RAEA’S POV.

I sit still, staring at my tutor on fantasy arts, pretending to pay rapt attention, I should’ve just stayed in the damn etiquette lesson room but no, I had to have been caught by Mrs bloody Peters and be forced to attend this one instead considering my etiquette tutor took a sick leave. I glance again at the wall clock wondering why the hell three minutes are this bloody long. Why the hell I’m being tired about fantasy creatures, their races, cultures and other sorts of bullshit is still beyond me. Everyone’s a damn human, there are no fairytales or fantasy creatures so I really don’t get the need for this. I’ve begged Mom but she says it’s important. Like learning about stupid fantasy creatures is important.

Language love. Thalia says in my head. Yes, I know, I don’t believe in fantasy and there are two voices in my head. Who call themselves Thalia and Lumen after my middle name and last name. I’m convinced I must be going insane. Cause no one has said anything about hearing voices in your head if they aren’t mentally disturbed which I’ve come to accept. I haven’t told anyone and I probably never will, I don’t wan spend the rest of my life in a psychiatric ward. I look towards the clock and it’s remaining a minute. I start the count down again grinning at my tutor now. She knows I hate this subject but she hates me too and loves any chance to torment me.

You broke a teacup on her daughter’s head!!! Thalia yells in my head.

She totally deserved it, she was bitching about me sleeping with Rowen. I mean he’s like my dad. Ughh I say and shiver a little.

I still say we should’ve thrown the whole jug at her. Lumen says.

You see, I say to Thalia, lumen gets it….

That’s cause she’s a psychopath. No offense li

None taken. And Rae, you might want to respond to your tutor now, she’s been trying to get you attention for a while.

Shit. Thanks. I look at Mrs. Peters whose smile has vanished, when she sees I’m finally paying her real attention she tries to smile back, yeah if looks could kill, I’d be dead 700 times over, pureed and then turned into putty with the way she’s glaring at me.

“My princess, I’ve been trying to get your attention for the past five minutes but it seems you were rather preoccupied with your thoughts.”

I smile back graciously. “My apologies Mrs peters, I was thinking about the uhm, the order of the mate stage and the whole mate topic.”

“Yes, it’s a rather interesting topic, seeing as you have such interest in it, I want you to do your thorough research on it and—”

“I don’t think that’s necessary, I’m completely fine with just listening to you talking, besides that seems like extra work on you—”

“Princess, please I insist.” She says smiling smugly now.

“Of course, I’ll see you next tomorrow then.”

She smiles again and curtsies low. “My Princess.” And then leaves without waiting for my acknowledgement. I glare at the back of her head till she passes through the door.

I want to bash her face in. Graghhh

To be honest, you kinda walked right into that one.

No one asked you Thalia!

I have some suggestions….

Nevermind ladies, thanks though. I say and project a smile to my mind. I know, what you’re thinking, but since I am already insane why not indulge in it?

I look back to the door and get up, the good thing is I’ve got no other classes for the day! I open the doors without waiting for Rowen, Elias or Kai. I start running hearing heavy footsteps after me and my name being yelled.

I look back, giving them thumbs up and flying kisses, they glare at me while kai winks and nods at something ahead of me which I just figured out was a vase, that I’ve knocked over.

“Oops.” I don’t stop running though, they’ll catch me soon enough and I need to get to the kitchen before then.

I run down another set of stair and turn left, running into the kitchen, and stopping. I see the head cook Madame Louvre, who we all call mama, scolding Pippa.

I shake my head grinning, my youngest personal maid and trouble are like magnets and metals. I stealthily walk up behind mama and wrap her in a behind bear hug.

She turns to me smiling then turns to me. That’s when the guys finally reach me.

I turn to them first smirking while they try to control their breathing. “Slow pokes.”

Mama shakes her head turning to them scowling . “How many times have I told you to not come running into the kitchen?”

“We were chasing after Raea. She ran in here first!” Kai argues.

I turn to them grinning in a way mama doesn’t see and then back to her giving her my most innocent expression.

“Did I run in here mama?”

“No she didn’t, but you boys did.”

Mama turns back to glare at the boys, who have all controlled their breaths now. Rowan, my oldest guard is glaring at me, but in a soft fond way. Elian, is as still and as silent as ever, staring at the laid out freshly baked pastries on the center table like he expects it to grow into a monster and attack us. Kai on the other hand still doesn’t seem to want to give up.

“We were chasing her. She suddenly ran out of her lesson room like she was possessed and we had to run to catch up.”

“Not true, I walked here. Pippa, did you see me running in?”

She smirks at kai and nods negatively.

I’m about to gloat more when Lyra, my first maid and best friend runs in, mam turns to glare at her, about to speak when Lyra beat her to it.

“Princess, Her majesty and his highness request your immediate presence in the throne room.”

“Alright, thanks Lyra.” I turn to the rest and nod. They all fall into line behind me and we start heading to the throne room.

RAEA’S POV

I came to a halt outside the towering, gold-trimmed double doors of the throne room. Nodding to the armored royal guards flanking either side of the entrance, I watched as they pushed the heavy oak doors open with a low, echoing groan. The court announcer’s voice boomed through the high arched ceilings, officially declaring my presence to my parents, the King and Queen of Asteria. I turned back to my friends, offering them a quick, reassuring smile, before stepping into the room alone.

Usually, the throne room was a massive, intimidating expanse of polished white marble, completely empty and bare except for the grand dais and the two thrones at the far end. Today, however, it looked entirely different.

Right in the center of the room sat an enormous, dark mahogany table, surrounded by a crowd of people. I stared at it, my brain momentarily sidetracked as I wondered how on earth they had managed to get that gargantuan piece of furniture in here. It was easily three times the width of the doorways. How many guards did it take to carry it? Did they have to take the doors off the hinges? Or did they assemble it piece by piece inside like some twisted, giant puzzle?

I shook my head to clear the useless thoughts and focused on the room again. As I approached the dais, my boots clicking softly against the marble, I reached my mother and father’s side. I sank into a smooth, practiced curtsy.

Immediately, every single person at the long table stood up in unison. A resounding chorus of *”My princess”* echoed through the chamber as they bowed and curtsied back to me before sliding back into their seats.

I gave them a small, polite nod of acknowledgment and took my seat at the right side of my father. My mother sat directly opposite me on his left—which I had been taught was the traditional place for queens—with my dad sitting regally at the head of the table.

“Astraea,” my father said, his stern face softening as he offered me a loving, incredibly fond smile. But the warmth was short-lived. He straightened his posture, his expression growing serious as the smile faded from his face. He cleared his throat, looking around the crowded room before his gaze settled back on me.

“These,” he began, gesturing with a broad hand toward the people seated around the table—sixteen of them in total, dressed in stiff, foreign, and painfully elaborate regalia—“are the ambassadors of the other kingdoms, and their assistants. Well, except the huma—I mean, Elaris…”

He cut himself off quickly, a brief look of panic crossing his features. He glanced nervously at my mother, subtly gesturing for her to take over the explanation.

My mother shot him a sharp, warning glare that could have melted stone.

“Love,” Mom picked up smoothly, her voice calm and carrying that effortless royal grace, “they are here for a very important matter. It is actually a tradition of sorts, one that has been carried out for more than four thousand years.” She paused, her eyes flitting back to my father.

My dad let out a low, heavy groan, rubbing his temples.

A cold knot of dread began to tighten in my stomach. I was officially terrified of whatever was about to happen. My parents were never the type to hesitate or pause like this unless they were absolutely certain I was going to completely lose my mind over the news.

“Okay…” I said, my voice wavering slightly. “Can you guys just continue, please? You’re going to make me spiral.”

My dad nodded, his expression somber. “Alright, baby. So, this tradition is the result of what the other kingdoms believe is a curse. The royal families of the other kingdoms cannot bear daughters. And our kingdom, Asteria, cannot bear sons. Our bloodline has only ever birthed daughters, while theirs have only ever birthed sons.”

*Holy shit…*

The knot in my stomach tightened further. I had a really, really bad feeling about where this was going.

“Oh,” I stammered, trying to sound diplomatic. “That’s… uh, sad?”

Mom continued, leaning forward slightly. “Because of this, every daughter of our kingdom is highly sought after. When they turn twenty—just before their twenty-first birthday—the other kingdoms arrive for what is known as…”

“The Princess Trials,” Dad finished smoothly, cutting straight to the chase. “In these trials, the princess chooses a massive, challenging quest for the suitors of the other kingdoms to complete, along with a specific deadline. Whoever completes the quest first, before the time runs out, wins. They will become the next king. Meaning… they will be your husband.”

My heart stopped. “Wait, what?!!! No, you’re joking—”

“No, love, it’s the absolute truth,” Mom interrupted, her voice infuriatingly calm. “It is how your father and I met. It is how your grandmother met your grandfather, and it is how you and your sisters will find your matches. There are eight suitors in total, excluding Elaris, as they prefer to keep to themselves. You will have dinner with all eight, and from there, you will select five suitable candidates. Those five will then compete for your hand in whatever trial you choose to set.”

“And,” Dad quickly cut in, seeing that I was taking a deep breath to start screaming, “they will be arriving tomorrow. You will meet the suitors then, and the interviews will begin. The day after tomorrow, you will formally state the trial and set the deadline. And then, we wait.”

They both stopped talking, watching me with cautious, worried eyes. I looked around the room, feeling the heavy gaze of all sixteen ambassadors staring at me, dissecting my every reaction.

*Okay, Thaea, breathe,* I told myself, using my nickname to try and ground my racing thoughts. *Now is absolutely not the time to completely lose your shit.*

“How is it that I’ve never heard a single word about this until today?” I demanded. My chest heaved as I tried to keep my voice in its polished “princess” tone, but the sheer panic took over, and I ended up practically yelling by the end of the sentence. “And why am I only hearing about it *now*??? When it literally begins tomorrow?!”

“This is how it has always been done, baby. I’m so sorry—” Dad started, his eyes filled with genuine apology, but I had already reached my limit.

“Yeah, sure, it’s no problem!” I snapped, my voice dripping with sarcasm. “I basically have no choice but to go along with this, right? I just have to marry some random stranger I don’t love? Someone I’ve never even met in my entire life?”

As my words echoed through the silent room, I heard quiet whispers and stifled snickers break out among some of the ambassadors. My dad cleared his throat aggressively, preparing to reprimand them and speak to me, but Mom beat him to it.

“It is how your father and I met, Astraea,” she said softly, her eyes pleading with me to understand. “I promise you, the love will grow, and everything will be okay—”

“No!” I interrupted, unable to listen to any more reassurances.

I violently pushed my chair back. The heavy wood screeched loudly against the marble floor as I stood up. The sudden movement startled the ambassadors, forcing them to quickly stand out of respect as well. I offered my parents and the room a tense, incredibly brief curtsy, turned on my heel, and began marching across the vast room toward the double doors.

“Baby, we have to finish discussing this—” Dad called out.

“Love, please don’t just leave like this—” Mom pleaded.

I didn’t stop. I pushed past the guards, who quickly closed the heavy wooden doors behind me, cutting off my parents’ voices.

I stood in the quiet hallway, looking at my small entourage. Rowan, Elias, Kai, and Lyra were all watching me with deep, questioning concern written all over their faces. Without a word, I broke into a run, heading straight for the safety of my bedroom. This time, they followed close on my heels, their footsteps quiet and synchronized.

The moment I burst into my room, I threw myself onto the bed, burying my face in the pillows. Seconds later, a soft, hesitant knock sounded at my door.

“Raea, are you okay? Can we come in?” Lyra’s voice was gentle through the wood.

I wanted to say yes. I wanted to scream, to cry, to talk to someone who wasn’t just my own racing thoughts—even though Thalia and Lumen had been completely, strangely silent through this entire nightmare. I couldn’t even talk to my sisters about this yet. I wanted to open the door so badly, but when I finally forced my mouth to move, a different answer came out.

“I think… I just want to be left alone for a while. Don’t worry, I just need to get some sleep.”

“A, you know you can trust us,” Kai’s voice came through, uncharacteristically serious and soft. “You don’t have to carry this alone.”

“It’s alright, really, I promise,” I called back, trying to keep my voice steady. “I’ll just sleep for a bit and tell you all about it later.”

I heard the quiet rustle of clothes, some hushed whispering outside the door, and then the soft sound of their footsteps retreating until the hallway fell silent.

I rolled onto my back and stared up at the canopy of my bed, my mind frantically replaying every single word my parents had just dropped on me.

So. It seemed I was about to be forced into a marriage.

*No,* I thought, a sudden, fierce spark of rebellion igniting in my chest. *I won’t let them do this. I have to find a trial so impossibly hard, so absolutely dangerous and grueling, that none of them will ever be able to complete it. And then, I will marry for love.*

RAEA’S POV

I woke up groggily, the heavy fog of sleep clinging to my brain as I rolled across the vast mattress to the side table on the far side of my queen-sized bed. Pushing the tangled silk bedsheets off my legs, I reached out and grabbed my phone. The screen lit up, casting a sharp glare in the dimming room. I blinked at the digital clock. It was nearly evening, the golden hour bleeding into a dusty, amber twilight outside my tall arched windows.

I sat up, arching my back in a long, satisfying stretch that made my spine pop. After sliding out of bed, I padded over to the en-suite bathroom. I quickly combed through my wild, sleep-mussed hair, splashed cold water on my face to shock myself awake, and then opened my bedroom door to call my inner circle inside.

By “everyone,” I meant my absolute lifelines: Lyra, Pippa, Kai, Rowan, and Elias.

When they filed in, I gestured toward the plush velvet armchairs and the edges of my unmade bed, telling them to sit down. The air in the room shifted, growing thick with curiosity. I took a deep breath. The news I had to tell them was massive.

I laid out the entire afternoon, recounting every single detail of the baffling conversation in the throne room with my parents. As I spoke, the reactions around the room were priceless. Pippa, Kai, and Lyra looked completely stunned, though in totally different ways—Pippa’s jaw practically hit the floor, Kai sat up straight with his eyes narrowed in sudden calculation, and Lyra looked genuinely worried.

I turned my gaze to Rowan, raising my eyebrows in a silent question. I purposefully bypassed Elias. To be completely honest, I wasn’t expecting any visual reaction from him anyway. So far, in the entire time I’d known him, the man possessed exactly three facial expressions. He had spoken maybe a hundred words to me in total—which, according to the palace staff, was actually a historic record.

“Well, Princess,” Rowan began, his deep, gravelly voice breaking the silence. He leaned back, crossing his thick arms over his chest. “I’ve been a guard in this palace ever since I started working here at seventeen. It’s been twenty years now…”

He was suddenly cut off by a loud snort from Kai.

“What?! Wait, you’re only thirty-seven?” Kai interrupted, his eyes wide with mock disbelief. “I swear to God, I thought you were at least forty-five with the grueling way you carry yourself.”

The entire room—including me, but excluding Elias—burst into a fit of laughter. I glanced over at Elias and actually caught a fleeting, incredibly rare sight: the very corner of his mouth twitched upward in a slight raise of his lips.

Rowan, meanwhile, leveled a deadly, soul-crushing glare at Kai.

“Oh, come on,” Kai chuckled, raising his hands in mock surrender, his signature smug grin plastered across his face. “Everyone in this room was thinking it. I’m just the only soul brave enough to say it out loud.”

We all rolled our eyes in unison while Rowan cleared his throat aggressively, trying to steer the conversation back on track. “As I was saying… because of my time here, I managed to hear about the tradition from the older guards who served before me, back when the King and Queen were first wed.”

I nodded slowly, the lingering laughter dying down as I sat back on the edge of my bed. My smile slipped away, replaced by the heavy reality of the situation. Sensing my shift in mood, Lyra moved to my right side and slid onto the mattress, while Pippa quietly took a spot on my left.

“Hey,” Lyra said softly, placing a comforting hand on my arm. “It’s going to be okay, alright?”

I offered her a tight smile and nodded. “Yes, it will be. Because I actually have a plan. Two plans, actually, and I’m going to need all your help to pull them off.” I leaned forward, looking every single one of them dead in the eye. “Though, to be fair, I am completely certain that only Pippa and Kai are going to agree with the second one…”

Kai smirked, leaning back against the wall with his arms crossed. “Yes, baby. I always knew I was your favorite.”

I rolled my eyes. Before Kai could gloat any further, Rowan’s elbow found its way sharply into his ribs. Kai let out a quiet groan, his smirk instantly vanishing as he clutched his side.

“Well then, let’s hear it!” Pippa urged, practically vibrating with excitement.

I nodded, laying out the first part. “Alright, so I was trying to think of what to choose for my trials, and I’ve got absolutely nothing. But I want to set a task so ridiculously, impossibly hard that within the two-week deadline I’m giving them, not a single suitor will be able to complete it. That way, when they all fail, I can marry whoever the hell I actually want.” I paused, looking around the circle for feedback.

Almost everyone opened their mouths to object or offer counterpoints—except Elias, who remained as still as a shadow—but Rowan’s booming voice beat them to it.

“Unfortunately, Princess, we cannot help you brainstorm,” Rowan said, his tone firm but sympathetic. “The ancient rules of the Princess Trials are very specific. Only a princess of the bloodline is permitted to pitch ideas or draft the quest…”

My shoulders slumped, a heavy sigh escaping my lips as I deflated.

“Although,” Rowan continued, a sudden glint of mischief in his weathered eyes that made me snap my head up with renewed hope, “…the key word in that rule is *Princess*.”

I stared at him, thinking over his words for a split second before the realization hit me. I leaped off the bed, squealing and scaring Pippa, who jumped slightly. I laughed, doing a ridiculous, triumphant little happy dance on the plush carpet.

“Of course! Eliana! Why didn’t I think of her?”

Lyra nodded, a fond smile breaking across her face. “Of course. If anyone in this palace is going to have the exact, ridiculously complex ideas you need, it’s going to be that bookworm of a little sister of yours.”

I beamed, feeling a massive weight lift from my chest as I sank back onto the mattress.

“Okay…” Kai slowly piped up, his eyes darting between me and Pippa. He raised a single dark eyebrow. “So what’s this highly controversial second plan you mentioned?”

Before I could even open my mouth to explain, Pippa beat me to the punch. A wicked, knowing smirk spread across her face, and she began bouncing in her spot on the bed like an overcaffeinated bunny.

“Let me guess,” Pippa purred, her eyes sparkling. “This little matter is about your V-card, isn’t it?”

A collective sound of coughing and choking erupted from the boys. Even Elias, who usually looked like he didn’t possess lungs, let out a sharp, choked cough. Lyra’s face turned bright red, looking at Pippa as if she had just uttered the most scandalous profanity in the history of the royal court—which, to be fair, she basically had.

“What???!!!!!!” the boys choked out in unison, desperately trying to recover their composure.

Pippa ignored them entirely, turning her attention to the rest of us. “I mean, think about it! It’s completely obvious. Astraea has never even had her first kiss, let alone sex, and now there’s sudden talk of an arranged marriage to some random guy she doesn’t even know. That is literally the first thing anyone in her shoes would be worrying about right now!”

“Uh, I am pretty sure *I* wouldn’t be thinking about that,” Lyra muttered under her breath, her cheeks still burning.

“That’s because you’re not a normal female, Lyra!” Pippa scoffed. She rolled over, lying flat on her stomach on my bed and propping her chin up in her hands, looking up at me with a massive, eager grin. “So, what’s the play, Rae?”

“No, Princess. Absolutely not. We are not helping you with whatever *that* is!” Rowan barked, his face darkening with protective panic. Next to him, Elias and Lyra both nodded in firm, silent agreement.

“Tch, speak for yourself, old man,” Kai chimed in, a wicked grin returning to his face. “A, I am one hundred percent on board with this.”

Rowan snapped his head around, glaring daggers at Kai.

I looked between the disapproving trio—Rowan, Elias, and Lyra—and let out a heavy sigh. “You see? That’s exactly why I said only Pippa and Kai would agree with me. Come on, guys, please. You have to help me with this,” I pleaded, turning on the charm and flashing them my absolute best, most devastating puppy-dog eyes.

I watched closely, catching the exact, hilarious millisecond where Lyra’s resolve completely shattered.

She let out a defeated groan. “I suppose… I could quietly find and arrange a suitable, trustworthy gentleman from the city. And then, of course, pay him a small fortune and threaten his entire lineage if he ever breathes a word of it.”

“Honestly, it’s not like any guy in his right mind would need to be paid to sleep with Raea anyway. They’d jump at the chance,” Pippa pointed out.

“And Elias and I can map out the absolute best patrol routes to sneak you out of the palace gates and back in without raising a single alarm,” Kai offered, nudging Elias, who merely stared back at him with a look of quiet resignation.

Rowan looked around the room, glaring at each of us as the conspiracy took hold. “No! We cannot do this! Do you have any idea what the King and Queen will do to us—to our heads—when they find out?”

“That’s *if* they find out, Rowan. And they never, ever will! Come on, pleaseeeeeeee,” I dragged out the plea, practically begging.

“Besides, it’s not like those royal suitors arriving tomorrow are going to be virgins themselves,” Pippa added logically.

“Exactly!” I yelled, pointing at her. “So come on, Rowan!”

Rowan looked at me, then at the rest of the eager faces in the room. He let out a long, tortured sigh, rubbing the back of his neck. “Fine!” he snapped.

“Yessssssssss!!!” I cheered, throwing my hands in the air. I turned back to the group, my heart racing with a sudden rush of adrenaline. “Okay, we need to start planning right now. Remember, it has to happen *tonight*!”

Immediately, the room erupted into chaotic, simultaneous chatter. Everyone started talking over each other—debating which gentleman would be the safest choice, which high-end hotel in the city would offer the most privacy, who would act as the visual decoy in my bed, and what our cover story would be if my parents called for me.

As their voices blurred together, I slowly zoned out, staring at the floor with a dazed, giddy smile.

*I actually have a really good feeling about this,* Thalia’s voice chimed in, sounding unusually light.

*And for the very first time in my life, Thalia, I completely agree with you,* I replied in my head, sending a warm, mental smile her way.

*I have a horribly bad feeling about this,* Lumen groaned from the back of my mind.

*You literally have a bad feeling about everything, Lu,* I countered mentally, rolling my eyes and scoffing.

By the time the group finished coordinating the logistics and filed out of the room to set the plan in motion, only Pippa remained behind. She closed the heavy bedroom door and turned to me, her eyes gleaming with a manic, sisterly energy.

“Alright, now we need to get you properly made up, and I have a serious amount of wisdom to impart on you,” Pippa declared, grabbing my hands and hauling me off the bed. “You need a hot bath, some gorgeous lingerie, and a nightgown that will make the lucky bastard absolutely salivate the second he sees you. Let’s go, move it! Into the bath!” She began dragging me toward the adjoining bathroom.

I rolled my eyes, though a nervous chuckle escaped me. “Aren’t you supposed to be nineteen?”

“Yeah, and I have an incredibly active, highly successful sex life,” Pippa shot back, beaming proudly. “So there is literally no better teacher in this castle than me. Unless, of course, you want Kai to be the one explaining sex positions and anatomy to you?”

I paused, a violent, full-body shiver running down my spine as my brain briefly tried to picture Kai giving me “the talk.”

“Nope,” I said quickly, shaking my head to erase the mental image. “You seem like an absolutely perfect option.”

Pippa beamed, her grin widening. “I thought as much.”