Chapter 7 - The King's Shattered Reflection
Using the secret network of tunnels beneath the mountain, Benjamin and Evelyn managed to smuggle King Nathaniel down into the vault under the pretense of investigating a security breach in the lower archives. The king, still trapped in the heavy fog of the curse, followed mechanically with a guarded expression.
When they stepped into the chamber of whispering crystals, Nathaniel froze.
The ambient light caught the floating prisms, projecting holographic memories onto the surrounding stone walls. Nathaniel watched the impossible memory of his younger self holding his daughter beside a frozen window, whispering words of love that echoed through the vault.
His face collapsed. The color drained from his skin as the impenetrable mental barrier erected by the curse violently collided with his authentic, buried paternal love. A suffocating gasp escaped his lips as he dropped to his knees, clutching his head in agony.
Then, for the first time since the curse began, the king looked toward the young woman everyone had forgotten.
His lips trembled. “Evelyn…”
The name broke free like a dam bursting. Tears streamed down the king's weathered cheeks as the fog parted, his memories rushing back in a tidal wave of overwhelming emotion. He reached out with trembling hands. "My daughter... my little rose... what have they done to you?"
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But even as father and daughter embraced, the chamber around them shuddered. The crystals flickered violently.
His memories had not fully returned. The curse was still alive.
