The moment I read the chilling letter, I knew exactly what to do.
And that wasâ
Immediately run to the King.
Because if there was one person in this entire kingdom who could keep me safe, it was His Majesty himself.
I stormed into the royal study without knocking.
"YOUR MAJESTY, I HAVE TERRIBLE NEWS!" I announced dramatically.
The King barely looked up from his paperwork.
"...Is it another song?"
I stared.
"WHAT? NO!"
I slammed the letter onto his desk.
"Someone sent me this!" I declared.
His golden eyes flicked down to the paper.
Then, as he read the words, his expression darkened.
For a long moment, he said nothing.
Then, he picked up the letter, reading it over againâhis fingers tightening ever so slightly.
And when he finally spokeâ
His voice was low.
"Who delivered this?"
I swallowed.
"I-I don't know," I admitted. "It was left in my quarters."
His golden eyes burned.
For the first time since I'd known himâ
I felt the full weight of his power.
Like a predator realizing something had dared to attack its territory.
And thenâ
In a voice far too calmâ
He said:
"...They made a mistake."
I blinked rapidly.
"Waitâwhat does that mean?!"
The King ignored me.
Instead, he reached for a parchment, dipped his quill in ink, and wrote something swiftly.
Then, handing the paper to a royal attendant, he murmuredâ
"Find them."
The attendant took one look at the letterâ
And visibly paled.
Then rushed out of the room.
I watched all of this in horror.
"Your Majesty," I tried hesitantly, "what exactly did youâ"
The King lifted his teacup calmly.
"Drink your own tea and stop asking questions."
I narrowed my eyes.
"...Did you just declare war on someone?"
He took a slow sip.
"If I did, they deserved it."
I internally screamed.
I had no idea what he just didâ
But something told me that the entire noble hierarchy was about to descend into chaos.
And somehow, it was my fault.
Again.
~~~
If I thought the King was terrifying when angryâ
Cassian was a completely different level of disaster.
Because the moment he found out about the letterâ
All hell broke loose.
I was walking down the palace halls when I suddenly heardâ
"THALIA!"
I turnedâ
Only to see Cassian barreling toward me like a man on a mission.
"WHAT IS THIS I HEAR ABOUT A THREAT?!" he demanded.
I flinched.
"...Who told you?"
"DOESN'T MATTER."
I swallowed nervously.
Cassian looked like he was one step away from declaring vengeance on my behalf.
And thenâ
He grabbed my shoulders.
"That's it," he declared. "I'm personally protecting you from now on."
I blinked.
"...Huh?"
Cassian turned to the nearest knight.
"Give me a sword."
The knight blinked. "...Sir, you already have one?"
"I NEED ANOTHER."
Cassian then spun back to me.
"From now on," he announced, "I shall be your shadow."
I stared.
"...Cassian, no."
"Cassian, YES."
And then, just when I thought things couldn't get worseâ
A familiar golden-eyed King appeared at the end of the hallway.
He raised an eyebrow.
Cassian immediately pointed at me.
"YOUR MAJESTY, YOUR MAID IS IN DANGER."
The King sighed deeply.
"...She is my maid, Cassian. I am already aware."
Cassian narrowed his eyes.
"Then why haven't you assigned her a personal guard?"
The King's lips twitched.
"...You wish to volunteer?"
Cassian puffed up proudly. "YES."
The King gave him a long, unreadable stare.
Then, after a momentâ
"No."
Cassian looked betrayed.
Sometimes I wonder how in the world Cassian became the Royal Physician.
~~~
After surviving the Cassian-King war, I finally had my day off.
And, of courseâ
Like an idiot, I decided to go out into the city alone.
I wasn't worried.
The capital was always busy, filled with people and knights.
I even visited my favorite market stalls, enjoying the fresh pastries.
For a few hoursâ
I felt completely normal.
Like I was just Thalia, a regular girl in the marketplace.
Not the King's maid.
Not the center of palace rumors.
Not the target of an unknown enemy.
But thenâ
I let my guard down.
And that was when they struck.
I was walking down a quieter street when it happened.
A sharp pain in my side.
A sudden pull from behind.
And thenâ
Darkness.
"Well, well."
"The King's little maid, all alone."
"Let's see how much he values you now."