"Be a man, Yuto!"
The commander's roar cut through the storm. Rain poured onto Yuto's battered body. She gasped for air. Pain throbbed through her limbs. Sweat, blood, and rain became one.
Through blurred vision, she barely made out a figure shifting in the downpour. Preparing for another strike.
I can do this.
She clenched her sword and forced herself upright. But the figure moved faster than she could react. A sharp, blinding pain exploded at the back of her neck.
Darkness swallowed her whole.
---
Yuto stirred at the sound of hushed whispers. Her consciousness drifted back slowly. She kept her eyes closed. Pretended to still be unconscious.
"Yuto has to get stronger," a woman's voice whispered sharply. "I don't care what method you use. He must become stronger."
A man scoffed. "Might I remind you that Yuto is female, even if you raised her as a boy? Men naturally have greater muscle mass. In physical combat, she will lose sometimes. It is biology."
"Stop saying Yuto is a girl. The walls have ears."
Yuto knew exactly where this was going. With a soft groan, she stirred deliberately and opened her eyes.
Her mother rushed to her side. "Are you okay, sweetheart? Can you sit up?"
Yuto nodded and carefully pushed herself upright. A dull ache spread through her ribs, but she hid it well.
"I'm fine. No need to worry. I will return to training as soon as possible."
The tension on her mother's face finally eased. A small smile curved her lips.
"That is why I named you Yuto. The brave one. You must honor your name and keep pushing forward. Do you understand?"
Yuto nodded again.
Her mother reached out and gently stroked her hair. "This is survival. Your father must recognize your worth. Pain is growth. Alright?"
Then the warmth vanished.
Her mother's smile fell. Her hand dropped from Yuto's hair. Her face turned cold and expressionless as she faced away from the bed.
Yuto's heart stopped. She knew whatever came next would not be good news.
"Yuto," her mother said coldly, "you will go to the Kingdom of Valdoria as our representative. You will offer King Kaelith an alliance. Your father fears an impending invasion from the North."
Yuto's heart slammed against her ribs.
King Kaelith of Valdoria. The tyrant whose wrath traveled faster than the wind. Entire villages vanished overnight for daring to defy him. Diplomats trembled at the sound of his name alone. A king whose magic was so terrifying he had overpowered his own father at just nineteen.
And knowing all this… her mother still wanted to send her there. Knowing she was a woman.
The negotiations with Valdoria were as deadly as any battlefield. One wrong word, one wrong breath, and death would follow in a foreign land.
"I can't," Yuto said quietly. "Too much is at stake. Please, send Fenric instead."
Disappointment flickered across her mother's face before hardening into irritation.
"This is your chance to prove you are better than your elder brother," she snapped. "If you succeed, your father might finally make you his heir. Are you really going to let this slip? This is the opportunity we have been waiting for."
"I don't want the throne. I want a life without politics. Without blood on my hands."
Her mother's restraint snapped. Her gaze burned with barely contained fury.
"I lied to an entire kingdom for you. I raised you as a boy to save your life and mine. And now you dare defy me?"
Yuto's hands trembled at her sides.
"If you rule," her mother continued coldly, "no one can ever question you. You leave at dawn."
"If my gender is discovered—"
"Then you had better be extra careful."
She turned and walked toward the door. Just before stepping out, she paused and looked back once more.
"Rest well. Tomorrow will not be merciful."
The door slammed shut. Yuto was left alone with the weight of her fate.
---
She sank back onto the bed and stared at the plain ceiling. A dull ache pulsed behind her temples. Her thoughts spiraled wildly. Too fast. Too loud.
The invasion was real. The threat was real. And King Kaelith…
Just the thought of him made her chest tight. His power was no rumor. Even the aura surrounding him was said to make seasoned warriors hesitate. When his anger awakened, his very eyes would change color.
A monster in human form.
Maybe I can make this work.
For her mother. For the people. For the kingdom.
Her eyelids grew heavy.
---
She was no longer in her room.
Yuto stood in a forest bathed in silver light. A crystal clear lake stretched before her. Cool water rippled around her toes. She splashed the surface gently. Laughter, soft and unfamiliar, escaped her lips. A cool breeze brushed through her hair.
For the first time in forever, she felt free.
Her grey eyes shone warmly. Unguarded.
Then a hand touched her shoulder.
She stiffened.
"Yuri."
The name was spoken gently. A male voice. Low. Smooth. Dangerous in the way it vibrated beneath her skin instead of merely reaching her ears. It settled in her chest. In her throat.
For a heartbeat, she forgot how to breathe.
She turned.
The forest melted.
The lake vanished.
She was standing in a throne room made of black stone. Torches flickered along the walls, casting long shadows that danced like living things. The air was thick. Heavy. It pressed against her lungs.
And the hand that had touched her shoulder now rested on the arm of a throne.
A man sat there.
Dark hair fell across his forehead. His eyes were darker still. Bottomless. He did not move. He did not speak. He simply looked at her like she was already his.
"You dream of me often, little rabbit."
Her blood stopped moving.
That voice. The same one from the lake.
Yuto tried to step back. Her feet would not move.
"Who are you?"
He smiled. It did not reach his eyes. It was slow. Hungry. The smile of a wolf who had already cornered its prey.
"You already know."
Her heart slammed against her ribs. Once. Twice. Three times.
"Kaelith."
His smile widened.
"Good girl."
The throne room began to fade. The torches dimmed. The shadows swallowed everything. Kaelith's face was the last thing she saw. Those dark eyes. That hungry smile.
Then nothing.
---
Yuto woke up gasping.
She jolted upright in her bed. Her hand flew to her chest. Her heart hammered violently beneath her palm.
The room was dark. Silent. Empty.
But her skin still burned. Her mind still raced.
She did not know the man in her dream. She had never seen his face before. But she knew where she was going at dawn. She knew who was waiting there.
Kaelith.
It was not magic. It was not prophecy. It was fear. Pure and simple. Her mind was so consumed by the tyrant king that it had dressed her nightmare in his shadow.
Or so she told herself.
For the first time since hearing his name, fear was not the only thing tightening her chest.