The Perfect Princess of Avenor

Princess Levara, the only princess of the Nation of Avenor and the only daughter of Emperor Arvellan Avenor.

And, according to every newspaper, every television network, every political commentator, and nearly every citizen in the country...the future of the Empire.

Avenor was not some ancient kingdom trapped in the pages of a history book.

It was a modern nation.

It had elected governments, a Parliament, political parties, ministers, elections, corporations, universities, international treaties, stock exchanges, and a Prime Minister who answered to the people and yet, above all of it stood the Imperial Family.

The House of Avenor had survived centuries of political reforms, revolutions, wars, constitutional amendments, and changes in government.

The monarchy had changed, the world had changed but the Crown had never truly surrendered its power.

The Emperor remained the Head of State and the Imperial Council retained authority over matters of succession, national security, the armed forces, and constitutional affairs.

The Crown could summon Parliament and the Crown could reject certain constitutional appointments and when a national crisis threatened the stability of Avenor, the Emperor possessed powers no ordinary politician could ever dream of touching.

In short...

The government ran Avenor but the Crown ruled Avenor.

And standing directly beneath that Crown was Princess Levara, for twenty-seven years, the nation had watched her grow. From the little girl who waved at crowds from the palace balcony...to the young woman who represented Avenor at international summits...to the Princess who had become the most beloved member of the Imperial Family.

She wasn't merely royal, she was an institution.

A symbol, a future Empress and there was only one thing the Crown had demanded from her in return for that future.

Her marriage.

Political marriages were no longer announced with contracts sealed behind palace doors, there were no forced ceremonies, no medieval arrangements, and no monarch deciding which prince a princess would marry.

In modern Avenor, the Crown simply called it...a union of stability.

A marriage between the Imperial Family and one of the nation's most influential political families and Princess Levara's future husband had already been chosen long ago.

Elias Montreve.

The son of Avenor's Prime Minister, Lucan Montreve but Elias wasn't some politician's son who had suddenly appeared at the palace with a marriage proposal.

He and Levara had known each other since childhood, they had grown up together, attended the same royal academies, studied together and played together.

Appeared beside each other at charity events and represented Avenor together.

And as they grew older, the friendship between the Princess and the Prime Minister's son slowly became something the entire nation watched with fascination.

The media adored them, the people adored them, even Parliament had quietly accepted them.

Whenever cameras caught the two of them together, headlines appeared the following morning.

THE GOLDEN PRINCESS AND THE FUTURE PRIME MINISTER.

AVENOR'S PERFECT COUPLE.

A MATCH BETWEEN THE CROWN AND THE GOVERNMENT.

People believed Elias and Levara were destined for each other, the Crown had its Princess.

The Government had its future leader and together...they would become the perfect bridge between the two most powerful institutions in Avenor.

At least...that was what everyone believed until Princess Levara died, suddenly and enexpectedly at twenty-seven.

The official statement released by the Imperial Palace had been painfully short.

Her Imperial Highness, Princess Levara Avenor, passed away following an unexpected cardiac event.

The country had stopped, markets had fallen, parliament had suspended its session, flags had been lowered. Millions had gathered outside the Imperial Palace carrying flowers, candles, and photographs of the Princess.

Even political rivals stood together in silence.

Because whatever their differences were...Levara had belonged to everyone.

But there was one person who couldn't accept the explanation.

Elly.

An orphan who had never once stepped inside the Imperial Palace, an ordinary girl who had never exchanged a single word with Princess Levara.

Yet somehow...Levara had been the closest thing Elly had ever had to family, and after watching the Princess's funeral from outside the crowd, after spending an entire night screaming at God in an empty church—

Elly had collapsed and last thing she saw was darkness, until...

***

[Nation of Avenor — Imperial Palace — Two Years Earlier]

“Your Highness, Princess Levara?”

Elly stared at the mirror, slowly touching the soft face she had never had before.

Long, curly golden-brown hair fell over her shoulders, framing a beautiful pale face. Her eyes were red, shining like rubies, while her soft pink lips trembled slightly.

She touched her cheek again, then her hair and then her lips.

Why...?

Why was she staring at her own reflection as Princess Levara?

Elly was completely confused, as she turned around, looking at the luxurious yet strangely comfortable room surrounding her, everything looked expensive, elegant and royal.

But somehow...it didn't feel unfamiliar and before she could make sense of anything—

CLICK.

The door opened and a maid entered the room with a soft smile.

“Good morning, Your Highness. Shall I prepare everything for His Majesty's fifty-fifth birthday banquet?”

Elly froze.

“...What?”

The maid looked at her with confusion. “His Majesty's birthday banquet, Your Highness.”

Elly furrowed her brows.

The Emperor's fifty-fifth birthday banquet?

But...wasn't the Emperor fifty-seven?

Her eyes widened as she felt something was seriously wrong.

If the Emperor was fifty-five...

Then what year was this? And why was she...Princess Levara?

Elly slowly looked back at her reflection, her crimson eyes stared back at her and her heart began pounding.

WHAT EXACTLY IS GOING ON HERE?