Among the four continents, Vernon was the biggest and held the most influence, followed by Roswald, Thefadore, and Cronos. Along the border between Vernon and Roswald, there was a vast stretch of land where the most powerful clan of witches, the Azure clan, ruled.
This witch clan operated independently, existing in its own distinct state. They remained uninvolved in the affairs and disputes of the continents, smoothly conducting their trade and business relations with the other lands.
It was where Sienna came from.
She was not just an ordinary witch, but the sole child of the clan's king, who served as the princess and the heir to her father's legacy.
Born with the mark of the Azure clan's witch goddess, Azura, everyone believed she was different, destined to wield greater power than anyone in the clan and to emerge as a remarkable ruler.
However, when Sienna was examined by the priestess after birth, her parents were overcome with disappointment upon discovering that she possessed the ability to cast curses but not spells.
Witches who could only cast curses were considered outcasts in society. They were believed to possess dark energy from birth and thrown into dungeons.
The Roselei family held a long-standing, respected position in the world of witch clans across all continents, and it was unprecedented for a descendant not to possess the power to cast spells.
Fearing that their clan would regard their family as cursed and lose the respect of their clansmen, Sienna's parents chose to keep her away from public view.
They confined her within the walls of their castle, preventing her from even setting foot in the castle gardens, and propagated a tale about her being the chosen vessel for the witch goddess's powers, emphasizing that she must remain untouched by a man until the age of eighteen to harness her full potential.
This story was widely accepted, and Sienna was revered by her people who believed her parents' narrative.
She was treated as a goddess, and her purity was considered sacred, to the extent that no male, not even a castle servant, was permitted to look at her. Even the female servants dared not raise their heads before her.
However, as Sienna grew older, she came to realize that she wasn't as exceptional as people believed her to be.
She was flawed, a disgrace to her family and clan, something her family preferred to keep hidden.
It was a few months before her eighteenth birthday when Sienna stumbled upon her parents' plan to marry her off to one of the sons of the Duke of Amstel Fortress.
"She must wed a powerful nobleman to compensate for her lack of power, Frederick," she heard her mother saying. "If we form an alliance with Amstel Fortress, we can maintain our standing within the clan, even if the truth is revealed."
"But Elena, what if the Von Amstels perceive it as deceit? Everyone believes that our daughter is the most special witch in the Azure clan."
"Then we can tell the people that she fell ill when a man managed to sneak into the castle and touched her before her eighteenth birthday. We can claim that this is the reason she lost her purity and her powers. It's rather scandalous, yes, but it seems to be the only way to save our reign. Our people adore Lucienna. We can publicly execute a scapegoat for allegedly defiling the princess, and with that, we'll have everyone's sympathy."
"If we go through with this, will the Duke still accept her as his daughter-in-law?"
"He will," Elena asserted. "We possess something in our territory that the Duke desires, and he's willing to do whatever it takes to have it. He seeks a partnership in the trade of the herbs that only grow in our land. It's a mutually beneficial arrangement, Frederick. The Von Amstels will benefit from our resources, and we'll leverage their name and influence to maintain our standing."
Sienna was deeply disheartened by this revelation.
She rushed to her room, where her tears flowed freely.
Why did she have to endure this situation? The entire clan had placed the burden of being someone special on her. Why must she bear the weight of everyone's expectations and live in misery for not living up to their ideal image of her?
With her knowledge of her parents' plan, when her mother came to see her a few weeks later, she wasn't surprised by the news she brought.
"We have found someone for you to marry," Elena said coldly.
Contrary to what their clansmen believed, her parents had never treated her as someone special. In fact, she felt like a prisoner in her own home. Since she had been old enough to comprehend the world around her, she had noticed that her parents had never once held her in their arms or shown her any affection.
"Well, we had originally considered the firstborn son of the Duke of Amstel as your potential match, but it seems the Duke is a bit wary of us, so he offered his third son instead."
Sienna's eyes widened.
The Amstel Fortress was the nearest land on the Vernon continent to their own. Spending extended periods in the castle without anyone to talk to had led her to develop a habit of eavesdropping on the servants' conversations.
From what she had overheard, the third son of the Duke of Amstel was described as a ruthless young man who had difficulty getting along with his peers, even within his own family.
Sienna had heard many unsettling stories about him over the years, to the extent that even the mere mention of his name sent shivers down her spine.
"At first, I was offended. How could he offer us his third son, whose reputation is no better than a dog's?" Sienna's mother lamented. "But then, I realized that Lemiel Von Amstel isn't all that bad. He's a son of a princess, and he's a favored nephew of the king. The Duke may not be considering him as an heir to his dukedom, but I can see that may change in the future."
"But, m-mother, that son of the duke is…"
Sienna attempted to express her concerns, but she stopped abruptly upon seeing Elena's furrowed brows.
"Are you trying to say that you don't want to marry him?" Elena's voice grew stern.
"Lucienna, my dear, you are receiving more than you deserve. Lemiel Von Amstel may be just a third son, but if his name didn't carry weight, he would have been banished from the Duke's castle long ago. His ties to the royal family mean something. So don't you dare say you don't want him! You're nothing more than a useless nitwit in this family! You should be grateful!"
Sienna could only blink back her tears, knowing very well that she could do nothing about the future that awaited her.