Chapter 5: The Palace of Silence
Selene remained frozen in place long after Prince Draven had turned his back on her.
The weight of his silent dismissal settled heavily on her chest, suffocating in a way she hadn't expected. Not that she had imagined warmth from him no, the rumors of his coldness had been clear. But to be so utterly disregarded, as if she were nothing more than an object deposited at his feet, left a bitter taste in her mouth.
A delicate hand touched her arm.
"My lady," the maid whispered, her voice barely audible. "This way."
Selene inhaled sharply and forced her feet to move.
She followed the maid deeper into the palace, her steps echoing against the pristine marble floors. The hall stretched endlessly, its towering pillars casting elongated shadows beneath the flickering candlelight. The air was thick with something unspoken a tension that clung to the walls like an invisible mist.
She noticed how the servants they passed barely acknowledged her. No stolen glances. No whispers. They moved as if on strings, their heads bowed, their presence reduced to nothingness.
A palace of silence indeed.
Selene tightened her fingers against her gown.
What kind of place had she stepped into?
---
The corridors twisted into unfamiliar paths, each hallway more eerily quiet than the last.
Selene noticed how the maid escorting her seemed hesitant, her hands clutching her apron as though she were bracing for something.
"Where are we going?" Selene asked, her voice softer than she intended.
The maid flinched slightly but answered, "To your quarters, my lady."
The word quarters sat uneasily in Selene's mind.
When she was told she would be living in the palace, she had assumed she would have a chamber fitting of a noblewoman perhaps near the royal wing, close enough to serve her expected role. But as they walked, she noticed they were moving away from the grander halls and deeper into a part of the palace that felt… hidden.
Finally, they reached a tall, arched doorway.
The maid hesitated before pushing it open, revealing a long, dimly lit corridor.
Selene stepped inside, her gaze sweeping the space.
Lush tapestries hung from the walls, their intricate patterns woven in deep reds and blacks. The scent of lavender lingered faintly in the air, but it did little to mask the cold sterility of the place.
Then it hit her.
This wasn't just a guest chamber.
It was a chamber meant for mistresses.
Her stomach twisted.
Even though she had known what this arrangement meant, the realization still struck hard.
There were doors lined along the hallway, each leading to different chambers. She wasn't the first to be placed here. She wouldn't be the last.
The maid turned to her cautiously. "This will be your room, my lady."
Selene swallowed her emotions and stepped inside.
The chamber was spacious, furnished with a canopy bed draped in sheer fabric. The furniture was elegant, polished to perfection, but the beauty of the room only made her feel more like a doll placed in a well-decorated box.
This wasn't a home.
It was a gilded cage.
---
Before she could fully process her thoughts, the maid stepped forward again.
"There is one more thing," she murmured hesitantly.
Selene looked at her in question.
The maid fidgeted before speaking. "On your way here, did you… happen to see His Highness?"
Selene stiffened at the mention of Draven. "Yes."
The maid cast a glance towards the door before lowering her voice. "How did he… react?"
Selene's chest tightened.
"He barely acknowledged me."
The maid exhaled in what seemed like relief. "That is… good."
Selene narrowed her eyes. "Good?"
The maid quickly bowed her head. "Forgive me, my lady. I should not have spoken."
But Selene wasn't about to let it go.
"What do you mean?" she pressed. "What would have been worse?"
The maid visibly paled, her hands shaking slightly.
Selene's heartbeat quickened.
Before the maid could attempt to cover her words, a deep, chilling voice sliced through the air.
"She means that it is better for you to be ignored than to be noticed."
Selene whipped around.
Prince Draven stood at the doorway.
Her breath caught in her throat.
She hadn't even heard his approach.
The maid gasped and immediately dropped to her knees, pressing her forehead to the cold stone floor.
Selene, however, remained frozen, her eyes locked onto his.
Draven's silver eyes were unreadable, but something about the way he stared at her made her skin prickle.
"You seem surprised," he mused, his tone carrying an eerie calmness. "Did you expect a warmer welcome?"
Selene found her voice. "No, Your Highness."
He tilted his head slightly, observing her. "Good."
Then, just as swiftly as he had appeared, he turned away.
"Have a good time here," he said over his shoulder, his words void of sincerity.
And then he was gone.
Selene exhaled shakily.
The maid still remained kneeling, too afraid to rise.
Selene clenched her fists.
Prince Draven's presence alone was enough to instill fear in everyone around him.
What kind of man ruled over a palace where silence was the law?
---
The Kingdom and Its Unspoken Truths
The palace of silence had not always been this way.
Once, long ago, laughter had echoed through these halls. But those days had been buried beneath the weight of fear, beneath the rule of a single man.
Draven's father, the former king, had not died of natural causes.
The rumors said he had ended his own life out of fear.
Fear of his son.
No one dared to question the story. No one whispered doubts. Because to do so meant to risk disappearing.
And so, the kingdom fell into a quiet, obedient existence under Draven's reign.
Even the queen, his mother, was a shadow in his presence.
There were times he treated her with warmth, and other times with an iciness that left even the palace walls trembling.
No one knew what dictated his mood.
No one dared to ask.
And in this kingdom ruled by silence, one truth remained unspoken
Prince Draven was the sole heir.
The only child.
But there had been another.
An elder brother.
A prince who had once stood beside him, who had once been destined to rule.
But he had vanished.
And in the echoes of that disappearance, silence had settled over the palace like a suffocating shroud.
Draven never spoke of him.
The servants did not dare to remember him.
And Selene,
She had unknowingly stepped into a palace where every stone, every shadow, and every whisper carried secrets that no one was willing to tell.