The grand ballroom of Rivendel's palace was abuzz with the murmurs of nobles and dignitaries, all cloaked in the finest silks and adorned with glittering jewels.

However, beneath the polished surface, the atmosphere was thick with suspicion and doubt.

Cecilia moved through the crowd, her head held high, yet she could feel the piercing eyes of Rivendel’s high society upon her.

Whispers followed her like shadows, each laced with distrust.

The nobles of Rivendel were growing impatient; months had passed since the royal wedding, and still, there was no news of an heir.

It wasn’t long before a prominent figure, the Duke of Avonlea, voiced what many were thinking.

“Your Grace,” he addressed Cecilia during a formal dinner, “we understand the complexities of your union, but the kingdom grows anxious.

An heir would secure our alliance and solidify trust between Rivendel and Azmariah.”

Cecilia, maintaining her composure, replied,

“I am aware of the concerns, my lord. These matters are not to be rushed. What is most important is the strength and unity of our kingdoms.”

But the murmurs continued, as did the doubts.

There were those who began to question Cecilia’s usefulness and wondered if Azmariah had other intentions behind this union.

Unbeknownst to Cecilia, these doubts were fueled by the envy and malice of a woman who had long harbored feelings for Prince Leo.

Lady Estrella of Gardiche Dukedom had always believed that she would one day become the Princess of Rivendel.

She was stunningly beautiful, with raven-black hair and eyes as sharp as a hawk’s, and she carried herself with an air of entitlement that matched her station.

Her love for Leo was obsessive, a passion she had nursed since childhood.

The arrival of Cecilia shattered all her dreams.

Unable to bear the sight of Cecilia at Leo’s side, Estrella’s envy turned to hatred.

The rumors of Cecilia’s inability to produce an heir only fed her malicious thoughts.

In her mind, Cecilia was nothing but an obstacle—

one that needed to be removed.

One evening, while Leo was preoccupied with a series of urgent meetings regarding the kingdom’s defense, Estrella made her move.

She sought out a servant in the palace kitchens, a woman recently employed who was still unknown to many.

“I want you to add this to the Princess’s meal,” Estrella instructed, handing over a small vial filled with a clear, odorless liquid.

The servant hesitated, but Estrella’s cold gaze left no room for refusal. “Do this, and your future here will be secured,” she promised, her voice as sweet as poison.

Reluctantly, the servant obeyed.

That evening, Cecilia dined alone in her chambers, as Leo had been detained in yet another meeting.

The food tasted slightly off, but she dismissed it as a mere consequence of the chef’s experimentation.

However, soon after finishing her meal, she began to feel light-headed.

Her vision blurred, and a wave of nausea washed over her.

Panicked, Cecilia tried to call out for help, but her voice failed her.

She collapsed onto her bed, her body growing weaker with each passing second.

Darkness closed in around her, and she lost consciousness.

When Leo finally returned to their chambers, he found Cecilia lying motionless, her skin cold and her breathing shallow.

Fear gripped his heart as he rushed to her side, shouting for the palace physicians.

In that moment, all thoughts of duty and politics vanished, replaced by a single, overwhelming emotion:

terror.

As the physicians tended to Cecilia, Leo stood by, his fists clenched, his mind racing.

How could this have happened? Who would dare harm his wife?

When the physicians confirmed that Cecilia had been poisoned, Leo’s fear turned to fury.

Leo wasted no time.

He stormed into the kitchens, his expression dark and unforgiving.

The staff, who had been preparing for the next meal, froze in fear as he entered.

His voice, usually calm and composed, now thundered through the room.

“Who did this?” Leo demanded, his eyes blazing.

“Who dared poison the Princess?”

The staff looked at each other in terror, but no one spoke.

Leo’s patience snapped. “If none of you confess,” he growled,

“you will all pay with your lives.”

The threat hung in the air like a sword over their heads.

Just as the tension reached its peak, a young servant stepped forward, trembling.

“Your Highness... it was her,” she said, pointing to the woman Estrella had coerced.

The accused servant, pale and shaking, tried to deny the accusation, but the evidence was damning.

Leo ordered her to be taken to the palace’s hidden chamber—a place known only to a few, where those who betrayed the crown were made to confess their sins.

The woman’s pleas for mercy echoed down the corridors as she was dragged away, but Leo’s heart had hardened.

Days passed, and Cecilia remained unconscious, lying in her bed as still as death.

Her beauty, even in this state, was ethereal, like a sleeping beauty from a fairy tale.

Leo could hardly bear to look at her without feeling a crushing weight of guilt and sorrow.

He spent every waking moment by her side, his duties abandoned.

His thoughts were consumed by a single goal: to find a way to save her.

He replayed the events in his mind over and over, searching for a solution, for someone who could heal her.

The palace was silent, the usual bustle subdued by the gravity of the situation.

The nobles whispered amongst themselves, wondering if Cecilia would ever wake up and what her death might mean for the alliance between Rivendel and Azmariah.

Leo ignored them all.

He refused to leave Cecilia’s side, even as his advisors urged him to return to his duties.

How could he think of politics when the woman he had vowed to protect lay on the brink of death?

The days stretched into nights, and still, Cecilia did not stir.

Leo’s despair deepened, but so too did his resolve.

He would not lose her—not like this.

He would find a way to wake her, no matter the cost.

As he sat beside her bed, holding her hand in his, Leo made a silent vow.

When she awoke—and she would awaken—he would be there, ready to fight for her, to protect her from all that threatened to tear them apart.

And in the depths of his heart, he knew that his life, their life together, could never be the same again.