As I stared at Keiran, my hands were curled tightly into fist, as I tried my best to process the most revolting thing I'd heard since I came to this world. A torrent of questions clouded my mind, reviving all the memories I got from the original Karina when I first woke up from this world. They never met. I am sure of that. I even saw Karina's drafts of all the characters she used, and Keiran was not a part of it. She wasn't even aware that Achilles has a twin named Keiran, and just used that name after scrolling through the web."Are you okay? You look pale." Keiran's soothing voice laced with worry, pierced my heart like a dagger. It felt both comforting and painfully ironic that this person who was once my other half, became someone else's twin. How could someone like him be tied to that heartless monster who took his life in my world? The sickening thought twisted my stomach, leaving me struggling with the conflict that my former world and this new world brought to my life.Maybe everything that happened so far –the switching of souls, this world- isn't real. Perhaps I am truly dead, and this is a trial that I must endure before I can enter the afterlife.I tried to convince myself, but the warmth of Keiran's hand, gently rubbing my back, the tightening of my chest while hyperventilating, and the worried expression of everyone in the club room, amplified the reality of it all.My beloved twin is tied to him –the person who took his life – in this world, as if someone is playing a cruel prank on me. Or perhaps I am being punished for giving up on my life back then, for defying what ending that the original Karina wanted me to have?My vision blurred with unshed tears before everything around me turned black, leaving only the memories of my worst nightmare –the night I lost my twin by the hands of that person -the night that extinguished the deep-rooted feelings I had for Achilles Dimitri.--The moon acts like a pale beacon in the starless sky, as I followed in haste behind my twin. My heart is racing wildly and my breath was caught in my throat as we made our way through the winding paths of the forest. Keiran, dressed in black with the mark of his secret guild, managed to sneak me out of the palace after Achilles locked me up in my room, together with his few trusted members from the Artisan's Den flanking us. Freedom felt so close, yet the fear of being caught clung to my skin like a chill. I wasn't scared for my own life, but for these people who convinced me to flee after our family were branded as traitor, orchestrated by my cousin and his secret lover, Lady Arabella -Achilles Dimitri's first love -planting all the evidence to frame me and my family, by trying to assassinate the king using the knights from our duchy that they planted meticulously, and at the same time make it appear that I was trying to poison Lady Arabella while having tea with me."Just a little further," Keiran whispered softly. Despite everything that has been happening to us, he remained calm as if he knew something that I don't. He removed his artifact, revealing his hair that is as dark as the night like mine. I could see the determination etched on his face as he guides me carefully in the dark forest, acting as my beacon of hope when I'm filled with hopelessness.As much as I wanted to clear my name and stay in the capital until the trials ended, Keiran was right about one thing. Achilles won't save me because it involved the only woman he loves. Which is why I go with Keiran's plan of going to the North to take refuge for a while, as we planned to clear our names without compromising everyone's safety. However, I can't take off the fear as we continue maneuvering the forest, as if something foreboding was about to happen.And I was right, when suddenly, I felt presence surrounding us in the darkness. My heart sank. "They've found us!" I hissed, panic rising in my chest, yet Keiran remained calm as he put back his earring to change his hair back to crimson red, underneath his hooded-cape."Stay behind me." He whispered with such calmness in his voice before taking off his cape, right when Achilles appeared flanked by his knights, their armor glinting ominously in the moonlight."Karina!" He called out my name in a voice laced with rage. "So, it was you, huh? The one responsible for her escape." His voice dripping with malice as he glared at Keiran blocking me from his sight."If I don't, you will just let my lady die." Keiran responded, emphasizing the word 'my lady'. "The moment you pointed your sword at her even after proving her innocence by drinking the same tea from that lady's cup, you still didn't believe her. So, tell me..." Keiran added as his grip tightened on the hilt of his sword, "Why should I entrust you the safety of my lady?""Keiran..." I tugged his shirt, trying to stop him from provoking Achilles. I peeked behind Keiran and tried to reason out with Achilles. "Please let me go for now, Achilles. I will prove my innocence after this, I swear. You know that my family has no reason to betray you. We are not greedy for power like what your faction was trying to portray us. They definitely don't want me to be your empress because they knew that all of the corruptions that they were trying to hide will resurface once I seated as empress." I cried in desperation, but I felt my legs turn to stone as he stepped closer with a suffocating weight, and eyes were blinded with rage while looking at how I clung to Keiran's arms.He wasn't listening at all. His eyes flicked to Keiran, a smirk curling his lips. "So, you decided to come with him, thinking that he could save you?" He unsheathes his sword, the steel reflecting the moonlight like a harbinger of death. His voice was filled with anger, directed at me as if I betrayed him."No, please! It's not what you think!" I screamed, lunging forward, but Keiran stepped in front of me, his eyes were fierce."Luca! Yuna! Get Karina out of here! Go!""We have to go, My lady." Yuna begged with reddened eyes, as if she knew Keiran's fate after this."No! Keiran!" I cried out with desperation, trying to stop him but Luca, -Yuna's older brother and also one of my cherished people from Keiran's guild –yanked me away, forcing me to watch as Keiran and Achilles clashed their swords, the clamor made by their sword echoes in the night, sending shivers down my spine as he tried to take me away. But the Royal knights surrounded us in an instant, halting us from fleeing and leaving their guildmates no choice but to fight the knights to buy us some time to flee.Tears streamed down my face as I struggled against Luca's tight grip, - while protecting me from the knights who was trying to take me from him –desperate to stop my twin and the man I love from fighting. It's a one-sided fight. They will never win against a squad of sword masters. Even I, had a hard time winning against Achilles during our sparring. I could only watch in horror as Achilles raised his sword, the blade glimmers under the moonlight as he strikes Keiran. My twin managed to block his attack but he's in a difficult situation. And at the same time, even though Yuna knocked out a few knights, they were still overpowered, leading mostly of the members of Artisan's Den to their doom."You think you're a hero? You're nothing but a mere butler who can't even save himself!" His scoffs echoed in the night, sharp and taunting, as if each word was a strike against Keiran's resolve.Keiran gritted his teeth, before pushing Achilles' sword away from him with all his strength. "It's as you said, I'm just a butler serving my lady." Keiran looked at my way for a moment and gave me a gentle smile. "I vowed to protect Karina." Achilles' face contorted with the way Keiran addressed me intimately, as Keiran turned his gaze back at him. "Something that you can't do, your highness." He added, which fueled Achilles' fury.The sound of their swords clashing once more, echoes within the rustling leaves, like a death toll, sending a sharp pain through my chest. Keiran parried his every attack with great effort, sweat glistened on his brows as he kept trying to retaliate on Achilles' attacks. Every swing of their swords was quick and lethal, and the intensity of the duel was evident in every strike driven by their opposing wills. Achilles pressed forward, relentlessly aiming for Keiran's openings in each calculated strike, while Keiran can only parry his every strike with undeniable difficulties. His movements have a mix of grace and desperation. I could see Keiran's desperation to save me, but I won't just sit idly and watch my twin die in the man I love's hand. With a swift motion, I managed to break free from Luca's grasp, and pushed Keiran away as Achilles plunged his blade, wounding my shoulder in the process. "Karina!" I could only bite my lip and clenched my fist as Keiran and Achilles called my name, their voices were laced with worry as they both tried to approach me, but Keiran was faster, halting Achilles on his feet. "You! I told you to leave! Even if I die now, it won't matter as long as you're safe!" Keiran scolded me, worry is laced in his voice while checking the wound on my shoulder. "Are you crazy?! Why won't it matter if you die? I'd rather go back with them than to let you get hurt!" My voice is shaking with the thought of my only brother dying. But I didn't know that my declaration would give Achilles a different meaning, -a profound betrayal. Achilles' taunting laugh echoed in the forest, his gaze was scorching, burning, and at the same time, chilling. Each step he takes as he marches towards us sends an eerie feeling in my heart, not for me, but for my twin who immediately took his sword beside him and blocked Achilles from approaching me.