
The heavy door shut behind us with a resonant boom. Immediately, a ball of light appeared overhead, small but bright enough to bathe the entire chamber in silver glow. Towering shelves rose to the ceiling, stuffed with countless books. Some hovered in the air, slowly drifting, as if waiting to be read.
Faster than lightning, Forelody clung to my neck, trembling.
"This isn't a horror movie, Pracien," I assured. "Relax. No ghosts here—just mnarillazas and mnarills."
"Exactly!" she squeaked. "Wh-what if someone put a mna-mnarill ghost here as a guard?"
I snorted. Her imagination is absurd... though the thought made my skin prickle. What if there really is something? I shook it off.
Closing my eyes, I extended my senses, letting my mnarill brush over every book in the chamber. Nothing. A barrier was blocking me.
"Pracien, I don't like this. It's creepy," she muttered.
"Shush. Help me search," I said, pulling down the nearest tome and flipping it open.
"What are we even looking for?" she asked innocently.
I slapped my forehead so hard the sound echoed. She'd been nagging me to leave without even knowing why we were here.
"Complete information about the crystal. I need to understand it—how to use my mnarill without triggering anything dangerous. I don't want to be a threat to Mnarra. And I... I still want to live long."
The weight of those words clawed at me. I shook my head, refusing to dwell on it, and returned to the task.
"Ohhh, so this is a princess duty," Forelody commented, finally amused. "If you told me that earlier, I'd have stopped being scared right away."
I smiled. What a ridiculous pracien.
Two hours passed. We had barely scratched the surface of this place.
Forelody was already asleep, sprawled on top of a floating book. I considered throwing something to wake her up but decided not to. Couldn't really blame her—turning thick, heavy pages with tiny claws and feet must have been exhausting.
With a sigh, I dropped the book I was holding. At a snap of my fingers, the scattered volumes returned neatly to their shelves. Dust clung to my clothes; this place hadn't been cleaned in years.
I exhaled in frustration, ready to leave when suddenly, a white hardbound book appeared in front of my face.
I looked up. Justin is holding it.
Heat shot up my cheeks as the memory of our kiss flickered in my mind. I frowned to cover it, refusing to let him see me flustered.
"Giving up already, Princess?"
"Whatever's in there, I doubt it's useful," I muttered, brushing off my clothes as I stood.
His lips curved into an infuriating smirk. My eyebrow twitched.
"Why don't you try opening it?"
I snatched the book and flipped it open. Every page was blank. I shut it again, studying the cover—also bare. Then I realized—it was one of the floating books I'd seen earlier.
"How long have you been here?" I asked, still staring at the book. I hadn't sensed his presence at all. Was there an enchantment hiding him?
"Long enough. You were too focused to notice me."
"And how did you even know we were here?"
"I was running away from Dylan. I got lost in our match, so he probably had some stupid dare waiting for me. I'm sick of it. Then I saw you heading here, so I followed."
I met his gaze. "So you heard everything. You know what I'm looking for."
"Yes."
"Then why give me this book?"
"It isn't just a book—it's a magical one. Whatever you wish to know, it will show you."
I froze, staring at the book in my hands.
My voice came out softer. "Is this... is this the book that told you what happened to your parents?" The words slipped out of my mouth before I realized it. And when I finally did, panic struck me like a whip. "I—I apologize! I didn't mean to say that. F-forgive me. I'm really sorry."
I thought he'd be angry, but he wasn't. Instead, he shook his head, offered a faint smile, and said, "It's fine."
But even with that smile, I saw it—the quiet sorrow that flashed in his eyes.
My gaze dropped to the floor, shame pressing down on me. "I really am sorry."
"It's fine." His laugh was soft, almost forced. "So you already know about my parents. And yes—you're right. I accidentally discovered what happened back then through that book."
I almost asked him how he had found the book, but I stopped myself just in time.
Why dig into something that had already scarred him so deeply? The last thing I wanted was to remind him of that nightmare. The thought of how close I'd come to blurting it out made me want to laugh bitterly at my own insensitivity.
Out of the corner of my eye, I stole a glance at him. He was staring off to his left, lost in thought, his expression hollow. He must have been reliving the memory, whether he wanted to or not.
The silence stretched between us, heavy and suffocating. If it lingered any longer, I was afraid it would drag him deeper into that painful abyss.