Chapter One

THE NIGHT THAT STARTED IT ALL

Two weeks ago...

QUEEN SEVINA was exhausted. After the last battle against Exterio, she was extremely worn out because of how much power she had to use just to defeat the large armies of that kingdom. It had not been an easy feat at all. But just like the previous battles she had been in, Vire still won.

And that left no doubt to the rest of the kingdoms that Vire will always be undefeated. Taking her leisure to spend some time alone on the empty halls of the palace, Queen Sevina walked slowly and tried to think about the next steps she would be doing for the future of Vire. She had been making plans about the crowning of Prince Kevian. The young prince is already turning twenty-two this year and there were so many talks about him taking over the throne to help Queen Sevina with the responsibilities.

But on the other hand, knowing that Vire might have to accept two new rulers for the kindgom, it might not be a good combination because Queen Sevina knew that a lot of their allies are still threatened of her and they might use this opportunity to put their hands on the decisions where the prince could be put on danger. That was not what Queen Sevina would want to happen.

She had promised the safety of the crowned prince and that is why she is doing her best not to create any kind of tension with the allied kingdoms. But if she had to do it right, she knew she had to face the day on when she needs to step down from the position. But that does not mean she will completely abandon the royalty...

Deep in her mind, Queen Sevina is still hoping she would not leave the prince's side.

"It's your promise, Sevina... You must never break it."

The words from the late Queen hovered in her head as Queen Sevina mused about her decisions. She had given her word to the previous King and Queen and it was a rule among the witches to always live up to their promise. If she did one thing that would betray them, she would lose her immortality and her freedom... she would be sent back to Mysticia and will no longer be given the chance to see the humans again. It was one thing she didn't want to ever happen, and that was why she took the risk and agreed to everything.

But how come she felt so lonely?

When she first came to this kingdom after being summoned by the late Queen, Sevina thought that it was a dream coming true. She was beyond jubilant and she expected a lot of things that she would experience with her new life in Earthoria. But when she heard what she was going to abide to and who was going to use her powers for their benefit, she felt even more imprisoned compared to how she had been in Mysticia.

This was nothing near of what she had wanted to gain by accepting the summoning of the late Queen... but she knew she really had nowhere to go. If she was to refuse the offer, she would be sent back to her world. And who knows when would be the next time someone would summon a witch from her world? There was also no guarantee that it would be Sevina who would get summoned... And so being her childish and ambitious self, Sevina agreed to what was asked and forced herself to live to what she had brought herself into.

There was nothing else to do beside from accepting the responsibility of taking over a kingdom and keeping it protected. Her powers had been fully utilized to the point that she could no longer have enough time to explore the world outside of the palace and that made Sevina feel deprived.

It brought her to absolute isolation, seeing how the people around her enjoyed every minute of their day while she kept her promise, not wavering and only following what was said and what was ordered from her. She can't refuse any form of plea, and that was her weakness until...

"My Queen?"

That voice... It had been so long since the last time Queen Sevina heard that voice. It sounded fimer and lower now. And Queen Sevina was startled to hear someone spoke as she stopped in her tracks and looked up. It was the crowned prince.

Prince Kevian.

"It's rare to see you around here, Prince Kevian," Queen Sevina softly uttered back, a small smile crept on the side of her mouth as she met the prince's blue eyes gleaming back at her. The handsome and taller prince smoothly walked forward, striding closer towards the Queen that made Queen Sevina take a step back, unguarded and surprised by that bold move.

It was the closest they got to each other, just a few mere meters apart and Queen Sevina suddenly felt nervous. He looked more striking up close, she realized.

The hint of blush appearing on the cheeks of the Queen was quickly noticed by Prince Kevian, who on the other hand, tried to hide his smile as he looked away and slowly took a deep breath. The evening was filled with cold air surrounding them, but it was not the reason why Queen Sevina felt herself shiver... She could no longer move her eyes away from the ground, and she felt rather more self-conscious, a complete change of character of how others have always perceived her.

"You look tired, my Queen," Prince Kevian said after the long silence. He casually stole a glance at Queen Sevina and watched the way her brows furrowed, making her almost vulnerable as she bit her lower lip. She looked adorable, but Prince Kevian didn't want to admit that. However, he has always been fond of her ever since he was a kid... Yet, he knew that this childish infatuation was nothing short of just simple admiration for the Queen.