CHAPTER 23 - Familiar
The Palace of Valtherion always looked different at night.
During the day, the place was filled with the voices of nobles, knights, and servants moving endlessly through its halls. But when night came, the marble corridors fell silent. Torchlight cast long shadows across the white stone walls.
Keira walked alone through the palace corridor.
Her steps were slow.
Not because she was afraid.
But because she was trying to feel something.
It had been almost three weeks since she returned from the Evermont Residence.
Three weeks living in the palace.
Three weeks seeing the faces of people who had once known Aelirra.
Yet until now not a single thing had made her heart react.
No sign.
No strange sense of familiarity.
No clue about Keenan.
Keira stopped in front of a tall window overlooking the inner courtyard of the palace.
The night wind blew softly.
"Did I miss him?" she murmured.
If Keenan's soul truly existed in this world…
She should have felt it by now. Nevil had once said that she might not recognize Keenan with her eyes.
But her heart should know, Keira closed her eyes for a moment.
Trying to focus.
Trying to feel something.
But... Nothing.
Only the night wind, and the silence of the palace.
Footsteps echoed from the far end of the corridor.
Keira opened her eyes.
Someone was walking toward her from the shadows of the hallway.
Tall, Broad-shouldered.
His steps were calm but heavy, like someone accustomed to wearing armor.
Keira recognized him immediately.
Sir Kael Dravenhart.
Kael stopped a few steps away from her. "Your Majesty."
Keira glanced at him slightly. "You always appear out of nowhere."
Kael lowered his head slightly.
"It is a knight's habit."
Keira leaned her shoulder against the window. "Were you following me?"
"My apologies… Your Majesty," Kael replied.
Keira studied him for a few seconds before saying, "You still feel guilty, don't you?"
Kael did not answer immediately. His gaze shifted to the marble floor.
"That night," he said quietly,
"I should have been there protecting you."
Silence fell between them.
"I was not there."
Keira looked at him carefully.
"And that makes you feel responsible?"
Kael nodded slightly.
"If I had been there…" he paused. "…perhaps things would have been different."
Keira let out a soft sigh.
"Aelirra might not have died that night."
Kael looked at her.
Keira continued,
"Aelirra is the one who died."
She pointed at herself.
"I am Keira."
Silence hung between them.
Finally Kael spoke softly.
"For some people, perhaps."
Keira raised an eyebrow.
"For some people?"
Kael's gaze shifted—softer now.
"For me… you are still the same person."
Keira was about to respond when suddenly something happened.
Her chest throbbed.
One second.
Two seconds.
Keira froze.
Strange.
As if something inside her recognized something else.
Her gaze locked onto Kael immediately.
Kael frowned slightly.
"Your Majesty?"
But Keira did not answer.
Her heart was still pounding.
She didn't know why.
There was no reason.
No memory..... No explanation.
But something inside her whispered.
Familiar.
Keira stepped back once, her eyes still fixed on Kael.
Kael looked confused.
"Is something wrong?"
Keira did not answer. Her thoughts were spinning rapidly.
No.
Impossible.
Keira quickly turned her face away.
"It's nothing."
She let out a soft breath, as if trying to laugh at her own thoughts.
If she started suspecting every person she met, then the entire kingdom could be Keenan.
Keira looked at Kael for a few more seconds before finally saying quietly,
"Kael."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Keira hesitated for a moment before crossing her arms.
"There's something I want to ask."
Kael nodded slightly.
"Please."
Keira looked at him again.
"How close was Aelirra to you?"
The question made Kael fall silent for a moment.
Not because he was offended.
More because he seemed to be choosing his words carefully.
"The Duke of Evermont and I… studied at the same academy," he finally answered.
"Were you friends?" Keira asked.
Kael nodded.
"Yes. We were quite close."
His voice remained calm.
"Because of that, I often visited the Evermont Residence."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"That was where I often met Her Majesty Aelirra."
His gaze softened slightly.
"She was still very young at the time."
Keira watched him.
"So you were close."
Kael shook his head slowly.
"Not in that way."
He seemed to think for a moment before saying,
"I was simply… someone who was often in that house."
His tone remained calm.
"Her Majesty Aelirra always treated me kindly."
He lowered his head slightly.
"And I always hoped she would continue to be happy."
A brief silence fell between them.
Keira observed him.
There was no excessive emotion.
No dramatic nostalgia.
Only simple sincerity.
After a few seconds, Keira asked again,
"Then… what was Aelirra's relationship with King Alaric?"
That question made Kael fall silent longer than before.
His jaw tightened slightly.
Several seconds passed before he finally answered.
"King Alaric…" he said quietly.
His voice remained controlled, but there was something colder beneath it.
He took a short breath, as if holding back something he did not wish to say too openly.
"He is someone who cares deeply for Her Majesty Aelirra."
Keira did not move. Her gaze remained calm, but sharp.
Kael continued,
"He loved her."
His voice was not harsh, but it was no longer as gentle as before.
There was a thin tension he failed to hide completely.
"And Her Majesty Aelirra…" he continued after a brief pause, "…was very happy by his side."
Keira raised an eyebrow slightly.
"Happy?"
Kael nodded once.
The movement was stiffer than before.
"I rarely saw her smile that widely except when she was with the King."
The night wind blew again through the tall window in the corridor.
The torches on the walls flickered softly.
Keira studied him more carefully now.
Kael still stood straight as always.
But something was different.
His tone was too controlled.
Too neat.
Like someone holding back emotions he did not want to show.
Keira looked down at the marble floor for a moment before finally saying softly,
"Interesting."
Kael frowned slightly.
"Your Majesty?"
But Keira only shook her head.
"It's nothing."
She turned her gaze back outside the window.
Her mind was now filled with countless questions.