The first thing I noticed was the silence.
Not the peaceful kind—but the heavy, suffocating quiet that pressed against my ears after everything else had disappeared. There was no pain. No sound of machines. No voices calling my name.
Only warmth.
I opened my eyes slowly, half expecting darkness.
Instead, light greeted me.
Soft sunlight filtered through sheer white curtains that swayed gently in the breeze. The ceiling above me was high, decorated with gold-lined patterns and unfamiliar symbols. The bed beneath me was impossibly soft, layered with silken sheets that felt far too real to be a dream.
I tried to move.
My body responded easily—too easily.
Smaller. Lighter.
Panic rose in my chest.
I sat up, my heart racing, and stared at my hands. Slender fingers. Smooth skin. Not a single scar where there should have been many.
"This… isn't right."
My voice startled me.
It was not my own.
Before I could process that terrifying realization, the door to the room opened.
"Lady Aurelia!"
Several women rushed inside, dressed in maid uniforms I had only ever seen in historical dramas. They bowed deeply, eyes lowered, movements practiced and precise.
"My lady, you're awake!" one of them exclaimed. "We were so worried after your fever."
Fever?
I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could ask a single question, a sharp wave of pain tore through my head.
Memories flooded in.
Not mine.
A girl learning court etiquette. Endless lessons. The weight of noble expectations. A grand estate named Valenrose. Parents long deceased. A life lived quietly, obediently, perfectly.
And beneath it all—
My memories.
A modern world. A small apartment. Long hours. A lonely death.
I gasped and clutched my chest.
Two lives collided inside my mind.
I had died.
And yet, here I was.
"Lady Aurelia?" one maid asked nervously. "Shall we call the physician?"
I forced myself to breathe slowly.
"No," I said, surprised by the calm in my tone. "I'm… fine."
The maids exchanged glances but nodded.
"Please," I added, "leave me for a moment."
They hesitated, then bowed again and quietly exited the room.
The moment the door closed, I slid out of bed and walked toward the tall mirror near the window.
My reflection stole my breath.
Long white hair spilled down my back, touched with strands of gold that shimmered in the sunlight. My skin was pale, flawless. My eyes—
Sky blue.
Clear and bright, filled with a depth that did not belong to a sheltered noble girl.
That face was not mine.
Yet it was.
"I'm… Aurelia von Valenrose," I whispered.
A noble lady.
In another world.
My heart pounded as reality settled in. This was not a dream. Not a hallucination.
I had been reborn.
Before I could even begin to process what that meant, a knock echoed through the room.
A servant entered, posture stiff.
"My lady," he said formally, "His Majesty requests your presence in the audience hall."
Requests?
The memories answered before I could ask.
This was not a request.
This was a summons.
The audience hall was vast and intimidating, lined with towering pillars and banners bearing the royal crest. Nobles stood in small groups, murmuring quietly as I entered.
Every eye turned toward me.
I felt like prey.
At the far end of the hall sat the king upon his throne, expression unreadable. To his right stood a young man with sharp features and confident posture.
Prince Kael.
The second prince.
My fiancé.
The word made my stomach twist.
I walked forward, each step measured, guided by instincts that belonged to Aurelia's former self. When I stopped, I bowed gracefully.
"Lady Aurelia von Valenrose," the king said. "I trust your health has recovered."
"Yes, Your Majesty," I replied.
Prince Kael stepped closer, a charming smile on his lips.
"So this is the lady who will become my wife," he said, taking my hand without asking. "You look better than I expected."
Better than he expected.
His grip tightened slightly, possessive.
"Be grateful," he continued quietly, leaning closer. "Not every woman is chosen to stand beside royalty."
Something cold settled in my chest.
In my former life, I had stayed silent far too often.
This time, I smiled.
"I will do my best to meet expectations," I said politely.
He laughed, clearly pleased.
Behind him, near one of the pillars, someone else watched us.
A man with dark hair and eyes like sharpened steel.
The Crown Prince.
Lucien.
He said nothing. Did nothing.
Yet his gaze lingered on me—not with desire, not with judgment, but with something far more unsettling.
As if he were trying to see through me.
For a brief moment, our eyes met.
And in that instant, I felt it.
He knew.
Not everything—but enough to be dangerous.
The king dismissed us shortly after, and the nobles resumed their whispers. Kael released my hand and turned away, already bored.
Lucien remained where he was, watching me leave.
My heart beat faster.
I had been reborn into nobility.
Into power.
Into a political marriage.
And somehow, the most dangerous man in the room had already noticed me.
As I exited the hall, a single thought echoed in my mind:
This life would not be quiet.
And I would not live it silently.