chapter 12

Desperate for answers, the king delved into the oldest records of the kingdom. Hidden within the forbidden archives, buried under centuries of dust and forgotten history, he found an ancient text—a prophecy older than the kingdom itself.

It spoke of a time when the first great ruler of the land had made a terrible bargain. To secure absolute power, he had sacrificed the one he loved most, offering their soul to the gods in exchange for an unshakable dynasty. The gods, cruel and amused by mortal ambition, accepted—but with a price

.Every king who sits upon this throne shall know greatness, but never love. For love is the price of power. And should a king find true love, the throne shall take it away, as it has always done."The truth was far worse than a mere fate of misfortune. The throne itself had been forged in blood and betrayal. Every king after the first was bound to pay the price for his ambition. Every great ruler who had truly loved had unknowingly fulfilled a centuries-old contract, their beloved stolen to keep the kingdom strong.

But those who did not truly love? They were left untouched.

The curse had never been a cruel twist of destiny. It was a debt, one that every king unknowingly repaid.

Armed with this truth, the king now faced a choice that no ruler before him had ever understood:

Accept the curse and continue the cycle, ruling in power but forever alone.

Find a way to break the contract, even if it meant sacrificing the kingdom itself.

.For the first time, the fate of the throne was not in the hands of destiny—it was in his.

But breaking a god's contract would come at an unimaginable cost

The king, armed with the truth of the curse, stood at the precipice of history. He had uncovered the terrible bargain made by the first ruler, the cycle of love and loss that had plagued every king since, and the cruel price that bound the throne in sorrow.

But what he did not yet know was that the gods had been watching.

As the king spoke the truth aloud, as he defied the destiny carved into his bloodline, the skies darkened. Thunder roared, the earth trembled, and the very heavens seemed to split apart.

The gods descended—not as benevolent rulers of fate, but as titanic forces of raw, celestial power. Their voices echoed through the kingdom, shaking the walls of the palace.

"You dare defy what has been written?"

"You seek to break what was meant to last

for eternity?

"

The people cowered. The priests wept. The advisors begged the king to submit before divine wrath consumed them all.

But the king did not kneel.

Then, just as suddenly as their fury had erupted, the gods did something unexpected.

They laughed.

The echoes of their amusement rang across the skies, filling the halls of the palace with an eerie, almost mocking joy. The king, standing his ground, felt confusion mix with anger.

"Do you truly believe this was ever about punishment?" one god asked, amusement in their voice.

Did you think we sought suffering? That we demanded payment for power?" another mused.

"No," the oldest god finally spoke, their voice both ancient and endless. "This was never about a debt. It was never about sorrow. We did this for one reason alone—our own entertainment.

"The truth was more maddening than the king had ever imagined. The gods had created the curse not as punishment, but as a challenge—a game that had lasted for generations.

They had watched as king after king suffered, as love was lost, as sorrow deepened—waiting, simply waiting, for the one ruler who would finally rise above it.

"You were the first to see beyond the veil," the gods admitted. "The first to question, the first to refuse fate. And now, because of you, the game is over."

The weight of centuries was gone. The throne was no longer bound by sacrifice, no longer a place of inevitable sorrow.

The king, who had once thought himself cursed, was now the one who had ended the greatest trial of all.

And the gods, their hunger for amusement sated, retreated to their celestial realm—content to watch, but no longer interfere.

For the first time in history, a king could rule without the shadow of fate looming over his heart.

And for the first time, the gods smiled—not out of cruelty, but out of admiration.