Chapter 2
I had no time to dwell on it.
Jade and the other maids helped me get dressed and ready, putting on my ceremonial armor and headdress as I walked step by step towards the sacred altar.
My father sat upon his high throne, looking down at everyone.
The clan members surrounding the altar cheered for me, their voices mixing with the drumbeats in a deafening roar.
I gazed at it all impassively.
Though our clan was said to be the mightiest of the six realms, filled with talented individuals and seemingly prosperous, the royal family knew the truth.
Among all these powerful clan members, not a single one could transform into our clan’s true form to inherit the throne.
Then on the day of my birth, the clan’s seer had a prophecy.
I, Aria, was the only descendant in countless years who could manifest our clan’s true form!
Only I could lead our clan to glory!
But in my past life, I had transformed into an ugly black serpent before everyone’s eyes, shattering all their dreams of a mighty clan.
The clan members’ expectations for me had all turned to fury.
Even those who had once been close to me couldn’t wait for me to die!
“Aria, you look beautiful today.”
Blake waved his hand in front of me, smiling.
“I think after your ceremony is over, we should announce our engagement.”
The people around us exclaimed in admiration:
“Blake is the talented prince of the Western Seas, with countless admirers. Yet he fell in love with the heiress at first sight and has remained faithful to her.”
“I heard Blake and the heiress grew up together. They’re a match made in heaven.”
“When will I find a true love like that?”
…
I had to force myself not to sneer.
I looked up at Blake’s gentle smile, wanting nothing more than to slap it off his face.
Once, I too had believed it was true love.
Blake and I had grown up together.
He went from being like an older brother, to my teacher, and finally my lover when we fell for each other.
How could centuries of affection change?
But in my past life, when I was denounced by thousands, Blake had been the first to publicly betray me.
He had said: “How dare a lowly black snake try to impersonate our heiress!”
When I was exiled from the clan, it took less than three days for him to announce his engagement to Rose.
All that talk of childhood sweethearts and true love…
It was nothing but a product of his ambition and greed.
I nodded: “Alright. I hope you won’t regret it.”
Blake immediately swore: “How could I ever regret it?”
“My love for you is as true as the heavens above!”
“If I ever change my heart, may 49 bolts of divine lightning strike me down and obliterate my soul.”
My disgust for him grew even stronger.
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Rose’s face twisted with jealousy.
I couldn’t help but laugh coldly inside.
I remembered how in my past life, after I died, I had seen Blake’s portrait in Rose’s room. Only then did I realize she had long harbored feelings for my fiancé.
The crowd soon fell silent.
As the ceremonial music began to play, the atmosphere grew solemn.
All eyes were on me.
The ceremony was about to begin!
My father descended from his throne step by step.
In his hands he held the crown that belonged only to our clan’s royal family. His gaze as he looked at me was utterly calm.
“Aria, as the heiress, it is your duty to sacrifice everything for the clan’s greater good.”
I didn’t react with tears of joy like I had in my past life.
I simply lowered my gaze to avoid his eyes.
Just then, a thunderous roar suddenly rang out: “Wait!”
Everyone looked up.
The golden sacred beast was coiled around the ceremonial pillar, its gaze fierce and its scales gleaming.
The clan members all knelt down.
“We pay our respects to the sacred beast.”
The sacred beast looked down at me arrogantly from its high perch: “Aria’s bloodline is impure. She is unfit to lead.”
“The crown cannot be given to her!”