Page 146 of Wicked Prince of Frost

Carefully, I press the shard against the mirror backing. It shines and stays in place. I feel a fraction of my power return to me.

How do I know to do that?

An instinct? No.

I squeeze my eyes shut, frowning as I struggle to remember.

A curse…

“You! You did this!”The words are a harsh whisper in the back of my mind.

The one I cast.

Why?

There are holes in my memory—too many to understand. Something went wrong. I ended up tangled up in its threads.How?

Every muscle in my body screams in protest as I climb to my feet and leave the cavern.

Outside is chaos. Shouts and screams fill the air as those who are able hurry to tend to the injured.

The death bell on the Temple Tower tolls out.

My family is dead.

I run to the Eastern Court. My uncle is there. He catches me before I can do more than glimpse the remains of my parents, mutilated beyond recognition. Two more adult forms lie beside them, and one the size of a child, only a few years younger than me.

My brother…

No… that’s not right.

I am an only child.

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

JOON

Memories cycle before my eyes,returning faster and faster, until they are a blinding blur. Each one is faded and tattered along the edges with the passage of time.

The clues were always there. Lost and obscured in twisted dreams that evaporate with the morning dew—lies muddled with enough scraps of truth to make them more convincing.

Was the body of that child really my brother? Were the other two Hyeon and Yuna, or were the figures by their design?

I blink, and I am before the mirror again. The cracks heal as the curse begins to unravel from the very spot that anchored it all this time. Blue light shines from the edges, radiating with the pulse of a strong heartbeat.

As it fades, a pearl—perfect and whole—pushes out of the glass. I catch it before it hits the ground.

My magic thrums in my veins, strong and unfaltering.

The guardian within stirs.

But not like before. He is calm. At peace again. He is finally free of the pain that imprisoned his mind.

We are united again, at long last, as we were always meant to be.

I missed you, old friend,I say through our connection.

And I, you.The dragon’s voice is deep and gentle. A comfort I had forgotten existed.