"Ravenna Sorius, I hereby decre you the sole ruler of Jo Isnd and the Duchess of the Jo Dukedom!" Emperor Andrew Sorius’s voice echoed powerfully through the vast, marble-lined Imperial Halls. His you daughter and fifth child, Ravenna Sorius, k on one knee, bowing her head as the decree was delivered. Sunlight spilled in through the open ceiling, casting her in a golden glow as she received the solemn procmation, her figure framed by the elegance of the grand hall.

  "By the decree of the Imperial Court, you and your 300 knights are to depart by tomorrow evening to assume trol of Jo Isnd, repg its current caretaker, Duke Edward Jo and his family!" the Emperor’s voice resounded with authority, its crity carrying across the entire assembly.

  Yet, behind his words, the murmurs of nobles filled the hall, woven with disbelief, derision, and smug satisfa. "So, he’s finally sending her out of the capital," one woman whispered to her husband, a barely cealed smile on her lips. "Good riddance! With this She won’t pete for the throne," muttered a minister nearby. "Poor Jo Isnd," another voice chimed in softly, dripping with sarcasm, "those subjects don’t know what chaos awaits them."

  The Emperor tinued, ign the murmurs. "You will be granted 400 Mana s to stabilize your new Dukedom and will be exempt from all taxation for the 15 years!" At this, the whispers grew louder, curiosity and criticism mixing in equal measure.

  "Only 400 Mana s? That’s barely enough to sustain her own household, let alone aire region," one minister scoffed. "Serves her right. After all the money she’s wasted on her indulgences, I’m surprised she’s getting anything at all," someotered nearby. "Actually, he’s being practical with that tax exemption," another voice tered. "The people of Jo hardly afford their daily bread, much less pay taxes to the ."

  The decree cluded with the Emperor’s solemn words, "The Sun God Solious bears wito this decree, as do the noble houses gathered here." The hall fell silent, and Ravenna finally raised her head, meeting the Emperaze with her pierg, dark eyes, as sharp and unyielding as a raven.

  Her beauty was striking—her jet-bck hair seemed to drink in the sunlight, glinting like polished obsidian, and her dangerous, alluring smile sent a shiver down the spines of those who had spoken against her just moments before. With an expression that was oddly disied, she absorbed the implications of her father’s decree, as though it were nothing more than a minor invenience.

  "Well, I’ll see you ter then, Father." Her words were smooth, almost dismissive, and as she rose to her feet and turo leave, her dark red gown—embroidered with glistening threads of gold—swirled around her like the feathers of a raven. It was as though she were striding out of a victorious hunt rather than receiving what many saw as a humiliating exile. Her steps echoed down the hall with a resolute authority that left the court whisperers swallowing their ughter.

  Oside the court, Ravenna strode toward the West Wing of the pace, where the Imperial Family’s chambers were situated. Her gaze was fixed ahead, unbothered by the stares she received. On her way, a figure stepped into her path—a tall, broad-shouldered man with the same midnight-bck hair and strikingly aristocratic features as her own. Her elder brother, Prince William, regarded her with a mog grin.

  "Ah, did I miss the decree? Such a pity," he remarked, feigning innoce. "Well, best of luck scraping for fish or whatever it is they do on Jo Isnd. Send a word if you’re in need of funds. I might even spare a few Mana s, out of brotherly love, of course."

  Ravenna’s lips curved into a smile just as sweet, yet somehow far more uling, like a raven smiling at dead bodies. "Thank you, dear brother. I don’t know how I’ll mah just 30 Mana s at my disposal."

  His smile faltered, repced by fusion. "What 30 Mana s?" he asked, frowning as he tried to read her expression.

  Her smile widened, dangerously charming, as though she were toying with him. "Why, didn’t you just offer to lend me a hand? Surely, sparing a pity 30 Mana s won’t strain your finances."

  Before he could respond, William’s gaze shifted nervously over her shoulder. A priest of Solious was them with an i look, his eyes flickering from the statue of Solious to the imperial siblings. Realizing he was under watchful eyes, William forced a tight smile. "Ah… Yes. Of course, I did," he replied, his words ced with barely cealed annoyance as he hurried past her.

  Arriving at her quarters in the West Wing, she stopped before the knight statio her door, his posture visibly tense under her gaze. With a calm but unwavering tone, she addressed him, her pierg eyes narrowing ever so slightly. "You received the decree, did you not? What are you doing here still?" Her words came out as smooth as velvet yet ced with an edge. "Gather the knights and the servants. Prepare them to leave within two hours."

  The knight, visibly rattled by her presend calm authority, swallowed hard befiving a quick bow. “As you and, Yhness.” He turned on his heel and hurried off, leaving her with the echo of his retreating footsteps.

  Onside her room, Ravenna closed the door firmly, sealing herself in near darkness. Only the faint glow of moonlight spilled through the tall, narrow window, casting shadows across her ornate furniture. For the first time sihe decree was read, she allowed herself to sink against the wall, her posture softening as the tensioed from her frame. Her fierce, unyielding expression faded, repced by one of quiet despair and weariness—a glimpse into the womaruly was beh her carefully crafted fa?ade.

  "Why me?" she whispered, voice thick with frustration. “Anyone else would have been fine…” Her voice faltered, and she gnced around the unfamiliar room, the silence heavy. There was no mistaking it—she was utterly alone in this fn, gilded prison.

  In truth, she wasn’t Ravenna Sorius. She was a woman from another world entirely, an ordinary office worker who had died in a tragic act. Three days ago, she had woken up in this body, Ravenna’s body, with all the memories and senses of the princess but none of the attat to this life. The life she now lived felt like an impossible, surreal fever dream.

  “Why Ravenna?” she muttered again, her words ced with bitterness. She reized the name all too well; Ravenna Sorius was a minor character from a novel she had been reading before her owh—a political fantasy called The Light’s quest. In that story, Ravenna was a troublesome princess, a thorn in her father’s side, briefly mentioned before being exiled to some remote isnd, o appear again.

  And now here she was, inhabiting the very body of this fial figure, living the st days Ravenna’s story would ever mention. She grimaced, brag herself as an overwhelming wave of homesiess surged through her. She missed her old life, her routihe fort of a world where she hadn’t been trapped in someone else’s story.

  "I must have itted some unfivable sin,” she said to herself, her words fading into the empty room. “What else could expin being put in this body, this life?”

  But one ued sotion came to mind—the memories. When she had woken up in Ravenna’s body, a flood of vivid recolles had hit her all at once. In mere moments, she had experienced Ravenna’s life from birth to now, as if watg a film from the princess’s own perspective. She felt Ravenna’s emotions, her dreams, her disappois. And though the memories painted a clear picture of Ravenna’s life, they didn’t affect her own sense of self. She was still her own person, shaped by her past life aermio survive in this strange world.

  Straightening, she pushed off the wall and steadied herself. "So, Jo Isnd, huh?” she murmured, her mind ing. "If I’m to survive in that barren pce, I’ll need some extra funds." A glimmer of determination sparked in her eyes. Survival was something she uood, even if this world followed a differe of rules. With that determinatioepped out a into the East Wing of the Pace.

  This part of the pace, shrouded in silence, was dimly lit by moonlight streaming through high windows, casting long shadows on the ornate walls and age-old relics. Her footsteps were soft but purposeful as she approached her destination—the Imperial Museum of A History.

  Upoering, she took in the vast room, lined with shelves holding a manuscripts, relics, and heirlooms of long-fotten legends. In the ter, under a faint shaft of moonlight, stood the grand statue of the Hero Luminous, a figure of immense historical signifid a symbol of hope for the empire.

  “It must be here,” she muttered, her voice barely audible. Ravenna recalled a passage from her past life—a detail from the final volume of The Light’s quest. Acc to the book, a hidden vault in the East Wing had been a st-resort fund, used by the protagonists to stabilize the empire during its colpse. If she could find it, she would take only enough to survive fortably for the few years, allowiime to gather her bearings in Jo.

  But where could it be? Ravenna moved carefully through the room, examining the items on dispy: crumbling parts, a onry, even the faded robes of past emperors. She sed each piece, her gaze settling on a w he statue of Luminous.

  "What did it say in the novel?” she murmured, half to herself. She crouched down, her hands skimming over the rug, feeling for any imperfes in the floor beh. She checked behind the shelves holding old dots, carefully lifting a few to see if anything y hidden underh. The memory was faint; it had been a single line buried in a dense paragraph. She sighed in frustration. "There’s no way I’ll find it like this…”

  Turnitention back to the statue, Ravenna sidered the Hero Luminous himself. He had been a legendary figure four turies ago, a man of unmatched prowess who, acc to myth, resurrected entire regions and brought forth unpreted magical advas. She remembered bits of his tale, both from the novel and from the extensive pace education Ravenna had received, though none of it seemed helpful at the moment.

  “e on, there has to be a clue somewhere,” she muttered, staring into the statue's stoic face. She reached out, pg a hand against the cold stone cheek of the statue, trag its features thoughtfully. For a moment, nothing happened.

  As she stepped back, her dress caught on something at the statue’s base, causio stumble slightly. She mao catch herself, but her unsteady step shifted the statue just a fra. The faint sound of a meism clig into pce echoed through the room, followed by a brief whirring. Startled, Ravenna’s gaze snapped back to the statue as something small aallic shot out of its hand, nding directly in her hands.

  “What in the world is this?” she breathed, staring down at the objeow resting in her hands.