Electra’s POV

Lying in bed with my head pressed against the pillow, I stared up at the ceiling of my room. My roommates were laughing a little too loudly for my liking, and usually, I would be bothered, but right now, I wasn’t because it didn’t even matter. None of it could distract me from the conversation I’d had earlier with Yuna and the way her words were replaying in my mind like a broken record.

I hated that she’d gotten under my skin, and I hated even more that she’d been right.

I sighed, turning over and pulling the thin blanket closer to my chest as if it could shield me from my thoughts. If—no, when—I went back to my real life as Electra Vale, everything Yuna had said would still hold true.

I’d made my stance clear in front of my parents and the council elders that I would not marry a man just because I was the crown princess of Elmeria. But deep down, I knew my words didn’t hold as much weight as I liked to pretend.

No matter how strong my convictions, there were realities I couldn’t escape. I was an only child, the last of the Vale bloodline aside from my father. When the time came for me to ascend the throne, there would be immense pressure to produce an heir.

Without one, the crown—the crown my family had fought to preserve for generations—would be at risk of slipping from our hands. The idea made my stomach churn, but it was a truth I couldn’t ignore.

I stared at the ceiling, letting my thoughts spiral further into territory I usually avoided. The notion of having a child for the sake of preserving a legacy disgusted me. It wasn’t just because I hated the idea of having children; it was also because of the principle of it all.

I didn’t want to be reduced to a vessel for ensuring my family’s claim to the throne, and yet, that was exactly what would happen if I went back to my life as Electra Vale.

I let out another sigh, pressing my palms against my eyes to block out the room. Typically, I wouldn’t even entertain these thoughts. I would dismiss them as irrelevant, problems for a distant future. But Yuna’s comment about Seraphina—not taking any girl seriously because she knew it wouldn’t last—had stuck with me.

And the more I thought about it, the more I began to wonder if that was what I’d been doing all along without even realizing it.

Had I been avoiding anything serious because, deep down, I knew there was no point?

Was that why I had always kept people at arm’s length? Was that why I had never let anyone get too close, never let myself feel too much? There were a lot of reasons why I didn’t involve myself with anything serious with anyone, but this was the first time it occurred to me that this could be another reason. A bigger one.

I’d always told myself that it was because I didn’t need anyone. Feelings were messy and complicated, and I had always prided myself on being above all that. People fell for me; I didn’t fall for them. That was the way it worked, and that was the way I liked it.

But now, lying here in the dark, I couldn’t help but wonder if there was more to it.

Had I been lying to myself all these years? Had I been avoiding love—not because I didn’t want it, but because I was afraid of what it would mean? Afraid that I’d become too vulnerable and also afraid of the inevitable heartbreak that would come from knowing it could never last?

The thought made my stomach twist uncomfortably, and I hated it.

The sound of my phone ringing shattered the stillness of my thoughts, making me jump. My heart skipped a beat, and I frowned, glancing at the screen. Who could possibly be calling me at this hour?

My surprise only deepened when I saw Seraphina’s name flashing on it, and my first thought was that something had gone wrong. Seraphina was supposed to be at the queen’s banquet right now, and as much as I didn’t want to admit it, I had been a little worried about how she would manage in my world.

If she was calling me now, it couldn’t be good.

Ignoring my roommates’ noise, I quickly got up and slipped out of the room, closing the door softly behind me. The last thing I needed was their nosy ears catching wind of this. As I made my way down the hallway, searching for a quiet, private spot, I hit the green button and brought the phone to my ear.

“What’s going on?” I asked. “Why are you calling me? Did something happen at the banquet?”

Seraphina’s voice came through, rushed and unusually tense. “Electra, calm down,” she said. “I need you to answer a question for me, and don’t dance around it—I just need a clear explanation.”

I frowned, now thoroughly confused. “What are you talking about?” I asked. “What question?”

There was a heavy sigh on the other end of the line, followed by a pause. Then, Seraphina spoke again. “Do you… have a brother?”

I froze mid-step, my brows furrowing as I tried to make sense of her question. “What?” I said, the word coming out more incredulous than I intended. “What kind of question is that? Of course I don’t have a brother! Where is this coming from?”

Seraphina sighed again, sounding more frustrated now. “That’s what I thought,” she said. “But then explain to me why a boy just introduced himself to me as Hunter Vale, your supposed elder brother.”

“What?” I repeated, louder this time. I started pacing the hallway, my mind racing. “What the hell are you talking about, Seraphina? I don’t have a brother, and there’s no such person as Hunter Vale!”

“Well,” Seraphina snapped, “you might want to rethink that, because this guy walked right up to me a while ago, introduced himself as my elder brother, and acted like we’ve known each other for years!”

My stomach twisted uneasily. This didn’t make any sense. I didn’t have a brother. That much I was certain of. My father had only ever had one child—me. There was no way some stranger could suddenly show up claiming to be my sibling. Unless…

“Are you sure it wasn’t some kind of mistake?” I asked cautiously. “Maybe he was just trying to mess with you or cause a scene.”

Seraphina let out a humorless laugh. “I thought about that,” she said. “But he knew too much, Electra. He knew things about you—well, me—that no stranger would know, and even though I didn’t know these things, from the explanation, I could tell he wasn’t lying. It was something about your childhood, and he even mentioned a secret only you could’ve told him.”

My throat went dry. “What kind of secret?” I asked hesitantly.

Seraphina hesitated for a moment before answering. “He mentioned the day you burned down the west garden when you were eight. According to him, you lied that it was an accident, but your father punished you severely for it.”

I stopped pacing, my heart pounding in my chest. There was no way this Hunter guy could know about that. It wasn’t something I talked about, not even with the closest people in my life. My father had made sure the incident was buried, both literally and figuratively.

“Are you still there?” Seraphina asked, her voice breaking through my thoughts.

“Yeah,” I said, my voice quieter now. “I’m here. I just… I don’t understand how this is possible. I don’t have a brother. I’ve never had a brother. My father never mentioned anything about another child.”

“Well, apparently, this Hunter Vale thinks otherwise,” Seraphina said dryly. “My conclusion now is Electra Vale might not have had a brother, but Seraphina Vale does, and I don’t know what this is supposed to mean for us.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep