Time: Morning
Age: Elira – 6 years, Kael – 3 years
The east garden was quiet in the early morning.
Dew still clung to the grass, and the air smelled fresh. This part of the palace was rarely visited at this hour, which was why Elira liked it.
She held a wooden sword in both hands, her stance careful and serious. Across from her, Kael stood with his own smaller sword, his expression focused beyond his years.
"Again," Kael said.
Elira moved. Her swing was slow but controlled. Kael stepped aside easily, tapping her wrist with the flat of his blade.
"You hesitate," he said calmly.
"I don't want to hurt you," Elira replied.
Kael shook his head. "Then you will hesitate when it matters most."
They trained in silence after that—two small figures moving carefully through the mist, forgotten by the palace that surrounded them.
They did not notice the footsteps.
On the stone path beyond the rose bushes, three figures walked together.
The Empress Dowager moved at the center, her pace slow and dignified. Beside her walked the Emperor, listening as she spoke. A step behind them followed the elder princess, quiet and observant.
Their conversation stopped.
The Emperor's gaze shifted toward the garden.
Two children stood there.
One was a little girl with dark hair, holding a wooden sword too seriously for her age.
The other—a boy far too young—mirrored her movements with unsettling precision.
For a long moment, no one spoke.
"Who are they?" the Empress Dowager asked.
The Emperor did not answer immediately.
His eyes narrowed slightly. "…My children."
The words hung in the air.
The elder princess stiffened.
Children of imperial blood—training alone, unnoticed, unannounced.
Forgotten.
The Empress Dowager's eyes sharpened. "So these are the ones the palace chose to forget."
Elira finally noticed them.
Her grip tightened. Kael stepped half a pace in front of her.
The garden, once quiet, felt suddenly very small.