Chapter 1: The Girl Who Died in the Rain

The rain never stopped in Seoul.

It fell on cracked sidewalks, on flickering neon signs, on the hunched shoulders of a girl walking home with a paper bag of expired groceries.

Her name was **Yoon Seo-ah**.

Seventeen. Orphan. Invisible.

She didn’t have friends.

She didn’t have a family.

But she had dreams — dreams of castles, of fire, of a voice calling her *“Princess…”* in a language she didn’t know.

That night, the dream felt closer than ever.

As she crossed the street, she saw it — a child, chasing a red balloon into traffic.

Tires screeched.

Time slowed.

And without thinking, Seo-ah ran.

A flash of headlights.

A scream swallowed by the storm.

Then… silence.

She lay in the gutter, rain washing pink through the blood on her temple.

People gathered. Phones recorded. No one touched her.

*“Is she…?”*

*“Call an ambulance.”*

*“Too late. She’s gone.”*

Seo-ah closed her eyes.

And then — a whisper, deep inside her soul:

> *“You were never meant to die in the rain.”*

> *“You were meant to wear a crown.”*

> *“You were the firstborn heir… the Crimson Princess.”*

A warmth spread through her chest.

Not pain.

Not fear.

But memory.

🌑

She gasped awake.

Sunlight streamed through stained glass windows, painting golden patterns across marble floors.

Silk sheets. Pillars wrapped in ivy. A silver crown resting on a velvet pillow — not worn, but *waiting*.

She sat up — too fast. Her head spun.

*“Where… am I?”*

The door burst open.

A woman in a maid’s uniform froze, eyes wide.

Her hands trembled.

She dropped the tray.

Porcelain shattered.

*“N-no… it can’t be…”* she whispered. *“You’re dead. You died as a baby. You were never born!”*

Seo-ah stared at her.

*“What are you talking about?”*

The maid backed away.

*“The phantom child… the cursed twin… the one they erased from the royal records!”*

Royal?

Twin?

Cursed?

Before she could speak, a sharp pain burned through her wrist.

She rolled up her sleeve.

There — a mark.

A **crimson sigil**, shaped like a flame with three veins, pulsed under her skin.

And then… it **glowed**.

### 🔥

A nearby candle **exploded into fire**.

Not from the wick.

From *her*.

The flames didn’t burn her. They **answered** her.

The maid screamed and fled.

Seo-ah trembled, staring at her hands.

*“What… is this?”*

Memories flooded in — not hers, but *hers*.

A woman weeping in a moonlit chamber.

Twins wrapped in silk — one handed to a knight, the other kept.

A prophecy carved in stone:

> *“When the Crimson Princess returns, the empire shall burn.”*

But then — a second voice, softer, desperate:

> *“No… not burn. **Remember.**”*

### ⚔️

Boots echoed in the hall.

Men in silver armor stormed in — royal guards, blades drawn.

*“Seize the impostor!”* their captain shouted. *“She bears the cursed mark! She threatens the Prince!”*

Seo-ah backed against the wall.

*“I’m not an impostor! I don’t even know where I am!”*

*“You are no princess,”* the captain sneered. *“The only heir is Prince Lucien. You are a demon wearing a dead girl’s face.”*

Her wrist burned again.

The sigil **blazed red**.

And without thinking, she raised her hand.

A wave of **crimson fire** erupted from her palm — not to destroy, but to **push**.

The guards were thrown back.

The door slammed shut.

She ran.

Through hallways that felt like dreams.

Past portraits of a royal family — a king, an empress… and a boy with ice-blue eyes.

Lucien.

Her brother.

The one who took her place.

🌹

She collapsed in a forgotten garden, vines choking the statues of forgotten queens.

A shadow moved.

A man stepped from the trees — cloaked in black, a sword at his side, a flame-shaped scar across his cheek.

He knelt.

*“I’ve waited ten years for you, Princess.”*

She trembled.

*“Who… are you?”*

*“Kael Ardentis. Last of the Flame Guard. Sworn to protect the true heir.”*

He bowed his head.

*“You were never meant to die in the rain.”*

*“You were meant to return… and reclaim what was stolen.”*

Above them, the sky darkened.

And for the first time in a decade, the **Crimson Sigil** on her wrist stopped burning.

It sang.

🔚 End of Chapter 1

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