“How is she, Doc?” Timothy asked the doctor he had called when Claire fainted. “I can see that she has recovered her memories now, but it may cause her some headaches since it’s been years since she lost them. These are her childhood memories, right?” The man nodded in response to the doctor’s question. “She’ll have a lot of questions, especially if her memories aren’t pleasant, so if possible, please guide her.” “Yes, Doc, I’ll take care of her,” the doctor said as he gathered his things. “I still advise bringing her to the hospital to check if any brain functions were affected by the sudden return of her memories.” “Alright, Doc.” After the doctor left, Timothy let out a deep sigh and sat beside Claire. “Claire, I hope you can accept everything. I know what happened in the past wasn’t good, but you’ll always be our princess—remember that.” Just as he finished speaking, he was startled when Claire suddenly woke up, sitting up in tears. “Kuya Clark!” “Claire! Clair
“I’m always by your side, Claire. Once a month, I come here to the Philippines to visit you and Mama,” The siblings sat side by side in front of their mother’s grave. After their reunion, they decided to talk in front of their mother while Timothy kept watch nearby—after all, he was accompanying two nobles, especially since the future King was present. “Always? Did Mama know about this?” Claire asked in surprise, to which Clark nodded. “She knew, Claire. I was the first to find you, and I kept it a secret from everyone, just as Mama instructed. You’re not at fault, Claire. Mama didn’t leave us without a reason—she had a purpose.” Claire frowned at her brother’s words while fidgeting with her hands. “A reason? What reason, Kuya Clark?” At her question, Clark turned to face her, his expression serious. “Your life was in danger, Claire. Remember those who kidnapped me? They were hunting you. And Mama… Mama didn’t die in a car accident." Claire froze at his words, a sudden fear
But in doing so, I failed to notice that I was leaving you behind. Do you know that when you were born, I never left your side? From the very beginning, I knew you were the kind of girl who wouldn’t hurt a fly—and I wasn’t wrong. During every training session, I watched over you. I told your brother to push you harder because I didn’t want your kindness to be your downfall one day. When you saved your brother, I saw your strength—how you inherited my stubbornness, the very thing your father hated about me. I saw your determination, Claire. I hid you because I didn’t want you to get hurt. You lost your memories, but I was certain they would return once you met the people from your past. I’m no longer afraid for your safety, Claire, because many will protect you now—especially Zekiel. I’ve met Zekiel, my child, and he is a good father to your children. Don’t be afraid to show him who and what you truly are—because he will be the first to accept you. Remember that. When the day com
After Zekiel and Zayne talked, Zekiel brought his son to his room and put him to sleep. He promised Zayne that he would save Claire, so he didn’t sleep that night and did everything he could to find a clue about the young woman. Zekiel sat at his desk, thinking of ways to make the search easier. He froze when he saw the CCTV monitor in front of him, suddenly realizing he could check who was with the woman. “I never let Venice go out without a bodyguard,” Zekiel muttered to himself, remembering that they had questioned the guards, but they claimed they hadn’t noticed anyone suspicious with Claire. “Impossible,” Zekiel said, immediately fiddling with the computer to pull up the CCTV footage from that night. A moment later, he saw Claire leaving, with his son chasing after her. But what caught his attention was the driver accompanying her. He quickly searched the master list of his employees and found the man’s name. He tried calling the man, but he couldn’t reach him, so he im
“I know you’re pregnant, Claire. You’re pregnant with your third child, aren’t you?” Claire froze mid-bite at her brother Clark’s words, forcing a smile as she looked at him. “So you knew, Kuya,” she replied awkwardly, her smile strained. He nodded in response. “Of course, I know. I’ve been watching over you—even Zayne.” Claire was shocked by his words. “I’ve already met your son, Zayne. Out of the twins, he’s the most mischievous but also smart, just like you. When I introduced myself to him before, he even mocked me,” Clark said with a frown, recalling his encounter with his nephew. “How, Kuya?” Claire asked in disbelief. “Whenever I come here, I don’t stay long. Once, I followed Zayne, and he caught me. I thought he’d call for help since I was tailing him, but he didn’t. Instead, he asked if I wasn’t hot in what I was wearing. That kid is something else—he looks fragile but is actually strong. I tried to take him with me, but he knocked me down in an instant. He’s just li
“Let’s go see Kiel!” Bea said, to which Hero and Dylan nodded in agreement. “Y-yes, we should go see her,” Zekiel muttered absentmindedly, immediately standing up. Zayne smiled at this and waited for his father. “Son, you lead the way, okay?” Zekiel told the boy, who nodded and took his father’s hand. They walked out of the office together, but as soon as the door opened, they were met with Claire’s face. Silence enveloped the room. Claire was about to knock again, thinking no one would let her in. “U-uh, hi?” the young woman said awkwardly, only to be shocked when Zekiel suddenly pulled her into a tight embrace. She wouldn’t admit it, but she had missed his presence. Even though she was angry at him because of what she had seen the last time they met, she couldn’t deny that she had longed for him. “D-don’t do that again, please,” Zekiel whispered quietly, tears streaming down his face—something Claire hadn’t expected at all. She pulled away slightly and looked at him, c
(Scene before Zoey and the others arrive in the Philippines) “WHAT?! Don’t joke like that—that’s not true!” Quinn’s voice trembled on the phone, tears welling up as she processed the news she had just heard. “Just read my email,” the person on the other end replied before abruptly hanging up. Without hesitation, Quinn grabbed her laptop and frantically searched for the email. Unbeknownst to her, Zoey had been standing there the whole time, eavesdropping. The child hadn’t meant to listen, but upon hearing her mother’s name, she froze in place. The moment Quinn opened the email, tears streamed down her face. It was a news article about Zekiel searching for a woman named Venice Sanchez. “Auntie, what happened to Mommy?” Quinn jolted at the voice, spinning around to find Zoey behind her. She quickly shut her laptop and wiped her tears. “N-Nothing’s wrong, your mom’s fine,” she stammered, but Zoey shook her head. “Auntie, I heard everything. But I need to be sure. Please
“W-What lie, Zoey?” she asked the child in shock. “They tricked me, Auntie! Mommy said she had work, but she’s here with Daddy! And she didn’t even introduce me! And I thought she was in an accident, Auntie?!” “I-I thought so too,” she answered the child in confusion. “A-AND Kuya! No wonder he didn’t want to introduce me to Daddy—because they don’t want me to be part of the family!” Quinn was stunned by this and stared in disbelief. “H-How did you meet Zayne?” At Quinn’s question, Zoey froze mid-sob. “You knew.” “Huh?” “You knew, Auntie! You knew Mommy was here! You knew they were together! You knew I have a twin!” Quinn couldn’t respond to Zoey’s words, making the child cry even harder. “Y-You’re all liars!” Zoey covered her face, causing Quinn to bow her head and let the child cry. But she was startled when, moments later, she heard the child struggling to breathe. “Zoey?” “A-Auntie, I can’t breathe…” Panicked, Quinn quickly grabbed a bottle of water and made h
“No, YOU are being rude.” The man suddenly sat back down at her words, and the room fell silent. “May I remind all of you? We hired you to be the BALANCERS of this country, not the RULERS. WE are the rulers, and YOU are the balancers. So you have NO right to decide whether to accept me or my late mother as Princess and Queen of this country!” Claire held her head high as she spoke, leaving them speechless. Timothy grinned widely, almost clapping at his friend’s words. “I, the Princess of Spain, declare that the current council will be REPLACED with a new one!” Everyone stood up in protest, but Timothy acted swiftly, slamming his long gun on the table, silencing them. “The princess has given an order, so you MUST obey. Royal blood can make decisions without consulting the king.” Claire smiled as she saw the defeated looks on the men’s faces, then glanced at Timothy, who nodded back. Finally, she had avenged her mother. ’Mama, I know this is what you wanted. We miss you so
Breaking News: After a decade and a half of searching for the Queen and Princess of Spain, they have finally been found. Unfortunately, the Queen has passed away, and only the Princess, Princess Claire, has survived. Reports have also spread that the two royals had been staying in the Philippines, where they lived as ordinary citizens. --- Zekiel turned off the TV after seeing the news. A few days had passed since Timothy went with him to retrieve the body of the late Queen. He desperately wanted to see Claire, but he couldn’t—he had no right to ask about her. Especially now that she was known worldwide, with the strange circumstances surrounding her and her mother spreading everywhere. “Daddy!” He turned to the door and saw the twins running toward him. “Is there any news about Mommy yet?” Zoey asked with a hopeful smile. “Not yet, sweetheart,” Zekiel replied sadly. “Don’t worry, Daddy! Mommy will come back! Uncle Clark promised us!” Zoey said cheerfully. “Zoey’s ri
He was Timothy’s father and Kaithy’s husband. The right hand of the King, his own father. He was the one who taught them how to fight back then, so he could never forget the man—he had played such a huge part in his life. “I miss you so much, Tito!” She pulled away from the hug, and the man held her cheeks. “I couldn’t believe you’d grow up into such a beautiful lady.” Claire smiled even wider at his words. “Mama took good care of me, Tito.” The man’s smile faded at what she said. “I’m sorry about your mother.” “It’s okay, Tito. I’ve accepted it. It’s Papa I’m worried about.” Timothy’s father understood Tagalog but couldn’t speak it fluently since he didn’t grow up in the Philippines, unlike his wife and son, who had spent many years there. “I’ll go ahead now, Tito. I’ll see you later.” She smiled at him, and the man nodded. The news of the princess’s arrival spread quickly throughout the palace, and many wanted to catch a glimpse of her. Some even secretly positioned
Clark bowed his head at her question. “The doctor said your body is completely exhausted, especially after you were hit by a bullet in the shoulder,” Claire touched her shoulder but felt no pain there. No wonder it didn’t hurt—she had been asleep for a week. “The twins, Kuya?! What happened to my children?!” she exclaimed in shock as she remembered her kids. “Calm down, Claire. They’re fine. I had our people watch over them, so everything’s alright.” Claire stopped her hysterics upon hearing this and let out a sigh of relief. “I’m sorry, Kuya Clark. I’m just scared something bad might happen to my family.” Clark nodded in understanding at his sister’s words. Even though he didn’t have his own family yet, he felt the same way about theirs. “Oh, by the way, Kuya, does Papa know I’m here?” Clark shook his head at her question. “Papa doesn’t know. I hid you, Claire, because I want you to be the one to talk to him about what happened to Mama.” Claire couldn’t help but feel
After Zekiel said that, he immediately shot the enemies, causing the other two to join in, each firing at the opponents trying to advance. Since there were three of them, they quickly defeated them, much to the delight of the other two. “Finally!” Hero exclaimed. “We can go home now! Kiel, come on, hurry!” Dylan was the first to run, making the other two shake their heads before following. Dylan stopped at a door where they knew Louise was. “You go first, Kiel, hehe,” Dylan said, scratching his head sheepishly. “See? Acting all tough but actually a coward,” Hero teased, earning him a glare from Dylan. Meanwhile, Zekiel didn’t hesitate—he kicked the door open. But he froze when he saw Louise and Camille lifeless, drenched in their own blood on the floor. “D-Daddy!” He turned toward the voice and immediately ran to the twins. “Zoey! Zayne!” He hugged them tightly as the twins cried into his chest. When an explosion echoed in the distance, Zoey started crying again, b
“IN the count of three,” Zekiel said seriously as they stood at the edge of the garden of the building where Timothy was hiding, holding his family hostage. “One... Two... Three... NOW!” Zekiel’s men quickly scrambled into action at his signal. When they reached the underground passage, two people opened it, and as soon as it was unlocked, they rushed inside one after another. “Go! Go! Go!” Dylan whispered urgently to their teammates leading the way inside. “Make sure to keep it quiet,” Hero muttered to one of the men, who nodded in response. Once everyone else was in, the three of them followed. They had only brought a few men underground since the others were on lookout and would join them once the trap was set. When they entered, they found themselves in an open space that was clearly abandoned. “Start setting things up as planned.” The men nodded and began working on their assigned tasks. They had agreed to place long, sharp metal rods so that when their enemies
Claire glanced at her trembling hands, the pain and fear of losing the child in her womb overwhelming her. Then, she saw the crown in front of her, picked it up, and placed it on her head before aiming the gun at them again. “A p-princess fears nothing.” Claire moved swiftly and pulled the trigger, but the two dodged. Camille quickly grabbed another gun and fired at Claire, hitting her shoulder, making Zayne cry even harder. “Mommy!!!” He desperately wanted to escape but couldn’t. The noise woke Zoey, and as her mind processed what was happening, she began to cry, drawing Zayne’s attention. “Z-Zoey, close your eyes!” No matter how much Zayne pleaded, the twin couldn’t stop crying. He looked at his mom, now lying unconscious on the floor with blood on her leg, and shut his eyes—he couldn’t bear to see her like that. He prayed that someone would save them when, moments later, he heard gunshots. His eyes snapped open, and he saw tall men in palace guard uniforms swiftly surroun
Her body and hands were tied to the chair, so she couldn’t move. She tried to turn her face away, but Camille grabbed it again, gripping even tighter than before. “Look at me!” Camille shouted angrily, leaving her no choice but to obey. “Do you see this scar?!” Camille hissed. “Yeah, it makes you even uglier.” Claire’s words only infuriated Camille further, who then slapped her hard, forcing her face to the side. “Btch! When someone talks to you properly, answer properly! I’ll make you feel what I went through! I’ll ruin your face because you don’t deserve this!” Camille snatched the crown Claire was wearing, making Claire’s eyes widen in shock—that crown was sacred, and their laws forbade anyone else from touching it. “This suits me better.” “Give that back! It doesn’t belong to you!” But Camille ignored her, placing it on her own head while Claire could only watch helplessly. “See? It looks better on me.” Camille admired herself in a mirror. “Wow, this must be expe
When I said no, it’s a no. No buts, Timothy—take her to the room and don’t let her out. Timothy nodded at the man’s command and grabbed Claire, who immediately tried to pull away. “No! You can’t do this, Zekiel! My child is in there! I won’t rest until they’re safe! Zekiel!” Zekiel ignored Claire’s screams as Timothy dragged her away, continuing with their planning. “Why did you send Claire away? She could’ve helped us too,” Zekiel shot Hero a sharp look for his remark. “Oh, so you’d be fine if I included your wife in this?” Hero fell silent at that and they resumed their planning. Meanwhile, Claire, furious, struggled against Timothy as he forced her toward their room. She was already thinking of ways to escape and save the children. “Don’t even try. I won’t take my eyes off you,” Timothy said flatly, which only made Claire glare harder. But her anger turned to shock when a man suddenly appeared in front of Timothy, holding a baton. “Behind you!” Her warning came to