《The Fall of Davina St. Rose》 00. The Prologue It was the beginning of a new world. When darkness fell on the city of Katorn, it burned brighter than all the mornings combined. The falling of a kingdom was magnificent. A female figure with hair the colour of ash was basking in the everglow of this beautiful destruction. Her body tingled with excitement, her eyes couldn''t get enough of this sight- the sight of this world burning to ashes. People were crying and screaming and yelling and praying and doing absolutely everything they could possibly think of. Perhaps it was fear or the instinct of survival. The female did not care. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. She had wanted this world to end. She had wanted it destroyed. And here it was¡­ destroyed. Such a beautiful broken ruined city- there has been no sight more beautiful than this, she thought. But there had been one such moment in the past. She was far too gone to think of it. It was prophesied that a villainess brought back from dead would be the destruction of Katorn. And yet, here she stood, unsure which part she played the villainess or the hero. The irony was not lost on her. This would not be the last city that would burn by her hands, but this one would definitely hold a place in her heart, if her heart was still where she last felt it. This was a place she once called home. 01. Where Should I Begin When I woke up in this world, I remembered nothing. The gods had decided to pluck me out of one sad miserable life to grant me another sad miserable life. This story goes back to a different time when the world I knew had evolved differently. The technological advancements never took place and instead it was replaced by things completely different. Alchemy. Magic. Spirits. It took me a while to understand this place- the way of life and the way the world worked. We had hospitals but filled with healers and magicks; chariots and horses instead of cars. A feudal world defined by nobility and elitism but advanced in the manner of transmutation and things I couldn''t possibly imagine being a reality in my last life. I wasn''t born in this plane. I had died and ended up here- in the body of a fifteen year old Davina St. Rose, daughter of the duke. From what I could make of it, she was a beloved child. And in talks of being married to the royal family. Her maids described her as an ''angel'' and she certainly looked like one too. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. Waist-length hair that appeared almost silver in the sun and an indescribable version of blue under the moonlight. Her eyes resembled lavenders of the lightest shade. Her short stature and pale translucent skin would have people wondering if she were a pixie, not that they existed, but because she looked so otherworldly. And waking up in Davina''s body was the worst thing that had ever happened to me. It was pure agony. It was torture. A version of hell specially designed to contain me in it. From the moment I took over her body, it was as if there was a storyline set and I was unable to move unless the story demanded it. It was like my body was on auto-pilot. Like it had a mind of its own. It did things as per the story. It spoke things as was required. It moved if the story required it to. It worked as an efficient human machine to progress the story without any effort from my end. I could not control my body. Until I did. And when I felt my body listen to me for the first time ever. It was bloody ecstatic. But I''m getting way ahead of myself , so let me begin the story of how things came to be. Chapter One: Waking Up To A New World The first thing I noticed after waking up was how heavy my chest felt. How breathing felt so laborious, the constant motions of inhaling air only to expel it out again. Looking back, had I known that this would be the last sensation I would feel again for a while- I would have taken such physical discomfort as a blessing. It took me a while to understand that I wasn''t in my old room. My room would never be so lavish. It wouldn''t look as beautiful and pristine as this room did. Heavy curtains. Tapestries. A four-pole wooden bed frame. Sheets that looked way too expensive for me to afford. This room looked like it came straight out of an old Victorian period drama. The sound of the door made me sit up on the bed, my back relying on the support of the headboard. There was a gasp. Before I could figure out who it was, the figure went scattering away leaving the door ajar. I tried to peer my head a little to see what was outside, but my body refused to move. My first thought at that moment was: Did I- Did I get paralyzed? Before I could give it more thought, a navy blue haired middle aged man and ashy silver haired woman entered the room. The colours did strike me as odd, but their eyes were a whole other story- sunken as if there had been no sleep for the last few days. Upon meeting my eyes, their expressions changed to that of relief. They rushed over to my bedside and gave me the biggest hug I have ever received. ¡°Davina,¡± the silver-haired woman cried. ¡°Thank Donyi that you¡¯re alive.¡± Davina? ¡°Your mother and I,¡± the man whispered, hugging tighter, ¡°were so worried, Davina.¡± Davina? again. That''s not my nam- I opened my mouth to tell that they were mistaken but it refused to budge. Instead, I felt tears streaming down my cheeks. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. Wait- what? ¡°Mama, Papa,¡± I heard my mouth say as I wiped the tears, ¡°I¡¯m sorry for making you worry.¡± Mama? Papa? Those are not the terms of endearment I use for parents. ¡°Oh, Davina,¡± mama snuggled my head on her chest, ¡°you needn¡¯t worry about that. We¡¯re just glad you¡¯re here. Your brothers-¡± ¡°DAVINA!¡± There was a yell before the owner of the voice ran inside panting. Another figure followed in after. ¡°-are here,¡± mama completed with a smile on her face as she let go of me. The two people who just ran in, I¡¯m guessing are Davina¡¯s brothers. They looked exactly like the parents- The tall one with ash silver hair and the shorter one with hair a mix of silver and the darkest of blue. I couldn''t tell if they were older but the concern on their faces was something I couldn''t miss. These family members, as I could see, cared about this Davina. ¡°Jasper, Paxton,¡± I heard my mouth say, ¡°I¡¯m fine. You guys don¡¯t need to be worried.¡± Their face and body relaxed. Taking out a sigh of relax, the taller one proceeded to hug me as tightly as mama and papa did. I could tell he was strong because I felt like my organs was being squeezed. ¡°We were worried,¡± says the taller one. So I¡¯ve been told. ¡°You were unconscious for days. I shouldn''t have let you-¡± ¡°Brother, please don¡¯t. She¡¯s fine now,¡± the shorter one replied much too quickly for me to understand let me- what?. ¡°Okay, now,¡± papa coughed, while mama gently caressed the top of my head. ¡°It¡¯s not good to crowd around her. Leave her to rest.¡± Could anyone tell me what happened? ¡°Davina,¡± mama said softly, ¡°it was a scary time for the family. Your condition was getting worse by the day. We called the mages, the healers, the magicks, and were even suggesting calling the heretics to wake you up.¡± The what? ¡°You were unconscious. Almost thought you¡¯d never wakeup.¡± Her voice grew serious all of a sudden, the fear and concern flickering in her eyes. ¡°You almost drowned. ¡± I don''t understand. I didn''t drown. The last I remember was coming back home from work. ¡°From now, your mother and I have decided," papa spoke now, "that you are not to walk anywhere near the forest or the lake. The guards will see to it that you don¡¯t lay a foot there.¡± ¡°Papa-¡± ¡°We can¡¯t risk almost losing you again.¡± His voice stern and low. ¡°Yes, papa." "Now get some rest, will send for a magick. We still need to rule out any sort of disturbances." One by one they left leaving Davina to rest, and now I could finally try to make sense of whatever was happening to me. Chapter Two: Living in Davina鈥檚 Body My body wouldn¡¯t budge. No matter what I did or how much effort I exerted, I was not in control of this body. Though my body couldn¡¯t pace back and forth, I was pacing mentally. This body- Davina¡¯s body- is a body I am suddenly inhabiting. Out of nowhere. Perhaps this body probably recognises that my soul is not Davina''s and therefore refuses to listen to me. Which leaves a very important question, Where is Davina? Is there a chance that this could be a soul swap, perhaps she is living in my body? I couldn''t help but mentally laugh at that thought. If that were the case, tough luck, Davina. I sincerely wish you all the best. And there is this other possibility- did Davina drown and somehow I came to inhabit this body? Those people- Davina¡¯s family- said she had almost drowned and was unconscious for days. Could it be that Davina died at that moment and somehow I managed to take over this body? If that''s the case, I do honestly feel bad for her family. They really seem to adore her. A farfetched possibility I''m the one who died and I''m in purgatory. Shudder. No. I don¡¯t even want to think about it. Taking in my surroundings I can make few things certain. Davina is a beloved family member and seemingly from a rich family. A loving set of parents and two brothers. And that Davina doesn''t know how to swim, obviously. Okay, plan of action: - Davina: dead or alive? - Why can¡¯t I move my body or speak? - Is there a possibility that me and Davina are both inhabiting this body? - What about my lif No, not important. As per the experience right after waking up, it seems like this body works on auto-pilot. Pro: There¡¯s no chance of me slipping up and doing something Davina wouldn¡¯t. Ergo, I wouldn''t be ousted as a fake. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. Con: No bodily autonomy. Perhaps with time, it could change? Unsure. ¡°Miss Davina?¡± I heard a knock on my door. My head turned towards it. ¡°You can come in, Lisa,¡± my voice called out to Lisa. So we''re being introduced to another person in Davina''s life. I see a tiny frail person in maid attire walk in- her very much thick eyebrows furrowed. Maid attire- I''m guessing Davina''s either elite level rich or she''s a noble. Will ahve to wait and see. ¡°I heard you¡¯re awake, so I came to see you,¡± she mumbled and then immediately fell to the floor. In tears, she started wailing. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Miss Davina. I should have paid attention. It was my fault. If only I had-¡± ¡°Lisa,¡± I heard my voice say very gently, ¡°you don¡¯t need to apologise. I¡¯m fine. Nothing. Happened.¡± She wailed louder. My body lifted itself from the bed and knelt near her. ¡°Lisa,¡± my soft gentle voice spoke again. ¡°Look at me.¡± She lifted her head and I saw her wet brown eyes. It looked like she hadn¡¯t slept for weeks. ¡°You don¡¯t need to apologise.¡± She sniffled and wiped her tears away. ¡°Good,¡± I felt my lips form a smile. "Now we don''t talk about what happened, alright?" She nodded. Okay, that''s interesting. Something happened right before Davina drowned. "Ah, miss,¡± she quickly got up and so did my body. ¡°This came for you.¡± She handed me a letter. I opened it and mentally gasped as loud as I possibly could. I felt my smile get bigger. ¡°Ah, the prince, isn¡¯t he so lovely?¡± Uh- what? The prince? ¡°I hear he¡¯s a total romantic,¡± Lisa nodded while wiping the rest of her tears away. ¡°What did he write?¡± My hands show her the note and I wait for her reaction. Her lips form a quivering smile. ¡°You¡¯re so lucky, miss,¡± she grins. ¡°You have your pick of princes to chose from." Uh- what? x2 ¡°You should send a reply!¡± she added. Can they not read what it actually says? ¡°I should, shouldn¡¯t I?¡± My hands clasped together. ¡°What should I write?¡± ¡°Miss, while you think about it, I¡¯ll get the writing pad for you!¡± My body takes me to the desk and I wait there with my hands crossed on the desk table. Lisa gets the pad and my fingers begin to write. Something is just not adding up. It''s been less than a day and there are several plot twists in mine and Davina''s life. I try to make sense of what the note actually said while my mouth reads out the letter to her. "My dear Prince, I am deeply apologetic for having made you worry but I am conscious as of now. As a token of apology, would you like to have tea in the St. Rose Manor whenever your schedule allows it? It indeed has been a long time since we last met. I shall be waiting for your response. Yours, Davina St. Rose" The note had one simple sentence. Crystal clear. And whatever response Davina was replying is completely unrelated to the note she got. It doesn''t make sense. Can Lisa not see it? Is it just me? Given the strange nature of events that had been happening today, I wouldn''t put anything past it. Handing over the response to Lisa, I grab the note once again. ¡°Your reality is a game.¡° Chapter Three: A Surreal Reality They coddled her. They coddled Davina a lot. I tried to take in as much as information as I could to see if there was anything out of the ordinary (because of the note) but instead I felt myself sink in to this reality. Eventually, I found myself putting that thought away and experience Davina''s life comfortably. Ever since I woke up, I have not been left alone. It''s either her mother, her tall brother, her shorter brother, Lisa and occasionally her father. He seems much too busy to be spending time watching his daughter rest but no. Davina''s health is of the utmost importance and it''s very obvious that they''re scared that she might go unconscious again. Her mother would spoon feed as if she was feeding a baby. Though all this love and attention was for Davina, I couldn''t help but feel the love radiating from them. This was the most I''ve ever experienced love and also the most I''ve ever felt like a family. It takes dying to get love. That''s just depressing. "Davina. The prince said he would like to visit," her mother said, lifting up the spoon. "Should we let him?" My head nodded. "That would be nice, mama." Ah yes, the prince. So between their talks I have come to discover that she is betrothed to the royal family. She has her pick of which prince she wants- since she''s such an angel. But the prince that Davina and her mother are talking about- no idea. All I know is that there are four brothers and it''s Davina''s choice in the matter. "Well, then we''ll send a messenger to relay that he could come over." Her mother smiled. "I don''t mean to pressure you but have you decided on which prince you like." My body sighed. "Not yet, mama. But soon. I promise. " "Alright, take your time. But we need to give an answer before your sixteenth birthday." Davina''s mother had a really warm and inviting smile. A smile you would expect a mother to shower it to her children. It held such maternal warmth that I ended up wishing for her to be my mother. In technicality, she is. And I can''t help but think how lucky Davina is. It is like she had it all. Two days after her mother sent the messenger, ''the prince'' in question arrived. He was Prince Zen, the third son of the King. The entire house was abuzz with excitement. The house had been cleaned from top to bottom. The best delicacies were being prepared. The maids'' and butlers'' were given their schedule and their duties. The guards were to be on alert. It really felt like royalty would be stepping through those doors. The power a royal has. Whew. The entire family stood outside awaiting the prince. This reality felt so surreal. The prince''s carriage was seen in a distance and I saw the parents stiffen up. Her mother gave a weak smile and turned her attention to the arriving carriage. The carriage had to be made of gold. I knew it was wood, but it felt like gold had been poured on it. The royal insignia was carved on the carriage door and the handle, I''m sure, was made of gold. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. When the door opened, I swear if I had control of this body- my jaw would drop. The prince was gorgeous. Well, he was gorgeous in the first look. The more I noticed him I thought that maybe he was just better than average looking guy and the appealing wow factor was the royalty aspect of it. He was taller than Paxton, the shorter brother I remembered, but he was as well-built as Jasper. His hair was as dark as the night sky and eyes a flickering shade of grey and green- like it changed colours every time he blinked. Magic, maybe? His jawline was as well defined as his shoulders were broad. Everything screamed regal! And if his looks didn''t make you pay attention, then his aura definitely would. I knew that magic was a common practice in this world, Jasper was one of the warrior-mages- but something about this prince was off-putting. Something just seemed... off. The more he talked, the more I realised... it''s all just so superficial. Like I was watching some old period drama play unfolding in front of me. I felt soul-sick, since I couldn''t physically feel a thing. The parents were inadvertently charmed and he seemed good friends with Jasper. Paxton simply assessed him top to bottom and excused himself. Wish I could do the same, but fat chance of that happening if I can''t even speak. I know I shouldn''t judge so harshly but it really did feet like I was some character in a play, saying things that needed to be said and enacting scene after scene. That should have been the first clue as to my reality. But I was busy not paying attention, and letting this scene between me and the prince play out in the solarium. I didn''t need to pay attention to come up with a response to his questions or his tales of travel, my mouth was answering everything that needed to be said. It was when the prince started talking about a name I had most definitely heard in my past life that I finally understood this reality and what the note meant. This was a name that had been ruthlessly cursed over and over again. "The rumours have it that Miss Gotha is no more as wicked as she was." He chuckled, his eyes wandering off to a distance. "It appears that she had changed overnight after a near-death experience last year. She is growing up to be quite a lady, quite fascinating really. What would you have to say about that, Miss St. Rose?" Carina Izkeil Gotha. The daughter of Romana Hexley Gotha, the Lady of the Shadows and Mystique. However, Carina is rumoured to have no magical capabilities herself. She is described as a Grade-A spoilt brat but with an ethereal look that she most definitely inherited from her mother. Flaming pink hair and eyes of gold- a characteristic of the Gotha matrilineal line. There was a game my co-worker in the cafe kept playing. She would give me a running commentary on it. How the villainess kept foiling her plans and how she simply adored the fourth prince. I could never play it- I didn''t have a means to play it. I had a Nokia that was worth more than I paid for and the game most definitely didn''t work there. The game she kept talking about, it was a viral overnight sensation worldwide: The Royal Love Story She despised Carina''s character to the core. She even showed the character profile so that we could ''hate'' her together. In her words, "Carina is a bully, a tormentor and the most twisted evil villainess I have ever seen in a game." Thinking about her now, I do sort of miss her. There was one thing that she had said and remembering it now makes me feel uneasy. The reason why the game was so popular was that if you successfully won over one of the four princes, it would lead to Carina''s demise and you would end up saving the entire kingdom. But if you didn''t succeed in winning over any of the four princes, the kingdom would burn down to nothing. And the character you play in the game would end up dying. That explains my reality and perhaps the characters around me. If Prince Zen is one of the love interests and Carina is the villainess, then who would the player''s character be? And it finally hit me. "Ah so the character we''re playing is the daughter of a duke and she''s betrothed to the royal family. She can literally pick any of the hot princes! Isn''t that fun?" I could hear her voice echo in my head. "Even her name means beloved. Davina." It was like taking a punch in a gut. I have transmigrated into a game where I can possibly lead to my own death.