Chapter 60: Chapter 60

That was the question that stumbled out of my mouth before I could stop it. It wasn’t planned... it just slipped out, raw and startled.

My feet moved on their own, taking a few quick steps back as if I’d just seen a ghost.

Because honestly... that’s what it felt like.

But just like me, both Auren and Lady Celeste looked confused.

Auren’s brows furrowed, his expression caught somewhere between suspicion and surprise. Lady Celeste blinked at me, her lips parting slightly as if trying to make sense of what she was seeing.

For a long second, no one spoke. The air hung heavy, filled with nothing but the quiet ripple of water.

I swallowed hard, my eyes darting between the two of them. "I—uh—sorry, I didn’t mean to—"

But my words caught when Lady Celeste took a step forward, the sunlight slipping across her face.

Same features. Same eyes. Same everything... down to the faint curve of her mouth.

Except for one tiny thing... a small, dark mole just beneath her right eye.

It was like staring at a mirror that wasn’t mine.

"Who are you?" Lady Celeste asked back, her tone cautious but soft.

I blinked a few times, completely thrown off, not just by the question, but because she looked exactly like me. Same hair, same expression, same everything.

My brain short-circuited for a full second.

Before I could even think of an answer, Auren’s voice cut through the silence.

"You," he said, his eyes narrowing slightly as he looked at me. "Are you... Celeste?"

The way he said it... was like he was half uncertain, half convinced, sending a chill straight down my spine.

He looked at me like he knew me.

Like he was sure I was the real one.

My lips parted, but no words came out. I just stood there, caught between two identical faces — one hers, one mine, and not a single part of it made sense.

My head was spinning, my pulse too loud in my ears.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, forcing myself to think. "Lucian... I need to find Lucian..."

The words slipped out in a whisper, shaky and half-panicked.

Without waiting another second, I turned on my heel, ready to leave before my brain could process another impossible detail.

But before I could take two steps, a voice cut through the air... sharp and commanding.

It wasn’t loud, but it carried enough weight to freeze me mid-step.

The tone wasn’t the same one he’d used with Lady Celeste a moment ago. This one was colder... familiar in a way that sent a chill down my spine.

He locked his eyes on me, looking so intense and in that very second, I could feel the space between us seemed to shrink even though I hadn’t moved an inch.

"Who are you?" he asked, his voice low, deliberate.

Then his gaze flicked briefly toward Lady Celeste standing beside him. I could see it then, the confusion tightening his jaw, the disbelief in the way his eyes darted between us.

He wasn’t just startled. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ noveⅼfire.net

He looked... offended.

Like he was trying to figure out which clan had the guts or the power to pull a trick on him.

And the worst part? I didn’t have an answer.

Lady Celeste’s voice broke the tension... soft, careful, almost melodic. It carried that poised gentleness that sounded nothing like mine.

But that wasn’t what startled me.

She called him Auren.

Not "my lord," not "sir," not anything formal — just Auren.

My stomach dropped. That meant one of two things... either they’d already met before, or Lady Celeste knew him. Personally.

I stared at her, completely thrown off, my brain flipping through every possible page of the book like a panicked librarian.

That wasn’t how their first meeting was supposed to go.

In the story, she didn’t even know his name until he introduced himself.

So why did she sound like she’d said it before?

Auren’s expression shifted, confusion flickering across his face, breaking through his usual calm.

"Did you just call me by name?" His voice was low.

Her lips parted, and for a second, I thought she might answer. But then she hesitated, her voice soft, shaky. "Auren... I—" She stopped herself, her eyes darting away.

Something in my chest tightened.

They knew each other.

Of course they did! I mean, I died at Chapter eleven... so this had to be something that happened before that. Before my grand, tragic cannon-fodder exit.

It made sense, didn’t it? The real Lady Celeste and Auren must have met somewhere in between the Chapters while I was still alive, just too busy dying on schedule to notice it.

I let out a shaky breath, my eyes flicking between them. Auren was still looking at her, and she was looking right back, like no one else existed in the world.

Okay, yeah. That was my cue to leave.

Before anyone realized there were two of the same face standing around one emotional lake.

I turned slowly at first, then faster, until my steps turned into a near-run across the grass. I didn’t dare look back, the last thing I needed was for Auren to start asking more confusing questions.

The car was still waiting where I left it, and Marek looked up sharply the moment he saw me sprinting toward him.

"My lady?" he asked, eyes wide. "Is something wrong?"

"Yes!" I said, out of breath as I yanked the door open and practically jumped inside. "Everything is wrong! Drive, Marek. Please... just go!"

He blinked but didn’t question it. "Where to, my lady?"

"Lucian’s company," I said quickly, pressing a hand to my chest to calm my racing heart. "Just... get me there before I start questioning my life choices again."

"But my lady... you told me earlier, Lord Lucian is meeting you here..."

"Marek..." I dragged out his name, my tone somewhere between a plea and a warning.

His ears twitched slightly, Kirin instincts picking up danger, or maybe just my temper.

"Just drive!" I snapped, pointing ahead.

He didn’t ask again. The car jerked forward, wheels rolling fast along the dirt path.

The lake faded behind us, swallowed by mist, but my heart wouldn’t stop racing.