Before long, the flames, which had seemed to soar high enough to touch the heavens, began to die down. All that remained of the place where Sione had lain was pitch-black ash.
Daphne stood there for a long time. Finally, she took Tisbene’s hand, preparing to leave.
[Daphne.]
Jeffrey called out to her, stopping her in her tracks.
It was said that the ancestors of the Velarezians traditionally had silver hair and violet eyes. Because of their resemblance to the goddess Enna, Velarezians were revered for ages as the descendants of the goddess. In particular, the ruling Thessalia royal family was famous for their inhuman beauty, and they still retained pure silver hair and violet eyes to this day.
And among them, Jeffrey was the most beautiful.
[…Brother Jeffrey.]
While the world outside was in ruins from the long war, he, in the safest place, surrounded by beauty and luxury, only seemed to grow more resplendent with each passing day. His jewel-like violet eyes scanned Daphne.
[Your face looks a bit worn. Come to think of it, you were especially close to Sione.]
[Thank you for your concern, brother.]
[Yes. However…]
[…]
[Have you started menstruating yet?]
Unconsciously, Daphne tightened her grip on Tisbene’s hand.
[I’m sorry.]
Jeffrey let out a long sigh.
[Why are you so late?]
[…]
[You’ll be twenty this winter, won’t you? What on earth is the problem…?]
Daphne Thessalia, the ninth princess of Velarez, a kingdom on the fertile Wesel continent known as the “Land of Eternal Spring,” was considered deficient.
It was because she had not yet started menstruating.
According to the will of Enna, whom they worshipped, only women who had begun menstruation were recognized as true women in Velarez. This meant that Daphne, who had not yet menstruated, could not undergo her coming-of-age ceremony and therefore could not marry.
Jeffrey was beginning to grow anxious as Daphne still showed no signs of menstruation. Equila would soon demand another princess.
In a calm voice, Daphne reassured Jeffrey.
[I think it’ll start soon. Please don’t worry too much.]
Even so, the slight furrow between Jeffrey’s brows didn’t disappear. He patted Daphne’s shoulder a few times as if resigning himself, then walked past her.
The corners of Daphne’s lips, which had been raised smoothly, fell. Her gentle smile was gone, replaced by coldness.
Her marriage continued to be delayed.
***
[Daphne?]
Tisbene, who had suddenly woken up, clung to Daphne, trying to stop her from leaving.
[Tis.]
Only thirteen years old, Tisbene was naturally frail and gentle, but since Sione’s death, her anxiety had worsened. She couldn’t be alone even for a moment and constantly sought Daphne. That was why Daphne hadn’t been able to leave Tisbene’s room for the past few days.
[You’re going outside the castle, aren’t you? Take me with you.]
[Goodness, Tis. Lower your voice.]
Daphne quickly looked around. Fortunately, there was no sign of anyone else.
She whispered in a deliberately stern tone.
[We agreed it would be our secret, didn’t we?]
No one else could know this secret.
[But outside the castle, there are barbarians.]
The Inacos Union, which had invaded Velarez, came from the Novas continent across the sea. The people of Wesel regarded them as barbarians and despised them.
[What if you run into them? They say you can’t even communicate with them….]
Velarezians, who considered themselves descendants of the goddess, treated the invaders like beasts. In fact, it was King Bathion’s massacre of Inacos’s emissaries, mocking them as animals, that had sparked this protracted war ten years ago.
[…I’ve returned safely every time until now.]
[But, Daphne, if something were to happen to you too, I…]
Daphne spoke firmly.
[That won’t happen.]
[Couldn’t you wait a little? Or just for today, can’t you not go?]
Daphne held Tisbene by the shoulders and met her gaze.
Eyes of the same violet hue as hers quivered with unease, tugging at her heart.
[Tis. Why do you think I go outside the castle?]
[Because if you don’t gather the herbs, we won’t be able to stay together….]
[That’s right. Without the herbs, I can’t delay menstruation. And only then can I avoid marriage… avoid Equila.]
Tisbene’s face contorted, likely recalling the late Sione. Daphne forced a faint smile and patted Tisbene’s head. However, unlike usual, Tisbene did not give up so easily.
[B-but, Daphne, I just have such a bad feeling about today. I’m not being childish; I truly mean it….]
[I can’t delay any longer. You know that.]
Daphne hadn’t been able to gather herbs throughout the winter. Now, spring—the long-awaited season—had finally arrived. The supply of herbs had run out, and she was increasingly anxious about the possibility of menstruation suddenly starting.
[It’s a little early, but you’ll need it soon too.]
If she wanted to gather enough for Tisbene as well, she had to hurry. Daphne glanced out the window, and Tisbene’s gaze followed hers. Though it was still dark outside, the sun would soon rise. There was no more time to waste.
Daphne gently tucked Tisbene’s hair behind her ear and whispered softly.
[Go back to sleep. I’ll return before you wake up.]
Pulling her hood low over her face, Daphne stepped into the darkness.
Even after a long time, her steps along the pitch-black corridors were sure and unhesitating. Sneaking out of the annex palace in the dead of night while everyone else slept, hiding in the abandoned “Queen’s Chamber”—it was something she could now do with her eyes closed.
Daphne was the daughter of King Bathion’s third queen, making her a half-sibling to Jeffrey, who was born of the second queen. Daphne’s mother had died of postpartum fever after giving birth to Tisbene. The fourth queen, after suffering two stillbirths, had also passed away. Thus, the young fifth queen, Callista, deemed unlucky, had never used the Queen’s Chamber.
The room, long abandoned, had fallen into disrepair under the excuse of wartime neglect, now resembling little more than ruins.
And far older than the chamber itself was the forgotten secret it held—a hidden passage behind a grand fireplace. This passage led to the deep forest beyond the castle, a sacred place considered the domain of the goddess Enna, where even hunting was forbidden. It was so revered that enemy scouts rarely ventured there.
Even so, the lands beyond the castle were enemy territory. For a Velareze princess to leave the castle was an exceedingly dangerous act. Yet Daphne could not stop going into the forest. To her, being captured by the enemy or being forced to marry Equila felt no different.
[Daphne. Survive for as long as you can. Longer than this city, if possible.]
As Daphne walked through the forest, she suddenly froze. Sione’s words echoed in her mind.
The secret passage, the herbs that delayed menstruation—all of it had been discovered by Sione. Unfortunately, Sione had already begun menstruating by the time she found the herbs.
[Sione…]
A heavy sense of despair weighed her down. Sione was the strongest person Daphne had ever known. Her death had drained Daphne of her will.
Soon, Equila would again demand a princess. Cornered, her father and Jeffrey might even disregard temple rules and arrange an exceptional marriage.
From Daphne’s perspective, the war showed no signs of improving. She didn’t know how much longer she could rely on the excuse of not having menstruated. Though she tried not to show it in front of Tisbene, she was deeply anxious.
Having safely snuck in and out of the castle before, she had considered the idea of fleeing.
But Daphne believed the forest was the limit of her escape. Her deliberately weakened body could not endure the journey beyond this land. Beyond the forest lay rugged mountains, and avoiding the mountains meant enemy-occupied territories. While escape by sea might have been an option, the seas surrounding Velarez had been filled with enemy warships for a decade.
Had she been alone, she might have recklessly tried to flee. However, with Tisbene in tow, even leaving the forest seemed nearly impossible.
[Even if I manage to leave this land, my appearance will undoubtedly become an issue….]
Hope seemed entirely out of reach. For Daphne, it did not exist.
The only thing she felt she could do was risk sneaking out of the castle to chew on the harmful herbs that would ruin her body.
