Third-person POV

Electra finally pieced it together. The reason the name Aurelian had been gnawing at the edges of her mind, and the reason something felt off the moment she stepped into this estate—it was because this was Iris’s home, and Aurelian was her last name.

She figured that her brain must have been trying to give her a heads-up, and the realization nearly made her laugh out loud.

Of all the things that could have happened, of all the people she could have run into, it had to be her. The same Iris she had met in that reality, and the same one who had been quiet, and almost fragile, but deep down, pretentious.

She schooled her features into indifference, though she could feel Seraphina shifting beside her, barely containing her own surprise.

Seraphina, clearly struggling to process the situation, was about to blurt something out—Electra could tell by the way her lips parted, the slight widening of her eyes. ‘That’s Iris, right?’ was probably what she was going to say.

Electra swiftly nudged her, a quick but firm motion against her side, silently warning her to shut up.

Seraphina immediately snapped her mouth shut, her brain catching up to what Electra had just realized—they weren’t supposed to know who Iris was in this reality. It would be way too strange for her to suddenly recognize a girl she was supposed to have never seen before, and the last thing they needed was to be seen as creeps.

General Aurelian, who had been watching the entire interaction with an assessing gaze, finally spoke.

“This is Princess Electra of Elmeria and her… friend,” he said, voice clipped, making it painfully obvious he didn’t know—or care to know—Seraphina’s name. “Iris, you should pay your respects.”

Electra’s eyes flickered to Iris just in time to catch the slight tension in her shoulders.

For a brief second, it was almost imperceptible—the stiffening of her spine, and the way her fingers twitched slightly, as if she had to physically force herself to comply.

Then, with practiced precision, Iris lowered her head in a bow, but Electra saw it—the reluctance.

She wasn’t sure what was more interesting—the fact that Iris clearly hated bowing to her, or the fact that this Iris was nothing like the shy, soft-spoken girl from the other reality, at least, at first glance.

Electra had seen that Iris, had watched her hesitate, cower slightly in the presence of people she wasn’t very familiar with, had even—at one point—found it amusing, but this Iris?

She was nothing like that.

There was no hesitation in her movements, no nervous glances, and definitely no uncertainty. Even in her reluctance, she carried herself with an air of rebellion.

Electra smirked slightly, tilting her head as she studied the girl in front of her. Interesting.

Seraphina, standing rigidly beside her, clearly didn’t know what to do. She was probably trying to reconcile the Iris from their shared vision with the sharp-eyed, and mean looking poised girl standing before them now.

The differences were stark.

Electra, on the other hand, was already intrigued.

“You can lift your head now,” she said smoothly, watching as Iris did so immediately, though the flicker of irritation in her blue eyes did not go unnoticed.

Electra bit back a smirk. This is going to be fun.

“So,” Electra continued, still holding Iris’s gaze, “you’re General Aurelian’s daughter.”

Iris tilted her head slightly, her expression unreadable. “That’s correct, Your Highness.”

Electra hummed in response. Still formal, still polite, but there’s a bite underneath it. She liked it.

“So what exactly is the princess of Elmeria doing here?” Iris asked, her tone deceptively neutral, but Electra could hear the undertones of suspicion.

Before Electra could respond, General Aurelian interjected. “That’s none of your concern, Iris.”

Iris turned to him, and for a moment, Electra swore she saw something flash in her blue eyes—something almost challenging, but it was gone as quickly as it came, and she merely gave a short nod. “Of course, Father.”

Electra’s smirk grew. “There’s no need to keep the reason for my visit from your daughter, general. It’s no secret that I’m here to see my uncle, Hunter Vale.”

As soon as Electra mentioned Hunter’s name, she studied Iris carefully, searching for any flicker of emotion at the mention of his name.

The last time she had seen Iris—well, not this Iris, but the version of her from that alternate reality—she had been practically glowing as she spoke about her relationship with Hunter, and even about how she would one day be crowned as his queen.

That Iris had been naïve, hopeful, even desperate in her belief that she belonged beside him, but to her surprise, this Iris didn’t even flinch at the mention of Hunter’s name.

Her expression remained neutral, betraying nothing. If she had any connection to Hunter at all, she certainly wasn’t showing it.

Electra kept her smile in place, but internally filed away the lack of reaction as another mystery to unravel.

“I see,” Iris finally said, her tone unreadable. “So, you’ve met with Prince Hunter.”

Electra didn’t miss how she refrained from referring to Hunter as her uncle, even though she had just called him that.

She smirked, her eyes narrowing ever so slightly. “Yes, I have.”

Iris tilted her head slightly, a polite smile on her lips. “And how did you find him, Your Highness?”

Electra almost laughed at the question. It was so carefully worded, and so neatly wrapped up in false politeness.

“I found him to be entertaining,” Electra replied smoothly. “Not particularly impressive, but entertaining nonetheless.”

She saw it then—a flicker. A barely there twitch of Iris’s fingers, the way her smile seemed just a little too forced for a moment before she recovered.

Interesting.

So, this Iris wasn’t as detached as she pretended to be.

Seraphina, who had been silent until now, shifted slightly beside Electra, clearly sensing the tension between them.

General Aurelian, perhaps noticing the subtle exchange, cleared his throat and stepped forward slightly, subtly placing himself between Iris and Electra.

“I trust your meeting with His Highness was productive?” the General asked, his voice calm.

Electra turned her gaze back to him, allowing her smirk to fully take shape now. “Oh, quite productive,” she said. “I learned everything I needed to know.”

Another flicker—this time from the General himself. It was brief, but Electra caught it.

Iris, however, remained perfectly composed once more, as if she had reset herself after the initial slip.

Electra had a sudden realization then—there was something going on here between Iris and Hunter, and whatever it was, it had to mean Iris would be a problem for her.

How and why? That was a question Electra intended to answer.

“Well,” General Aurelian said, his tone lighter now, as if signaling the end of the conversation. “I do hope you enjoy your time in Valternor, Your Highness. It is not often we get important visitors from Elmeria.”

Electra’s smile didn’t waver. “I’m sure I will. Thank you for your hospitality, General.”

She then turned to Iris, tilting her head slightly. “And it was lovely meeting you, Lady Iris.”

Iris bowed her head slightly, her expression unreadable once again. “The pleasure was mine, Princess.”

As Electra and Seraphina turned to leave, Electra could still feel Iris’s gaze on her back, and she could only smirk to herself.

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