Isoda

> They erased her name. Burned her bloodline. Left her for dead.

But Milena survived. Reborn into the heart of the empire that destroyed her, she moves through the royal courts like a shadow—silent, sharp, watching.

She has no interest in love. No patience for power games. Only one goal: make the crown remember what it tried to forget.

Then she meets him—the Crown Prince.
The man who unknowingly signed her family’s death.
The man who starts to notice her.
The man who, slowly… she can’t stop thinking about.

This is not the story of a girl who wanted to be queen.

This is the story of a forgotten heir who falls in love with her enemy… and still plans to bring down the kingdom

The forgotten blood

They didn't say anything at first.

The kind of silence that spreads through a room like spilled ink — slow, dark, and impossible to clean up.

The nobles pretended to sip their tea, but their eyes were on me. On her. The Queen Regent. The woman who ruled the throne while the true heir "wasn't ready."

She set her cup down slowly. "You should be very careful with your words, Lady Milena."

"You should be careful with your secrets," I said.

She gave a small laugh — fake, sharp. "You've been reading too many old stories. The past isn't meant to be dug up like bones."

I leaned in, just enough for her to hear me without the others catching every word.

"And yet bones don't stay buried forever."

Her eyes narrowed, and for the first time… I saw fear. Just a flicker. But it was there.

I left the tea room before I could say anything else that would get me dragged out by guards. Not yet. Not today.

Adrien caught up with me two corridors down. "What did you just do?"

"She knows. She's always known. But now she knows I know."

He sighed. "You just declared yourself."

"No," I whispered. "I reminded her. The blood she tried to erase? It's back. And this time... I'm not the one hiding."

Whispers That Cut Like Blades