REVENGE OF THE SILVER CURSED PRINCESS

Kaelith pov

I walked down the grand halls of the palace with a heart so light I thought it might float from my chest. The marble floor gleamed beneath my sandals, catching the glow of golden torches, and every step felt like a drumbeat of destiny. This was the season of my coronation. My time had come. 

I trained with the blade until my hands bled, studied the laws of our land until my eyes blurred, endured long nights of counsel and diplomacy while others feasted. I have done everything for this kingdom. 

Princess Kaelith, a trembling servant called as he approached, bowing low. “The cabinet and your father request your presence in the council chamber.” 

I smiled, my chest tightening with joy. “Of course,” I said, my voice steady despite the storm of happiness inside me. The dream was no longer a dream; it was reality. 

I swept into the chamber, head held high, my coronation robes trailing like a river of white and gold. But as soon as I entered, a strange chill touched the air. My father sat at the head of the long table, his crown heavy on his brow, his eyes unreadable. The ministers and councilors lined the sides, their faces drawn tight, their gazes lowered. 

Something was wrong. 

“Father,” I greeted him, bowing. “You summoned me.” 

Silence answered me, thick and suffocating. Then one of the cabinet ministers, Lord Harron, a man whose approval I had sought for years, cleared his throat and spoke the words that broke me. 

“Princess,” he began, his voice heavy with false regret, “We are sorry to announce this, but after much deliberation, we cannot name you heir to the throne.” 

The ground tilted beneath me. “What?” My voice cracked, though I tried to steady it. 

Lord Harron’s eyes flicked away from mine. “The people of the land fear you. They whisper that you will rule as a tyrant, that your ambition burns too fiercely. And…” He hesitated, then said the words with finality: “A woman cannot be king.” 

The chamber blurred. I stared at them, at him, at the men who had trained me, praised me, promised me everything. My gaze fell on my father, my anchor, my king. Surely he would rise now, surely he would defend me, correct their blasphemy. Surely he would say: This is my daughter, my heir, my blood. She is the future of Daravaria. 

But he did not. 

He sat silent, eyes lowered, his mouth a grim line. Not a word. Not a protest. Not a single defense. 

My heart splintered. 

I stumbled back, shaking my head. “No, no, this is madness. After everything I have given, after all the years of service, of sacrifice, would you cast me aside because I am a woman? Because I am feared?” 

No one answered. No one dared meet my eyes. My father said nothing. 

Shame burned hotter than fire. My breath came ragged, my vision clouded with tears I refused to shed before them. Without another word, I turned and fled. The door slammed behind me, the echo chasing me down the corridors as I ran, my feet carrying me not to the throne that should have been mine, but to the prison of my own chambers. 

I locked the door. I sank to the floor. And I broke. 

Tears carved lines down my face as I buried my head in my hands. Every memory returned, every sleepless night of study, every wound taken in training, every smile I was forced to hide my exhaustion, every moment I believed I was shaping myself into the ruler they needed. I remembered standing beside my father during councils, speaking with courage when others faltered, settling disputes with fairness, pledging myself to a land I would give my life for. 

And now they had discarded me like refuse. 

Days passed. I did not eat. Food trays piled by the door, untouched, their scents turning my stomach. My ladies-in-waiting whispered my name through the wood, but I did not answer. I lay in darkness, my body wasting, my spirit collapsing under the weight of betrayal. 

Until last, my father came. 

I heard the scrape of the key in the lock, the creak of the door. His footsteps were heavy, slower than I had ever known them to be. He stood in the doorway, crown still upon his head, the man I had once adored. 

“Daughter,” he said softly. 

I rose weakly, my body trembling but my spirit aflame. Rage pulsed through me, sharp and unyielding. “Father,” I spat, “you knew. You knew this could happen. And yet you sat there in silence while they destroyed me. You did not fight. You did not speak. You let them dictate my fate like a coward.” 

His face hardened. “It is the will of the people, Kaelith. They do not want you as their sovereign. I cannot rule against their choice.” 

His words cut deeper than any blade. “Their choice?” My voice shook with fury. “What of your choice? What of your blood, your legacy, your own daughter? You let them strip me bare, and you bowed to them. You are no king. You are shameless, heartless, and weak. You have failed me. You have failed your kingdom.” 

The silence cracked, sharp and violent. My father’s hand struck my face. He said to my face, "You are a monster, a beast. The people don't want you to accept your fate!!"

The sting of his palm burned, my jaw tightening, my teeth clenching until they ached. My eyes snapped up to his, blazing with fury, but I did not cry. I would not give him the satisfaction. 

He turned and left without a word. The door shut behind him, leaving me in the ruins of myself. 

I stood there, chest heaving, hand pressed to the burning mark on my cheek. My heart clenched so tightly I thought it might stop. My mind screamed, but beneath the roar of despair, another sound stirred a whisper, dark and steady. 

Not defeat. Not surrender. 

Anger. 

And in that anger, a promise formed, sharp as steel and unbreakable as fire. 

If they denied me my crown, I would carve my own throne.

If they silenced me, I would return as their reckoning.

If my father did not fight for me, then I would fight for myself. 

For I was Princess Kaelith of Daravaria. And this was not my end.