I didn’t know it was my birthday until I woke to find a music box on my shabby nightstand.

I immediately knew who it was from and threw it away into a corner of my room where I couldn’t see it.

My father really shouldn’t have. Maybe I’ll dig it out and listen to it the next time my step-mother throws a tantrum at me. I’ll be like, oh what fond music, what a lovely melody to play while I’m here enduring this torture and you're sitting around sipping tea.

I mean did he really think he was helping or gaining my favor? I walked back and forth in my room to release my rising frustration. When I become of age, I’ll accept what is offered and forget the rest. I’ll take the wealth and he can keep his shitty kingdom. Why do I want something that’s falling apart at the seams with all the holes you’ve made buried in the fabric?

I paused in my steps as though actually considering this ridiculous notion. I’m sorry but actually, you must be a genius, father. Yes, that sounds like a wonderful idea. I’ll take a shit and have my future child carry my shit to the dumpster while I go sip margaritas in the throne room. I’ve truly underestimated your wisdom. It’s beyond my comprehension and humbles me. Your greatness sparks a fire in my insignificant imagination. I’m going to name my future children after you. They’ll carve statues in your name, the greatest shitty king that took a giant dump.

As I was saying, I’ve given up on the idea of having good parents. Hearing commotion outside my room, I went to take a peek. I actually realized the more time I spend in the palace that I’m lucky to have a bed and not be out on the streets. It might not be perfect, but this place was better than starving myself senseless. They don’t provide me with a lot, but I’ll happily take fresh food and used books over scraps.

I peered out into the long hallway, finding my father walking beside a young boy with golden hair. I thought the boy was Patrick but when he turned his head to meet my gaze I was met with a pair of sapphire eyes that widened in shock.

He pointed at me with a flushed look creeping into his face. “Y-you!!” he shouted. “Why are you here?”

Seeing the two of us were now alone, I came out of my room to greet him with my arms crossed. “Well duh, I live here,” I replied shortly. Wasn’t that obvious with the way I came out of my bedroom in pajamas? I looked the boy up and down, attempting to discover just who this person was standing outside my bedroom with the brightest golden hair I’ve ever seen. Only Leon was known to have such features, but Leon doesn’t appear until much later in the novel. I’ve never seen this boy before in my life.

He seemed even more flustered that he couldn’t refute my words. His ears turned bright red and his fists were clenched at his sides, “My name is Dionysus! I’m the god of wine!!”

“You're too young to drink,” I said in return, picking at my eardrum that ached from the way he yelled. “Why are you shouting anyhow? I’m standing right here,” I gestured to the short distance between us now that I had fully approached him.

He seemed to be visibly shaking, blushing so hard that you would’ve thought I was a young woman giving him a kiss on the cheek. He turned on his heels and ran away as though his life depended on it.

I stared at his back as he ungracefully made an exit.

The whole situation was too bizarre and got even weirder as days passed.

I thought I was starting to lose my mind the following day when I saw a pair of socks sitting on the ground outside my door. I took them to my room and set them on my nightstand not entirely sure what to do with them. At least they were clean and smelled nice I supposed. The next day there was a hair brush and the next there was a bar of soap. Does someone in the palace think I need a bath?? What’s with all these strange gifts?

After a week of receiving random supplies, I couldn’t fit anything more on my dresser so I decided I had enough. I waited behind my door to catch this unknown person in the act. The plan worked flawlessly except Dionysus ran the moment I spotted him. He dropped the object he was holding unceremoniously on the ground before he left.

It was another pair of socks.

I sighed while picking them up and watched the rest of him leave.

Little did I know that was the last time I’d see him for a while. I discovered he returned to where ever he was from having finished his business with my father. I didn’t realize how much I’d miss his presence in the castle or his strange gifts.

I always learn too late the things one can miss when they’re gone.

With Dionysus out of the picture, not knowing what my brother was doing these days was unsettling.

Storyline wise, Patrick should be training to become a powerful assassin so he can kill me someday under his mother’s instructions. That was how I wrote his character, but he no longer seemed like just a character now.

My heart ached a bit thinking about what that child must also be going through alone. I still remember how he protected me once, but that doesn’t change how I should stay away from him or be on my guard.

I put down the worn book I was holding called “Spirits and the Underworld Guide for Summoning Dummies” and went to look at the village below through my window.

At night, lanterns hung around the snowy streets and homes, glowing brilliantly from this distance like one giant star. This world was so different from what I imagined. The lore far expanded anything I created in my novel. The more I read, the more I found the history of this world rich and beautiful. A part of me began to understand why my father wanted preserve this land, but I also resented it for being the source of my problems.

For the next half of a year, I kept my ears open to hear rumors about a massive ship docking on a quiet forgotten shore of Cassanova. The real fun was about to begin with the continuation of the prologue. Meanwhile, I solved several cases assigned by my mother and left the palace every night. My days of boredom soon ended, filled with new excitements and dangerous situations.

I quickly became accustomed to wielding a dagger and basic defense maneuvers. The improvement wasn't noticeable at first, but I was small enough to evade attacks so how good I was didn't really matter.

“Do you seek freedom?” a merchant asked his adversary in the dark. A low smile hung on this man’s sharp, pale features, giving him an almost ominous presence.

“Not the kind that you can offer,” the customer huffed coldly. It was obvious this second man was impatient for his purchase and was growing annoyed from being tested.

“So touche," the man purred. He smiled further to himself, seeming to know they had company yet remained unbothered.

It was half-past one in the morning, and the town was quiet with snow littering the ground.

When the merchant smiled, I retreated back into the shadows after almost being discovered. I held my breath, and pressed my back into the wall until my spine ached. I'd never been caught before tonight and I wasn't about to start now.

Be patient,” I told myself. “You found your man, now you just need to follow him to the source.” Quietly, I peered around the corner in fear the merchant had disappeared, but instead he was still standing in the same spot, completely unbothered with a look of calm serenity on his face.

Considering this was their second stop, it was almost as if he was luring me, but oh, what sweet bait it was to finally finish this case. I've been trying to gather information about this man tirelessly for three weeks now. The satisfaction of finishing the prologue was within my reach, I could just feel it.

A gun clicked into place and resonated into my ears. I tightly hugged the alleyway wall harder than before. "I think she really wants to kill me this time.” I released a quiet sigh. This man was someone my mother desired information from, or in other words, blackmail worthy information. Unfortunately, I immediately knew why since he was a dealer of the poison I regularly consumed, but at least he was connected to my plans too.

The person who clicked the gun was the customer. He raised the weapon a little higher towards the merchant's forehead. "I trust your travels were safe?"

“As usual,” the merchant replied lazily, unbothered by the threat. In fact, he went as far to look like he was offered a treat. He reached into his coat pocket and a glowing blue vial emerged. My eyes widened recognizing the substance. How could I not when I take the same thing every night? The merchant passed it carefully to his client. “Small doses; this one is really strong,” he warned.

The customer grunted in return, lowering his gun, and tossed over a pouch filled with coins.

They glittered as the merchant stuffed them into his coat pocket. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” He smiled sweetly with his prize in possession and slipped back into the night.

This was my chance. I eagerly chased after him, keeping five paces behind.

So close. I could almost feel him in my grasp while I forced him to the ground with a knife at his throat. I licked my lips dry and approached closer but remained at a steady distance. I've yet to fully approach him because every time I do, he'll disappear into some alleyway that seemed to appear only for him.

As if the universe chose to go against every nerve in my body that stayed in collective control, I froze on the spot seeing the man enter his carriage but his refusal to close the door. “Care to join me, stranger of the dark?”

I held my breath tightly. To have such keen senses, why was this merchant a mere drug dealer? It was obvious he had been aware of my presence the entire time, but I didn’t want to give up and risk losing him again.

The man smiled at nothing. It was like a wolf baring fangs but lacked any doubt of malicious intent. “Not going to come out, aye? Do you seek freedom too, child? The world tries to remake us, but we rarely try to remake the world. I’ll leave you to consider why that is.” The heavy door swung shut, and only when the carriage started moving did I dash for the person handling the reins.

In the instant I jumped off the ground, I shoved over the person sitting there, creating a slight disturbance that was quickly replaced with the rock I cleverly threw under the wheel to drown out the sound. The boy’s eyes went wide, but I shoved a hand over his mouth. “Keep quiet,” I whispered.

I felt him shake his head desperately, his breath panting heavily against my palm.

He was scared.

I quickly let him go, not wanting to scare him any further. After all this young boy…

I half expected the program to be like, “Congratulations! You’ve encountered the male lead. You’ve gained unlimited wisdom and are blessed by the gods!” But actually nothing happened. I almost doubted this was the same person I wrote about. The whole situation felt very underwhelming, especially after having endured a year and a half worth of unpleasant memories to reach this point in the story.

Still, to see one of my characters that I cherished sitting before me was a moving experience.