Chapter 3

A week had passed since Gaia’s conversation with Aurus, yet she still couldn’t figure out how he had discovered the truth about her illness.

The question lingered in her mind as she patrolled the western sector of Dooms Gate. Mounted on horseback, she rode through the dense forest until she crossed paths with two guards, both astride their own horses and seemingly making their rounds as well.

“Premier,” they greeted in unison.

Gaia acknowledged them with a brief nod before riding past. She had barely gone any distance when she sensed a swift attack from behind.

She ducked instinctively, flattening herself against her horse’s back as a hunting knife whizzed over her head. The blade buried itself into the trunk of a nearby tree.

Pulling sharply on the reins, Gaia tried to bring her horse to a stop. Before it could fully halt, one of the guards leaped from his mount toward her, sword raised high.

She struck her horse’s flank, urging it into a burst of speed. The attack missed, but the guard quickly remounted and gave chase.

Gaia yanked the reins again, wheeling her horse around to face her pursuers instead of fleeing. She charged straight at them.

The two guards closed in, trapping her between them. She dodged their consecutive strikes with effortless precision. Releasing the reins, she caught each man’s sword arm in a firm grip. Using the momentum, she pushed off her horse’s back and launched herself into the air.

With a powerful double kick, she struck both men simultaneously.

The guards were hurled in opposite directions while Gaia landed gracefully on her feet.

One of them quickly scrambled back up and broke into a run.

“You’re not escaping while I’m still standing.”

Gaia nudged a loose stone with her foot, sending it bouncing into the air. She caught it in one hand and hurled it with deadly accuracy.

The stone struck the fleeing guard squarely. He collapsed at once, losing consciousness just like his companion.

Gaia walked over to one of the unconscious guards and rolled back his sleeve.

There it was.

A familiar insignia.

It was the mark of the soldiers from Atar—the very division where she had once belonged.

“I knew it... This has your fingerprints all over it again, Division Leader.”

She let out a long, weary sigh before releasing the guard.

This wasn’t the first time Atar’s soldiers had tried to assassinate her, yet every attempt had ended in failure. Even as the Premier Guard of Dooms Gate, she had no authority over the assignment of guards. That responsibility rested with each division leader.

All she could do was survive.

And every failed assassination only seemed to fuel Atar’s leader’s obsession with killing her.

Their relentless attacks had become even more dangerous now that Tana was with her.

What if they mistook Tana for her?

What if her twin became the next target?

She couldn’t bear the thought of losing the only family she had left.

A decision formed in her mind.

I have to get Tana out of the kingdom... as soon as possible.

***

After returning to her quarters, Gaia ordered Trey to bring Aurus to her.

She had a strong feeling he knew more about her condition than he had revealed.

More than anything, she wanted to know if there was still a chance for her to be cured.

She rarely showed it, but she longed for a normal life—a life where she didn’t have to live in fear that her illness could strike without warning and leave her too weak to even stand.

“Why did you want to see me, Premier Guard?”

Gaia looked up at the familiar voice.

She hadn’t even noticed Aurus had already entered the tent. Trey must have let him in, just as she had instructed.

“Shouldn’t you thank me first?” she said. “I ordered the guards to give you water while you were imprisoned. Without it, you and your companion would’ve died after a week in that cell.”

“Then thank you.”

His reply was calm and matter-of-fact.

“Was there something else? I know there is. You wouldn’t have summoned me otherwise.”

Gaia studied him closely.

Despite spending days without food, Aurus showed no signs of weakness. He stood before her with remarkable composure, his face betraying neither fear nor anxiety. It was as though he had already accepted whatever fate awaited him inside Dooms Gate.

“How did you know about my illness?” she asked.

“I studied medicine in my homeland,” Aurus replied. “I noticed your pale complexion and your unusually slow breathing. There’s also a faint gray mark on your right cheek. It’s almost invisible at first glance, but it’s obvious if you look closely. According to an old medical text I read, that mark appears when the illness begins causing physical pain.”

Everything he said was true.

There was no doubt now.

He really did know about her condition.

“Then you also know how to cure it?”

“Yes.”

“How?”

A faint smile curved Aurus’s lips.

There was something enigmatic about it, as though he was already several steps ahead.

“And why should I tell you?” he asked. “You see me as your enemy, and you could kill me whenever you choose. The knowledge I possess is the only thing keeping my companion and me alive. I’m not about to hand it over to you, Premier Guard.”

Gaia smiled in return and folded her arms.

She refused to be intimidated, meeting his gaze without flinching.

“Do you really think I have no way of finding out what I want to know?” she said evenly. “There are plenty of methods I could use to make you talk. I’m choosing not to use force. I’m asking you politely, so you might as well answer.”

“I will,” Aurus replied, “if you tell me where Tana is.”

He held her gaze without wavering.

“I don’t know what connects the two of you, but I’m certain she’s somewhere in Forbideria. Let me see her, and I’ll tell you everything I know about your illness.”

“And what makes you think I know where the person you’re looking for is?”

“You can’t hide the truth from me, Premier Guard.”

His voice remained calm.

“You and Tana look exactly alike. Yet when we told you about her, you didn’t react with the slightest concern. Twins are forbidden in Forbideria, but you never ordered anyone to search for her. That tells me only one thing.” Aurus paused briefly. “You already know where she is.”

Once again, Gaia found herself impressed by his intelligence. People this perceptive were rare.

“Very good,” she admitted. “You’re clever, stranger. But how can I be sure you won’t use Tana against me? I don’t know either of you well enough to trust you. You could use her to take everything from me... even my life.”

“I would never put the woman I love in danger.”

For a moment, Gaia was speechless. She hadn’t considered that possibility. No one would risk life and limb searching for a woman unless she meant everything to them.

Tana was fortunate. There were people who loved her enough to cross kingdoms and face death just to find her. Gaia, on the other hand, was surrounded by people who wanted her dead. Though she would never admit it aloud, a faint pang of envy stirred within her.

Tana had people she could lean on whenever she needed them. Gaia had no one but herself.