00:00Let me go! Don't kill me, please!
00:08In the kingdom of Coralia, deep beneath the sea, the abyssal sharks, manta rays, phantasm squids, and dragon eels all
00:15live beneath the Mare King's rule.
00:16I was Eloise, the Mare King's only daughter.
00:19When I was seven, my father chose one heir from each of the four great clans.
00:23When I came of age, I had to choose one of them as my mate.
00:26I chose Felix, the abyss shark I have loved since childhood.
00:30I thought my love could soften his coldness, but on the night of my coronation, he opened the palace gates
00:35for Quinn.
00:36All the subjects who had sworn loyalty to me turned to him instead.
00:39Her family dragged me from the throne.
00:42Felix held me down himself while Quinn drove a coral running crystal through my heart.
00:46I stared at him in disbelief.
00:48Only then did I understand.
00:49In his eyes, I had never been his mate.
00:52I was only the cage keeping him from Quinn.
00:55When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day my father asked me which of the four
00:59I wished to marry.
01:00Without hesitation, I said,
01:02Father, I choose Maverick of the Dragon Emil Clan.
01:06The most unreliable man among the four lords, a playboy who never slept alone.
01:10Elise, are you sure?
01:13Once the mating decree is sealed, there is no taking it back.
01:17I knew that.
01:18But Felix had never wanted me.
01:20I would not hand him my life twice.
01:23Beyond him, marrying any of the others made no difference to me.
01:26I was the Mare Princess.
01:28I had duty and I had burdens.
01:30Father, my mind is set.
01:32I will not regret this.
01:34In three days, I will announce to the kingdom that Maverick of the Dragon Emil Clan is to be your
01:39husband.
01:40I nodded and left the king's chamber.
01:42The moment I walked out, four striking young men were already waiting in the corridor.
01:46They were my four male candidates.
01:48Jax of the Manta Ray Clan was the first to speak.
01:51Princess, we heard the king ask you to choose one of us.
01:54Who did you choose?
01:55My eyes drifted to Felix out of old habit.
01:58Brody of the Phantasm, Squid Clan clapped Felix on the shoulder.
02:02Do you even need to ask?
02:03It's our Felix, of course.
02:05Everyone in this palace knows the princess has been pining after him for years.
02:11Felix's face went cold as stone.
02:12His gaze met mine, dark with resentment, bitterness, and defiance.
02:16For a heartbeat, I wanted to tell him I had not chosen him.
02:20Don't look at me like that.
02:21I had thrown myself at his ice cold feet for years.
02:24Let him stew for a few days.
02:26When I said nothing, Jax nudged me.
02:28Come on, Elise.
02:29Don't keep us in suspense.
02:31Who is it?
02:32I glanced at Maverick.
02:33Maverick caught my look.
02:35He arched a brow.
02:39In three days, you will all know.
02:41I didn't say another word.
02:43I turned and walked back to my chambers.
02:45Brody was not wrong.
02:47Everyone knew I had loved Kasia, but Felix was proud.
02:50To him, rising through a woman was a disgrace.
02:53His heart had belonged to another all along.
02:55Every smile I offered him, he met with cold disdain.
02:58But what he had never understood was that my marriage was never just mine to decide.
03:02My father was ill.
03:04I was his only daughter.
03:05To stabilize the four great clans, my husband had to come from one of those four, whether
03:10they wanted me or I wanted them.
03:12Lost in thought, I heard a voice call out behind me.
03:15Eloise, wait.
03:16Is something wrong?
03:17Felix gave a stiff, formal bow.
03:20My heart already belongs to another.
03:22I beg you not to choose me.
03:24Felix, you really thought I'd choose you?
03:26Princess, you have endless choices.
03:28Why force someone who doesn't want you?
03:29Don't worry.
03:30I won't chase after you anymore.
03:33You're free to live your dreams and run away with your beloved.
03:38Eloise, what do you mean?
03:40Just as I was about to tell him I had chosen Maverick, someone rushed straight at me.
03:44She crashed into me and sent me sprawling to the kelp floor.
03:47Princess, forgive me.
03:48I didn't mean to.
03:50I swear.
03:52Please forgive me.
03:53It was Quinn.
03:54Quinn, she came from one of the most powerful shark bloodlines in the kingdom.
03:58Yet every time she saw me, she trembled like prey before a hunter, even when I had done
04:03nothing to her.
04:03In my last life, I thought she was only pretending to be weak to win his pity.
04:07Now I knew every tear was part of the act.
04:10She kept slamming her forehead to the coral floor until it turned red.
04:14Enough.
04:14It was nothing.
04:15There's no need for this.
04:16Princess, I deserve to die.
04:18Please just forgive me this once.
04:20Aline, she didn't mean to.
04:21If you bully the weak like this, how will you ever rule a kingdom?
04:24How will you earn anyone's loyalty?
04:27Bully the weak?
04:28Fine.
04:29I'd show him what real cruelty looked like.
04:32Remember this.
04:34That is bullying.
04:35Felix was too late to stop me.
04:37A red handprint bloomed on Quinn's cheek.
04:39His finger jabbed at me, shaking with rage.
04:42You will address me as princess.
04:45Felix froze.
04:46He had never imagined I would raise a hand to him.
04:49After all, I spent years adoring him.
04:52His jaw clenched.
04:53His fists curled until the knuckles cracked.
04:56Fine.
04:57Well done, princess.
04:58Quinn, let's go.
04:59Felix was not always this cold to me.
05:01When I was seven, I lost my footing and fell into a deep sea undertow.
05:05Someone pulled me out.
05:07I had always believed it was Felix.
05:09After that, of all four male candidates, he was the one I had held closest.
05:13He used to sit with me through my lessons.
05:15He defended me when the tutor scolded me.
05:18He took my punishments alongside me.
05:20Then we grew older.
05:21He learned what we were to each other.
05:23He was being raised to become my future husband.
05:25He couldn't accept that future.
05:27So slowly, he pulled away from me.
05:30Only now did I understand.
05:31While I was clinging to a childhood dream, he and Quinn had already chosen each other.
05:36No wonder every tear of hers mattered more to him than every wound of mine.
05:40If he ever found out I had chosen Maverick instead of him, he should have been relieved.
05:44The next day was the Empire's annual ceremony.
05:46My father's health was failing, so the right fell to me.
05:50The four male candidates stood at my side.
05:53Felix was still angry the day before.
05:55He did not give me a single warm glance all morning.
05:58After the midday meal, I went into the back kelp garden for a moment alone.
06:02Felix, I made these honey siennara cakes for you.
06:05Try one.
06:06Tell me if they're good.
06:07Quinn laughed and brushed a crumb from his lip.
06:09I had no interest in watching the two of them together, so I turned to leave.
06:13And that was when figures in black burst from the reef shadows.
06:16Who are you?
06:17They did not answer.
06:19They lunged at me with every sign, their blades aimed at every killing point.
06:22I instantly transform into my full battle form and soon pin two of them onto the kelp bed.
06:27But just then, the others grab a handful of toxic coral crystal powder and fling it toward
06:31my fishtail.
06:32The moment it touched my scales, pain ripped through me.
06:35My limbs buckled.
06:36I reached for the mind link at once.
06:38At the same time, I shouted through the garden,
06:41Guards!
06:42To me!
06:44Felix had clearly heard the disturbance, and my link had reached him.
06:47The burning sensation of the coral venom pierced through my body like a blade, and I couldn't
06:51help but let out a howl.
06:53Every breath I took was a struggle.
06:55The assassins closed in.
06:56One of them raised the coral venom crystal, ready to stab it into my heart.
07:01I thought I had changed the fate that destroyed me in my last life.
07:04But in the end, I still could not escape death.
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