Chapter Eleven · The Hidden Covenant

The Royal Library rose in tier upon tier of shelves, stacked so high they seemed to challenge the ceiling. Hundreds of books pressed tightly together from floor to crown, forming a dense wall of knowledge.

Lyra stood on the highest rung of the rolling ladder, her gaze fixed on a row of books just beneath the third-floor ceiling.

She stretched her arm as far as it would go.

Her fingertips barely brushed the leather spine of a brown tome, its gold lettering faintly glinting in the light.

She rose onto her toes.

Almost there.

The book was wedged tight. The entire shelf trembled as she tugged at it.

Lyra pushed from the bottom edge.

Slowly, it came loose.

Too heavy.

Her fingers couldn’t hold it.

Thud.

“Ah!”

Below, Obewich clutched his head.

Lyra froze, her mouth falling open.

She scrambled down the ladder.

“Are you all right?”

Obewich rubbed his forehead. A bump was already rising.

“I’m fine, Your Highness. It’s nothing.”

Lyra pressed her lips together, murmured a quick “sorry,” then bent at once to pick up the book.

“History of the Tharion Dynasty.”

She tilted her head, curiosity flickering in her eyes.

Pages turned beneath her fingers.

Maps of the kingdom.

Histories of the fae clans.

A biography of King Aethrador…

“Nothing about the Awakening Spring.”

She frowned, about to close the book.

A faint breeze slipped through.

The middle pages fluttered open.

A title revealed itself:

The Binding Soul Covenant.

Lyra’s fingers stilled.

The Aulith clan had entered a covenant with Aethrador.

In exchange for protection, the High Lord and the Elders would sacrifice a portion of their souls, placing it within a vessel meant to preserve the memory of the dynasty.

“…a vessel that preserves memory…”

Lyra blinked.

The Memory Orb.

Something shifted in her chest, subtle and nameless, both familiar and wrong.

Could this be connected to the Awakening Spring…

or was it a key to something deliberately buried?

The next page was missing.

The edge was clean. The cut precise.

Not an accident.

Someone had removed it.

Lyra went still, her gaze lingering on the empty space longer than it should have.

“Your Highness. Your Highness.”

“Huh?” She snapped out of it.

“Have you found the book you needed? There is a court session today. I must return to make sure the servants have prepared the tea.”

“I found it. You should go.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Obewich left the library, still rubbing the swelling on his forehead.

Lyra remained where she was, her gaze lingering on the torn edge of the page.

The Memory Orb.

If the answer had been erased from the book… then it might still exist somewhere else.

The thought settled into place.

She turned without another word and headed for the chamber behind the Hall of Prophecy.

The Memory Orb hovered above a stone pedestal, its inner light shifting slowly like the tide. Rows of flowers surrounded it, their petals thin as glass and shimmering in countless colors.

She had passed this place many times before, but she had never truly seen it.

What would she find this time?

Without hesitation, Lyra stepped closer and placed both hands against the cold surface of the sphere.

“Show me Aethrador’s memory of the Soul Covenant.”

The light around her began to blur.

Every flower withered at once, fragile petals collapsing into dull gray.

A mournful melody began to rise from the air itself.

Within the orb, a battlefield took shape.

For a moment, nothing moved.

Then…

Bodies lay strewn across the ground.

Weapons lay scattered and broken.

An elder clad in the robes of the Aulith Fae knelt before Aethrador.

“Please… grant Aulith your protection from extinction. We have no path left.”

Aethrador lifted his hand.

The image shuddered, then flickered.

Another face.

And another.

Five in total.

Their faces overlapped, layered atop one another. Their mouths opened wide, but no sound came.

The elder’s gaze locked onto hers, as if he were trying to tell her something.

Strands of light were drawn from their chests, twisting slowly inward into a single point.

The light spread across the orb, then vanished.

Her pulse spiked.

Lyra pulled her hands away.

“This covenant… it’s a sacrifice of souls?”

Something inside her turned cold.

For a moment, she couldn’t move.

She looked away.

A chill crept slowly down her spine.

War and history were far more brutal than she had ever imagined.

But why had her grandfather taken pieces of their souls? Was there truly no other way?

If order was built on cruelty, then wouldn’t the strong always be the ones who ruled?

And if this was the foundation of the kingdom…

…would there come a day when she, too, would be forced to uphold it?

The thought lingered, cold and persistent.

By the time Lyra reached the Throne Hall, the light was already blazing.

The throne was studded with gemstones. King Eryndar sat upright, tall and immovable. The brilliance of the emerald set in his crown was enough to make anyone avert their eyes during court.

But today was different.

It was not the court standing before him.

It was the High Lady of Aulith.

She held her head high, her voice tight with restrained anger as the King questioned her about the delay in grain tribute.

“Why must all fae clans, great and small, offer the same tribute?” she demanded. “Aulith does not possess vast lands. Since the time of Aethrador, we have been forced to farm our soil to exhaustion. Even our people go hungry.”

She turned her face away, her sleeve cutting through the air.

“This law is unjust.”

Eryndar’s hand tightened on the armrest.

“This law was established in my father’s time. It cannot simply be changed.”

“Then it is nothing more than oppression.” The High Lady met his gaze without flinching.

“You…” Eryndar’s brow furrowed.

At that moment, Syveris stepped forward and bowed.

“Your Majesty, allow me to speak with the High Lady in private. We may yet find a solution.”

The King looked between them. After a brief pause, he struck the arm of his throne.

“Very well. See that it is settled.”

He rose and left the hall without sparing either of them another glance.

The great doors shut behind him.

The guards withdrew.

Soon, only Syveris and the High Lady remained in the vast chamber.

Syveris turned the ring on his finger.

“I truly wish what is best for your people.”

His voice dropped to a near whisper.

Beyond the sealed doors, along the grand corridor, Lyra was on her way back to the Moontis Chamber.

The morning had been too much, after what she had seen in the Memory Orb.

She couldn’t get their faces out of her head.

She caught sight of her father’s cloak disappearing down the corridor outside the Throne Hall. He did not look pleased.

Lyra slowed.

The hall was still lit. The doors were closed, yet no guards stood watch.

What was going on?

Something about today felt off.

She stepped closer.

Then slower still.

She pressed her ear against the door.

Syveris’s voice was low, but Lyra’s keen hearing caught every word.

“If you agree to this… the matter of dissolving the Soul Covenant… can be discussed later.”

Lyra held perfectly still.

Silence.

That was all?

She leaned in closer, tilting her head just slightly.

The door swung open.

Lyra lurched forward, nearly losing her balance.

She caught herself and straightened at once.

Syveris stood before her. A flicker of surprise crossed his face before it smoothed away.

“Your Highness,” he said, without a smile. “How long have you been standing there?”

Behind him, the High Lady of Aulith stood in silence. Her gaze slipped aside, avoiding Lyra’s.

“Just arrived,” Lyra said lightly. “I heard there was a court session. I sent a letter to Orlas, but I haven’t received a reply, so I came to ask you.”

Syveris adjusted his cloak, his gaze fixed on her, unblinking.

“Orlas is well. The letter was likely delayed.”

A sudden chill spread across Lyra’s palms. She took a step back.

“That’s good to hear. I should be going to lunch.”

She turned and walked away quickly, not looking back, not even for a moment.

The High Lady spoke once Lyra was gone.

“Do you think she heard us?”

“Do not worry,” Syveris replied. “There is nothing she can do.”

They left soon after.

When Lyra reached the Moontis Chamber, she shut the door with a sharp thud.

Why are they trying to dissolve the Soul Covenant?

If it truly is undone…

what would be gained… and what would be lost?

She had learned too much, and all of it by chance.

And now she could not shake the feeling that she was stepping into something…

…far more dangerous than she had ever intended to touch.