"Your goal for today is simple—meet the Baron. Be polite but not too friendly and adjust to the situation as needed. That's it."

  Oh, ye of lost faith and broken truth.

  They'd found me in the square, passed out and covered in grim. I hadn't explained what happened, and they didn't ask.

  A medic came to my room and checked me before assuring everyone I was untouched. No one cared what happened after that—not for me, at least, but there were changes in the duchy.

  The Duke dispatched Bastien to handle a riot. Best case, he'd be there for six months. If he ran into a problem, he could be there for years. This didn't happen in my past life. Bastien was at every meal I crashed until the day of my wedding. Madeline assured me this was part of Bastien's plan, and while that could be true, it wasn't likely we could cooperate.

  Tracy was ill, and the Duchess sent her to the villa to recuperate. This confirmed that Tracy ordered the guards to abandon me. She, too, had been around for the year before my wedding, but I didn't know when she would return.

  I didn't know what punishment the guards got, but Catherine had her pay docked—that was it.

  Selena was upset by her sister's illness and started doing charity work in the duchy. This happened last time, but the reason was different. She gained a reputation for kindness and after several obstacles cropped up that she solved perfectly, the citizens of the Duchy recognized her as a competent leader. I didn't realize what they were doing, but now it was clear they were laying the groundwork for her to be the Duchess—or something more. My fate was worth the Holy Nation, the Duke, and the crown fighting over.

  What a waste, what a waste.

  I'd stopped attending magic classes. I thought the news would be more devastating to me, but it wasn't. This wasn't a loss. It was a step back. I didn't want to risk exposing the secrets I knew. I remembered how my body reacted to the potion, and couldn't guarantee I wouldn't react to something else. The more you spoke and acted, the more chances there were to make mistakes.

  Lady Rintour also experienced the tragic passing of her husband and maid in an accident. This was a direct response to my involvement. I didn't know how to feel about it or how it would affect our classes—I could only wait and see.

  Madeline had disappeared, having delivered Bastien's message to reschedule our meeting. Catherine was respectful, and after multiple probes, I determined she was unaware her aunt worked for Bastien. As such, Catherine still hoped to meet Bastien through me. Her intentions towards my brother were obvious, but not feasible.

  Fighting and not knowing the prize is gone.

  The Duke assigned Typhon as my guard, though the duke said he was to act as my butler. I guessed he was more of a warden than a protector.

  I was still wearing my pendant. I'd taken it off and felt a deep sense of wrongness, but it wasn't something I couldn't ignore. It remained off for three days, and they hadn't reacted, which meant they couldn't tell if I was wearing it. That didn't mean the Kala Tribe wasn't aware. I'd put it back on, comforted that I could remove it as needed.

  Gideon was doing an 'upgrade' and 'defrag' and halted my quests. I didn't know what that meant, but it put me in a passive position. It was a mistake solely relying on the 'system', which scared me. I didn't have many options—I touched my neck, hesitating.

  We must keep this secret so the fun can go on.

  They gave me a healing potion, and now I looked plump and healthy. They didn't have good intentions, and I hadn't wanted to drink the potion, but refusing seemed pointless. This hadn't happened in my past life, which was worrying. I didn't need to be healthy then, so why did it matter now?

  Like that, a week passed, and my first meeting with the Baron was to happen.

  Little one, how will you repay us?

  On my neck, below the ear that the god spoke in, was a little black raven that looked like it could be a tattoo or a birthmark. So far, I was the only one who could see it.

  I closed my eyes.

  The Brother's Three.

  I crawled from under the pile of corpses. It was quiet. Too quiet and there was this stickiness and this stench. My baby—my baby wasn't crying anymore. I--

  I opened my eyes, adjusting my dress. If I used the mirror to check if someone was standing behind me, it was no one's business but mine.

  My eyes fell on the pendant.

  Staying in the north was the worst course of action, which meant marrying the Baron was pointless unless I could convince him to move. That was even less likely. Smolt's baronage was titled under the Duchy and had no authority elsewhere. It was his seat of power; dying or not, he wouldn't abandon it.

  I glimpsed Catherine walking closer, assessing me in the mirror, and I adjusted my expression. "You look lovely, my lady."

  I did.

  My dress fit just right, and while not the height of fashion, it was fashionable enough. The color was bright and suited a young girl, and my shoes were the right color and size. They dyed my hair a dark black.

  In the mirror, I could see shadows of Selena.

  I stretched my hand out, touching my fingertips to the reflective surface. I saw myself on a different day, wearing different clothes--a different girl, years ago, or in years to come.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  I had the sinking feeling that no matter where I went with the Baron today, I'd run into the Crown Prince.

  They'd done this before, but the brightness of the clothes and dark hair made my pale completion appear sickly.

  I toyed with a strand of hair. I wanted to grow out my hair. The tribe didn't want me, but it was mine, and no one could take it away from me.

  "My lady?" Catherine asked.

  "It's the loveliest thing I own," I said.

  They dressed me like this to attract the crown prince. I'd wrongly thought they did it to push the blame on me and say I demanded they swap the brides but that wasn't it. The crown prince had a soft spot for small-minded, jealous, brash women. To a laughable extent, my previous behaviors appealed to his tastes, but I was missing a few key personality traits mainly cunning and cruelty. He'd have treated me better if I killed Selena to take her spot—maybe. The crown prince was funny about his possessions—and I didn't doubt he thought he already owned Selena.

  My hand grasped the front of the dress, and my chest heaved, my heart pounding. My eyes were red as they stared back at me, and Catherine, who stood behind me, was shocked, dropping the pins in her hand.

  "My lady?" She asked, her voice light and cautious, eyes watching me.

  "I don't want this," I said. It was the first time I'd said that out loud. Even in my past life, as I threw a tantrum and tried my best to cancel the marriage, I'd never said that. "I don't want this," I said louder. My voice held firm and my back straightened. I had choices, limited and terrible as they were.

  "It doesn't matter." Catherine was on her hands and knees, picking up the things she'd dropped. This wasn't supposed to be her life. She was an only child; the title was rightfully hers, but like so many whose parents passed before they inherited, she was at the mercy of her appointed guardians.

  "You're wrong." I stood, my bearing still awkward. "It matters to me. I can't change what's happening, but I matter."

  Her hands paused. "You're very foolish, my lady." She looked out the window, and suddenly, I didn't recognize her. It was fleeting, an illusion--I blinked and it was gone. "I hope you hold on to that because sometimes in a woman's life, there comes a time when she doesn't matter to herself." That was a very sober point of view. I knew that state better than she did, but I didn't expect it from Catherine, who I'd always considered a tad dull. "Sometimes, I'd do anything to change places with you."

  I stilled. "You wouldn't," I said, "trust me." But, wasn't that an idea?

  Taking my fate back from Selena was simple. All I had to do was take off the necklace and wait for my Qi to settle into my body. The hard part was hiding what I was doing from the duke and duchess.

  I need the wedding day moved.

  No. That wouldn't work.

  The Queen Dowager knew about the Kala tribe. Even if the wedding and swap happened earlier, she knew why the Duke and Duchess kept me around. She likely married the crown prince to Selena specifically to benefit from my fate. The Queen Dowager preferred Selena, but she'd tolerate me if she had to. She'd know all she had to do was take the necklace off.

  I leaned back, playing with my necklace.

  I needed another necklace—if I switched them on my wedding day, I could use the time they left me alone after the ceremony to escape. My hand cupped my cheek. The crown prince slapped me and told me to wait there, and it didn't cross my mind not to. I needed to find a woman to swap places with me in the confusion of the Duke's betrayal.

  There was also the Kala Tribe. They'd be watching the ceremony to make sure nothing went wrong.

  There were variables, but it was the bare bones of a plan.

  "We all want to be someone else occasionally, but nothing is that simple." She smiled at me, and we both pretended our behaviors hadn't changed after Madeline spoke to me. I'd stopped trying to be her friend, and she'd stopped trying to manipulate me.

  There was a knock on the door, and Catherine went to open it while I checked my reflection for the last time.

  "Argh--"

  I spun around, but it was too late. My eyes met a blood-red gaze as she plunged a sword into my chest.

  I spluttered, grasping at her, holding her dress as she grabbed the necklace. I crumpled to the floor, my gaze stained red.

  "For Avea."

  ***

  I crawled from under the pile of corpses. It was quiet. Too quiet and there was this stickiness and this stench. My baby—my baby wasn't crying anymore. I--

  I retched.

  The smell was unbearable. Rot, excrement, and this odd undernote of garlic made everything worse.

  I kneeled in the grim and filth that oozed out of the corpses. They were stacked, pilled in little mounds, waiting for the Nightwatch, scavengers, and then the undertakers. I wasn't the only person who crawled free. Women and children numbered the most, but there were a few deserters.

  We looked at each other, but there was an unspoken understanding that we hadn't seen each other. The smart ones got up and left, running before the Nightwatch came to collect.

  RUN!

  I wanted to. I had. For months I ran, but they'd caught me, and he'd paid the price.

  I spent so many nights wishing he'd be quiet, but his stillness shredded me.

  I'd do anything to hear him cry. To see his silly little red face. To stare at my own failure and know I couldn't feed him, but I'd find a way.

  I unswaddled him, not daring to touch him. He looked so peaceful, like he'd wake up and giggle at me, or do the scrunch face he made every time he pooped.

  "How wonderful is she? My heart calls for the city of old. Where magic ran free.” I rocked, humming the song.

  The smell began to fade and a chill settled into the air. The people who hadn't run crumpled to the ground, their eyes wide with terror. A one-armed man grabbed a sword and slid it across his throat.

  "Tom, Tim, look what I, Tyg have found."

  "I see it."

  "Isn't it lovely?"

  "It's alive."

  "I know."

  "So, why would it be lovely?"

  "Living things can be lovely."

  "No, they can't."

  "Yes, they can."

  "No."

  "Yes."

  "Enough. I have better things to do than walking among these fleshy useless things. Let's get this over with and return to the tower."

  "Tim, you're no fun. Right, Tom? I, Tyg, think we should take a stroll. They so rarely let us out. I, Tyg, say we make the most of it. "

  "I agree, they don't let us off our leash often."

  "I'd rather chew off my leg. As you both know, my experiment is reaching a crucial stage and I can't be away for too long."

  One man stood there, but he was no man at all. His mouth was sewed shut, the thread black and rotted. Gold coins rested where his eyes should have been, melted into place, and his skin was pale and peeling.

  When he spoke again, all three voices echoed out of him. "Hello, little one. We are the Brother's Three."