Chapitre 22: Mystery

Duke Salvador smiled as his eyes closed.

Taking a few deep breaths he controlled his unsteady heart as he decided to move forward with his quest. "Princess should tell me her story now. I'm ready to listen." Aiden looked into Cassandra's eyes as he said in a low tone. "I want to know everything from the start."

Cassandra nodded her head as she looked at the Duke who was controlling his irritating emotions. Even though Cassandra could not hear Duke Salvador's thoughts, she found something more interesting in the process.

Cassandra could read his face. Even though Duke Salvador had his eyes stuck on her in irritation there was a slight change on his face that would give Cassandra a little knowledge about what he was thinking. Just like right now.

Cassandra was sure that Duke Salvador was trying to control his rage.

'But why is he angry?'

'What have I done wrong?'

'Uhh …'

Cassandra thought as she looked at the Duke.

Duke Salvador's eyes were strengthened in the corners. His forehead was a little seized as his chin was stiff. Duke's throat was shivering. The man looked with dead eyes at Cassandra but she could see what it really was.

'I should not anger him any more.'

'The Duke is losing patience.'

Cassandra thought as she thought back at the Duke's words. Duke Salvador was not asking Cassandra about the power itself or how she gained it. Cassandra was sure that Duke did not suspect that she even have powers.

'Duke Salvador wanted to know about the knowledge that posses.'

'He is seeing value in me.'

Princess Cassandra was emotional. She had never thought that someone would ask for her help ever. She was useful for once.

Duke Salvador wanted to know the knowledge Cassandra possessed that no one else has even considered Cassandra to have.

Cassandra knew that all the royal children thought that she was useless in the palace, not reliable enough, not powerful enough, not beautiful enough. She was nowhere in this sense of being a royal person

Those who had a strong background were to be able to marry people of high position while maybe she would be sent to the other Empire as a peace offering.

'Will I not even have a chance?'

Cassandra knew that the Empress was thinking of getting rid of her because she was a piece that was useless at the time being and the only thing that the royals do to people who are useless to them is to throw them away like a piece of paper that was never needed.

'Maybe the Duke could help me find a way out.'

Cassandra's shiver as she looked at the Duke in silence. Maybe if the Duke acknowledged her knowledge then he would let her marry one of his soldiers, letting Cassandra free from the clutches of the Empress and the other royals.

Cassandra was sure that the Emperor would not object if Duke Salvador was the one proposing one of his soldiers' names as a groom.

Cassandra did not want any name or status. Even if the soldier was a commoner she was okay with that. The only thing Cassandra wanted was freedom to choose what she wants, freedom to leave when she warned, freedom to breathe. Cassandra made up her mind as she took a deep breath telling Duke Salvador what she had encountered

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[Flashback]

Cassandra moved into the library silently like a shadow. This was the only place she thought that she could be. None of the royal children come to trouble her here.

In recent years, Cassandra had even found a place that people visited the least, an abandoned site away from the main library.

Cassandra did not remember how she found this place. Maybe she was walking in the evening and suddenly got lost or maybe she was just looking for some books and she found it. Cassandra was too young to know but since then it was her only place where she could feel secure.

When Cassandra was brought into the palace she did not have a mother. She was a child, a bastard. But she was still a Royalty.

Initially, when none of the children had their powers she was treated well and did not need to come to this place often but after she was found to have none Cassandra was an outcast in the royal family.

Her friends that used to be her siblings were now replaced by the books in the library, things that would never judge her.

Most of Cassandra's time was spent in this place trying to avoid the judgmental gaze of people, trying to avoid the noises she started hearing often in her hand.

Cassandra still remembers how frightened she was when she started hearing words. Everyone's thoughts flowing in her mind. She did not know how to control it and she could not understand anything. Cassandra was a frightened child. She was alone.

Cassandra wanted to talk with her siblings about it. Maybe the Empress might help her. But soon she heard that the people she was supposed to lean on for support were the ones who were responsible for killing the family.

The strong powers were soon eliminated one by one which frightened little Cassandra a lot. So she deepened her quest to find the answers in the only friends that were remaining by her side. The only place where she could not hear the noises that were haunting her day and night. The abandoned place in the library.

[End of flashback]

Cassandra took a deep breath as she looked at Duke Salvador. She knew she had to answer his question at some point in time. Who knows how the Duke might react if he had to wait.

'Maybe Duke Salvador is more ruthless than Princess Valeria.'

'The first Princess burned the body. Maybe the duke might evaporate it in the air.'

Cassandra made up her mind as she said in a soft voice like a whisper. "It was one day when I was searching something about the elements. I knew that even though it was not uncommon for people who did not have any powers to be born, it was very uncommon in the royal family."

Duke Salvador was silent letting Cassandra continue.

As Cassandra has grown she even thought that she might not be a princess but soon dismissed her thoughts.

"I was in the library and had opened a book randomly. There was a black cover on it with silver and golden borders alternating between themselves. Like the branches of trees that have been interlocked. There was no heading written on it as the book was quite old."

Cassandra could still see the dust accumulated on the book, which made her curious. It was like the book was calling her to be open and so Cassandra did.

"The book was beautiful, unlike anything I have ever seen so I opened it, only to realize that it was written in a language I was not familiar with."

Cassandra did not know anything about it. Her mind was blank. But Cassandra was curious so she turned the pages around only to realize that the book might not be a piece of information but a diary. She could see numbers written on the top like the date entries. Even though the language was not something Cassandra knew of, her curiosity increased over time.

"An unknown language?" Duke Salvador asked curiously. He had never seen such a book there. He even thought for a second that the fifth Princess was lying.

Cassandra nodded. She thought back that the only language used in the Empire was one; it was said that only one language was passed down from Elvira to the people. Cassandra closed the book as she kept it on the top shelf hiding it from other people's eyes.

It was a mysterious book and she knew about it. It was a secret only she was a part of. A secret between her friend and her.

The mere thought of it excited Cassandra as she decided to look deep into the mystery.