Chapter 17: Death by a Thousand Doubts

Doubt came not with shouts, but in whispers.

It seeped into Aurora's confidence like slow-acting poison — invisible, patient.

She sat alone in her study, papers scattered across her desk. Business mergers, charity contracts, and event invitations — the empire she was rebuilding stood tall on paper. But inside, her foundation trembled.

She stared into her reflection in the window. Her golden eyes, once fierce, now shimmered with exhaustion.

"Am I faking this?" she whispered. "Am I truly her… or just a woman broken enough to believe she's something more?"

A knock broke her spiral.

Sebastian entered, holding a velvet case.

"I had this restored," he said quietly, setting it before her.

She opened it slowly.

Inside lay a ceremonial hair crown — phoenix-shaped, elegant, laced with ruby threads. Ancient and imperial.

She touched it, a jolt of memory surging.

"You wore it the night you sentenced the traitor generals," Sebastian murmured. "And you did not waver."

"But what if I waver now?" Aurora asked, tears finally falling. "What if I'm pretending strength I no longer have?"

He sat beside her, not offering platitudes — only presence.

"You died once because you trusted the wrong people. But you lived again because something inside you refused to stay buried."

She looked at him. "How do you believe in me so easily?"

"Because I remember the girl who fought an empire with a pen and her voice," he said. "And because I see her in you. Even when you don't."

Aurora breathed deeply. The doubts would come again, but tonight, she had silenced them.

With truth. And him.