It feels like the walls are closing in on me.

My breath catches in my throat, then gets sucked into my stomach like I was just dealt a fatal blow there.

And I was. While it may not be a physical attack, the King's words are a fatal blow to my plans.

I didn't imagine this trial would be easy, but I thought it would be simple enough. I imagined a blood bath and trained for one.

But I didn't train to make the King like me.

The idea never even occurred to me at all. King Drogo loathes me and there's nothing I can do to change his mind. I tried enough times in my first life, always with disastrous results.

At the time, I believed that if I could only get his approval, Caster would call off his engagement to Genya and marry me instead.

And then even after Caster married Genya, I still tried to endear myself to the King and earn his respect. I may not have had magic or important contacts, but I did everything I could to help the North in the fight with the Pangeans, and I thought with all my contributions, that I would earn my right to become a part of his family, maybe not as Caster's wife but as his partner regardless.

But every attempt I made to win the King's respect only made him hate me more.

There were several factors at play – I had foreign blood, I was not a noble, and I was a mistress.

I was also very bad at knowing my place.

And right now, apart from being a mistress, all those things are still marks against me. Especially the last part.

I'm attempting to join his esteemed army, an honor he would much prefer to reserve for only full-blooded Accacians. That is the definition of not knowing my place.

A sudden hand on my shoulder has me looking at Wolf. Concern lights his eyes, letting me know I've probably been dazed for more than a few seconds.

I shake my head. “I don’t know what to do.”

Wolf doesn't say anything. Of course, he doesn't have anything to worry about. The King will definitely want Wolf in his army. His respect for the silent warrior is clear for everyone to see, including his son, which is probably why Caster dislikes Wolf so much.

The participants murmur amongst themselves as more people stream into the courtyard from the halls of the castle. I recognized them as ministers and envoys to other countries. All the important people who are involved in governing the North. They all stand surrounding us and are followed by an Elite Soldier who shuts the doors, walks in front of the King, and announces:

“Single file line. Pure-blooded Northerners to the front.”

Brute moves first, confidently striding to stand right in front of the soldier, with a smile on his face. That puts him at the front of the line. The prince follows and the rest of the hopefuls shuffle around, trying to find their place.

"They said full-blooded Northerners in front," One boy says bumping the boy in front of him and gesturing. "You're only a half-blood, which means you're behind me."

The boy's face tightens, but he simply nods and moves back several spaces until he finds his place.

I shuffle to the back of the line where I saw a few more of the foreigners and foreigner-borns coming. To my surprise, Wolf follows me and stands behind me. I blink at him in surprise.

“You’re not…”

He raises an eyebrow. “Not what?”

I open my mouth and then shut it. The topic of Wolf’s father is a sore and messy one and there are rumors but this isn't the place to start digging into that. “Never mind.”

I pivot forward as the line gets longer and thinner, and we get shifted back and further back. The entire time I'm trying to work my brain and think about what to do next.

Why is this happening?

So far, this timeline has followed the same series as in the past. So why did the king change his mind about this trial? What changed?

Me.

The only answer flies into my mind, landing firmly. The only thing that has changed in this timeline is that I competed in and passed the first trial. Is that why the king is doing this, to stop me, and other undesirables, from further advancing? Did my victory ultimately affect this timeline so much that it would make the past I knew redundant?

That was a legitimate fear of mine when I planned all this out, and now it's looming into reality. The little speck of a chance of success that I had relies on everything I know of the past. If the past suddenly changes, then I'm on shaky ground.

“Next.”

The sharply barked-out order alerts me that we've already begun the trial. Wolf and Prince Caster are already standing to the far right of the room, clearly having passed. And the King has just banished someone to the left.

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The next boy moves forward in line, but just as he opens his mouth, the King boredly scans him and gestures to the right. Relief pounces onto his face and he practically jogs to where Brute and the Prince are standing, giving them a wide, respectful berth.

"Next."

The next boy walks up and begins stammering, “Um...your Highness it is an honor to meet you...my name is –"

The King cuts him off by ticking his finger to the left. Rejection.

The boy’s shoulders fall and he wanders off without even getting a true chance. That's when I understand. This is no test. The victors were decided before we stepped into this room.

“This is brutal,” I murmur.

“Tell me about it.” The boy in front of me says. He turns his head to give me a commiserative glance and then recognition flashes in his face, at the same time as it strikes me.

“It’s you,” we both say at the same time. He's the foreigner boy who was arguing with his mother on the way to the arena, the one whose mother gave me a handkerchief.

“Jace,” he says with a welcoming grin on his pleasant features. He sticks his hand out and I shake it.

“Adria,” I respond.

“I really enjoyed your flight, Adria. You were like a dancing Hukuba.”

“A what?” I ask, half sure he had insulted me.

“It’s a bird back in my hometown,” he whispers. "They cut through the air and dive fast to stab predators with their sharp beaks."

“Oh...thank you. I enjoyed your fight as well.”

“You did?” His eyes widen in true pleasure. “Because I thought I definitely showed too many weak points. It was the worst I’ve ever fought in my life, you know. The nerves got to me and the big guy was slippery as an eel. I let him get way too many shots in. I won but I could have–”

“It was a good fight,” I reiterate, cutting him off because I have a feeling he'll keep going until he runs out of breath. I don't remember him from any of the previous timelines but he has a very unassuming face so perhaps I just didn’t notice. “You did well."

“Thank you." He beams again, so brightly.

“You’re welcome. Let’s just hope it wasn’t all for nothing.”

His enthusiasm dims as we shuffle forward, half listening to the King accept or reject on a whim. “Do you have any ideas on how to impress him?”

“Short of killing ourselves? Nothing. The King doesn't respond well to flattery."

He grins. "That’s a shame because I'm the best flatterer he's ever met."

I smile at that, nearly snorting laughter until I hear a light growl behind me. Jace’s eyes suddenly flick to the source, and he pales a little.

“Er, okay that's enough talking for now, Jace," he says to himself and then turn and fixes his eyes on the back of someone's head.

I think for a second and sigh.

I can only imagine what happened. Wolf, probably irritated by all the chatter, leveled Jace with one of his famous glares and the boy instantly shut down quietly.

"Did you need to be rude?" I whisper out of the corner of my mouth, knowing fully well that Wolf can hear me. He doesn't answer and I turn to give him a look, which he returns unashamedly. I shake my head. It's my fault for expecting better manners from him anyway.

As the line gets shorter and eventually bleeds out of purebloods, my heart races more. The King's rejections are growing in number and they're getting quicker. Shoulders sink as people give up before they even get there.

Jace suddenly spins around and says, “Just in case I don’t make it through and never get to see you again, do you mind telling the big man behind you that I’ve heard all about him and I'm one of his biggest fans, and truly admire his work. He saved a woman in my village who had been robbed, returned her belongings and even punished the robbers for a small fee. He left before we could give him the rest of his pay and no one has seen him since."

Jace says it in a rush of words, with his eyes on mine pleading.

“Why don’t you tell him yourself?" I whisper back to him amused.

“I don’t think he likes me very much.”

“He doesn’t like anyone very much.”

Jace grins and then risks another glance up, but then what he sees must not be encouraging because he turns away again.

The line is now only a few people thick, filled with almost entirely with foreigners.

And then suddenly, it's Jace's turn.

To his credit, he walks forward with aplomb.

"You’re Highness," he says. “My name is Jasopheth–“

The king instantly flicks his hand to the left.

Jace shoulders fall but he doesn't leave. He stands there until the King frowns.

“Your Highness,” he says. “My name is Jace Perry, son of Edgar Perry, the great hero of the Hakua Village.”

General Halo leans over to whisper something in the King's ear. I guess he knows who that is.

The king hesitates then and something resembling interest flickers across his expression. "You're truly the son of Edgar Perry?"

“Yes.” Jace says. “My father sacrificed his life in the last invasion and he taught me the true meaning of honor. The Hakua have been in debt to Accacia ever since you saved us from the Pangeans, and I would like the honor of serving as your loyal vassal. I assure you, that I will do my very best to aid this nation that has stood for years despite the Pangean expansion, and I will give my life for the great Protector of the North who has led it through five wars against those bloody yellow bastards, defeating them each time." Jace takes a breath but almost immediately continues. "I know I am not born of this incredible nation but I wish I was. I wish I could claim to be a true Northerner like an Accacian, instead of being merely an associate. But as your servant, please allow me to show my eternal gratitude to you and to help your cause in whatever I can. If I were not born a Northerner, then at least, let me die one."

Then he goes on his knee extending one hand. A murmur of approval goes through the crowd, clearly loving his anti-Pangean sentiment and his downright worship of the North.

Of course, there are those like Brute who still sneer and others like Wolf who cringe, but most of the crowd like what he had to say. And Jace was smart, in not only in elevating Accacia above his own home village but also in reminding everyone here of our common enemy, the Pangeans.

He really is a great flatterer, I muse.

And it pays off because the strangest thing happens. The King actually smiles at him as he flicks his finger to the right.

And just like that, Jace is through.

He grins and rises, then bows one more time. "And while I'm at it, I plan on killing as many Pangean whoresons as I can."

A cheer rings out from the onlooker as he walks off. He's effectively proven himself.

Now, it's my turn.

My heart races as I walk forward. Luckily, Jace's speech gave me an idea. I don't know how well it will work since I don't have a famous father like Jace does, but I know that's not the entire reason the King let him through in the first place.

The most important part of his speech, the thing that had the King smiling, was the last part.

Sacrifice.

King Drogo sees us foreigners as precisely that, fodder he will use in the next great war so that he can retain as many pure-blooded Accacians as possible. It's the only reason he even allowed us to compete in these trials anyway, however grudgingly he did so.

To King Drogo, his dislike can only be offset by our usefulness.

The King's smile is completely gone by the time I stand still in front of him.

I don't wait for his finger to move before I announce, "I’m a Seer.”