The Earth Kingdom didn’t protect its borders with bricks — it used nature. A deep, living trench lined the castle walls, filled with dark waters and deadly vines that moved like predators. It was a defense born from ancient magic — no one who entered without the kingdom’s blood ever left it alive.

  But Elden wasn’t just anyone.

  The prince stood at the edge of the water, watching as a thick vine crept toward him. Most would have flinched, but he didn’t move. Instead, he reached into his satchel and scattered a small handful of powdered bark — a ritual offering from Earth-Kin days, long forgotten by most.

  The vines retracted.

  Moments later, large, flat leaves rose from the water’s surface — forming stepping stones, one by one. They swayed, then steadied under his weight as he crossed. The trench, recognising its own, let him pass.

  On the other side was the edge of the Water Kingdom — a realm rumoured to be made of mist and moonlight. Elden didn’t come here for politics. He came because something had shifted in the balance between the kingdoms. And in his bones, he knew the answer was here.

  The central market shimmered with life. Crystals embedded in the coral-lit streets glowed in soft pastels. Shell-chimes sang on the breeze. Merchants bartered in tones that sounded like waves — calm, rising, crashing.

  Then — chaos.

  A shout cracked through the music:

  “She’s escaping!”

  “Catch her! Don’t let her leave the district!”

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  Elden turned just in time to see a cloaked girl push through the crowd, moving fast. Her hood fell slightly, revealing a flash of silver-blonde hair and a royal emblem stitched near her collar — the Water Kingdom’s crest.

  Her breath was shallow, panicked. She wasn’t stealing. She was fleeing.

  Elden watched her narrowly dodge a guard — she moved like she’d done this before.

  But she misjudged a turn and found herself facing two guards coming the opposite way. Trapped.

  Without hesitation, Elden reached for a capsule at his belt — he cracked it on the cobblestones, and vines burst from the ground, whipping up and tangling the guards’ legs in seconds.

  The girl stopped mid-step, eyes wide. She turned toward him.

  More soldiers were closing in.

  “This way!” she called out, her voice sharp, clear, royal.

  Elden didn’t argue.

  She reached out — just once — and grabbed his wrist, pulling him into a narrow side street. They ran together, darting through alleys, past glowing pearl stalls and moonlit arches, until they reached a damp cavern hidden behind a thick wall of mist near the city’s edge.

  Only then did they stop.

  Elden leaned against the stone, breathing heavily.

  “Thanks for the help,” the girl said, lowering her hood. Her face was striking — sharp but youthful, her eyes holding a kind of clarity that spoke of years spent observing from the shadows.

  Elden stared. “You’re… royalty.”

  “I was,” she replied. “Still am, I suppose.”

  “What’s your name?”

  “Seraphinnee,” she said, simply. “Princess of the Water Kingdom. And who are you?”

  “Elden. Prince of Earth.”

  A silence passed. Not awkward — just heavy.

  Seraphinnee gave a short, almost humourless laugh. “Royalty helping royalty. What are the odds?”

  “What were you running from?” Elden asked.

  “My mother,” she said without flinching. “She found out I was planning to leave. She sent guards to bring me back, to keep me locked away in the palace like a vase. But I wasn’t made to decorate walls.”

  “She thinks you’re dangerous?”

  “She thinks I’m too aware,” Seraphinnee said, turning toward the cave entrance. The wind caught her hair, blowing it like silver ribbon through the mist. “And that makes me inconvenient.”

  Elden folded his arms. “You’re not the only one who’s inconvenient to your kingdom.”

  Seraphinnee looked back at him. “So what are you running from, Earth Prince?”

  Elden gave a half-smile. “Running to something, actually.”

  She tilted her head.

  “I don’t know what yet,” he said, “but I think you might be part of it.”

  Her eyes narrowed — not with suspicion, but with curiosity. The sea wind howled outside. The shadows of the Water Kingdom grew deeper.

  “We don’t have much time,” Seraphinnee said softly. “They’ll search every cavern by morning.”

  Elden nodded. “Then let’s make sure we’re gone by dawn.”