Birthdays in the imperial palace were always a grand affair, but this one—Joaquin's 16th—was supposed to be special.
Jacinta's youngest brother, the second imperial prince of Illia, deserved a moment of joy. Yet as Jacinta sat among the glittering guests, surrounded by garlands of roses and the soft melody of a string quartet, an uneasy weight pressed on her chest.
She knew too much.
From the moment she woke up six months ago with the memories of another life, her world had turned upside down. In her past life, she was just an ordinary woman—reading novels, going to work, reviewing for board exams and complaining about the monotony of life. And now, here she was, Jacinta Ryzeftine, the third imperial princess of Illia and a side character in a story she knew all too well.
It wasn't a happy one, for them.
The book, Crimson Sun, floated invisibly above her like a cruel ghost. Only she could see it, its pages flipping on their own, whispering the tale of betrayal, bloodshed, and ruin.
The main plot centered on Matthias, the crown prince and their half-brother, who would eventually claim the throne alongside the love of his life, Cynthia Evangeline, a duke's daughter from the North. A glorious tale, except for one minor detail: anyone remotely connected to the current empress—her biological mother—was destined for the chopping block.
And that included her.
The sound of clinking glasses snapped her out of her thoughts. Joaquin, dressed in a green velvet suit that made him look both regal and endearing, was tapping his fingers nervously on his chair. His smile didn't reach his eyes. He was looking at her, then to her sisters who were sitting next to her.
"Jacinta," Judea, the youngest of her sister and the fourth imperial princess, leaned closer, her voice barely above a whisper. "He's looking at us."
"Don't frown, show him a smile." Judith, the second imperial princess and their older sister, leaned closer to Jacinta as well.
'I'm frowning?' Jacinta forced a grin, though her stomach churned, when the empress, their mother's cold eyes hit them. The Empress was sitting next to their youngest brother.
'Hah.' She wanted to roll her eyes...
But she reverted her gaze. Jacinta sighed. This wasn't just a birthday; it was a stage, a chess board and Joaquin was the prized pawn in their mother's endless game for power. The legitimate second heir to the throne once something suddenly happened to the current crown prince.
Boogsh!
Before she could dwell on it further, the grand doors of the hall slammed open.
!!!
Gasps rippled through the crowd as two figures entered, drenched in blood. Jacinta's heart sank. 'Of course, it was them.'
Matthias and Martina Ryzeftine, the imperial crown prince and next to him was the first princess. They strode into the hall like predators who'd just returned from a successful hunt. Matthias' crimson hair glinted under the fairy lights, his cold golden eyes scanning the room with detached amusement. Martina, his twin, walked beside him, her face alight with twisted delight.
"Blood!?" Judea gripped Jacinta's arms in surprise.
Jacinta looked at the two with sad gaze. She already knew what was coming.
"Greetings to the Greatest Sun of the Empire," Matthias said, bowing dramatically to the emperor, his voice smooth but laced with mockery. "And to the radiant moon by his side."
The empress stiffened in her seat, her fan snapping shut.
Matthias gestured, and two knights entered, dragging a heavy sack. Martina clapped her hands in excitement, her smile sharper than the blades she likely carried.
"This," Matthias announced, "is our gift to our dearest youngest brother." He turned to Joaquin with a wicked grin. "Happy birthday, dear brother!"
The sack hit the floor with a sickening thud. Its contents spilled out, rolling across the polished tiles. Heads. Severed, bloodied, and unmistakably human.
"Ahhh!!!"
Gasps and screams erupted around the hall. Jacinta's stomach lurched, and for a moment, she couldn't breathe. The metallic stench of blood filled the air, mingling grotesquely with the scent of roses.
"Enemy generals of Asterian," Martina said cheerfully. "And a few Asterian assassins we encountered on the way here. Consider it our token of love."
Joaquin's face turned ashen. The empress' knuckles whitened around her fan, though she quickly masked her horror with a cold smile.
'Those assassins that Martina emphasized were definitely not from Asterian.' Jacinta clenched her fist.
The emperor, stood and clapped once, his expression unreadable, garnering the attention of everyone in the hall.
"Well done," he said. "The Asterian region has finally been cleared."
Jacinta knew this would be coming. Their open hostility towards the Empress and her brother was suffocating.
She looked at her youngest brother, fear filled his face. Of course, he had never been in the battlefield before to see these many dead bodies.
She wanted to run to him, hug him and tell him to not look just like Judea was hugging Judith. To do anything but sit here, watching her youngest brother's special day unravel into a nightmare.
Jacinta smiled weary, 'they were still our oldest siblings even if we are half blood. But I can't blame them for all the things they experienced from our mother.'
She clenched her fists. 'Yes. Just endure it one more time. This would be the first and last time we played along with the whims of a novel.'
'So this is your answer, Martina, Matthias.'
'Don't worry tonight, my siblings and I will vanish without a trace.'