The Cursed Prince

Chp 8 - Heart of the Curse

Chapter 8: The Heart of the Curse

(Author's POV)

The wind howled outside the towering spires of the castle, its icy breath swirling through the air as if the very kingdom were alive, writhing beneath the weight of its eternal winter. Inside the grand library, a heavy silence hung between Kael and Elara, broken only by the rustle of ancient pages and the occasional crackle of the fire in the hearth.

They had been searching for hours—Elara, combing through the forgotten halls and chambers, and Kael, buried deep in books, old scrolls, and ancient tomes. But now, after days of relentless effort, they were closer than ever. Something had finally shifted.

Kael stood at a massive stone table, a collection of weathered texts scattered before him, their pages brittle with age. His gaze was intense, sharp, as he traced the intricate designs on an old map, the lines showing connections between ancient symbols that matched those etched into the walls of the castle.

"It's here," Kael muttered under his breath, more to himself than to Elara, though she stood nearby, watching him carefully. "The curse's origin... it's tied to the heart of this land. This castle."

Elara's brow furrowed as she moved closer to look at the map. Her fingers lightly brushed over the parchment, feeling the grooves left by generations of royal hands. "The heart of the land," she repeated, her voice quiet with awe. "You think it's something beneath the castle?"

Kael nodded. "The curse wasn't just placed on me. It's in the very foundation of this place, woven into the stones. My mistake, my betrayal—it triggered the curse, but the magic had always been here, dormant. Waiting."

Elara's stomach twisted with unease. The thought of an ancient magic lying beneath their feet, just out of sight, made her skin crawl. "So... how do we stop it?"

Kael's jaw tightened as he looked down at the map again. "That's the part I haven't figured out yet. But there's a source. Something that ties the magic together, something that holds the curse in place."

Elara studied his face for a moment, sensing the tension building behind his calm exterior. She had seen glimpses of the man Kael used to be—the strong leader, the prince—but there was still so much buried inside him, trapped by the icy wall of his curse. And now, they were on the brink of finding the very thing that had stolen his warmth, his heart.

"There's something," Kael continued, flipping through another book, his fingers moving more frantically now. "The texts speak of a stone—an anchor that keeps the magic bound to this place. It's called the Heartstone."

Elara's breath caught. "Heartstone? What is it?"

Kael exhaled slowly, closing the book. "A relic of the old magic. It's said to be the key to the curse's power. Destroy it, and the curse unravels. But..." He paused, his eyes darkening with uncertainty. "The texts are unclear on where it's located."

"Then that's what we need to find," Elara said, her voice resolute. "The Heartstone. If we destroy it, you'll be free."

(Kael's POV)

Elara's determination sent a strange mix of warmth and fear through me. I could see the fire in her eyes, the unwavering belief that we could do this. But I couldn't ignore the gnawing doubt that lingered in the back of my mind.

The Heartstone wasn't just a simple object. It was tied to the land, to the magic that had governed Elaris long before I was born. Destroying it could break the curse—or it could bring something far worse. Ancient magic wasn't predictable. It was raw, wild, and powerful, capable of bending nature itself.

And then there was Elara. The more time I spent with her, the harder it was to keep my distance. I could feel something shifting inside me every time she looked at me with that fierce determination, every time her voice broke through the cold silence of the castle. She had started as a mere servant, someone thrust into a world far beyond her understanding, yet here she was—standing beside me, risking her life to find a solution.

I couldn't let her get hurt because of me.

"Kael?" Elara's voice snapped me back to the present. She was watching me, her amber eyes filled with concern.

I nodded, pushing away the doubts. "We'll search the lower levels. The dungeons, the crypts... wherever the oldest parts of the castle might be. The Heartstone is hidden there, I'm sure of it."

Elara smiled, a flicker of hope crossing her face. "Then let's go. We've come this far. We're not stopping now."

(Elara's POV)

Kael had always been reserved, his emotions tightly locked behind his stoic exterior. But I could sense the tension in him, the way his jaw clenched just a little too tightly when he talked about the curse. He carried a weight far heavier than just his own past mistakes—it was the weight of the entire kingdom.

And yet, I found myself caring about him more with every passing day. It wasn't just the curse, or the mystery, or the quest for answers. It was him. The way he had laughed that day in the dusty room, the way his rare smiles softened his sharp features. There was a man underneath the curse, a man worth saving.

I wouldn't let the curse take him.

"We'll find it," I said softly, more to myself than to him. "We'll find the Heartstone, and we'll destroy it."

Kael didn't answer, but I saw the flicker of emotion in his eyes before he turned away. He was afraid. Afraid of what might happen if we succeeded—or if we failed.

But we had no choice. The Heartstone was the key, and somewhere deep beneath the castle, it was waiting for us to find it.

(Author's POV)

Together, they descended into the lower levels of the castle, where the air grew colder and the shadows stretched longer. The dungeons and crypts were places long forgotten by the people of Elaris, buried beneath centuries of dust and decay.

As they ventured deeper into the ancient stone corridors, Kael and Elara couldn't shake the feeling that they were drawing closer to the source of the curse. The walls themselves seemed to hum with a faint, almost imperceptible magic, like the heartbeat of something ancient and powerful lying just beneath the surface.

The Heartstone was close. They could feel it.

But breaking the curse would not come without a cost.

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Author's Note

Do you think that they'll break the curse?

Or will the curse break them? 

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It motivates me to continue writing 

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