A Love Beyond Epochs

The Letter She Left Behind

Ctesiphon, Sasanian Empire (Persia)

The grand halls of the House of Suren echoed with anxious footsteps. Servants hurried through every corridor, searching each chamber while whispering desperate prayers to Ahura Mazda.

The young lady of the estate was nowhere to be found.

The head maid, responsible for attending Princess Anahita Bano, had searched every corner of the imperial residence. The head maid trembled at the thought of informing the supreme commander of the imperial cavalry,the head of the House of Suren , Spahbed Rostem Suren , that his daughter Anahita Banu had vanished without a trace.

The atmosphere grew heavier with every passing moment.

Inside the magnificent dining hall, Shahbad Suren,the supreme head of the House of Suren, sat at the head of the table with his wife, Bashin Purandohkt Suren, . Beside them sat their children, Bahram and Ardeshir.

The family had barely begun breakfast when the grand doors burst open.

The head maid rushed inside, her face drained of color. She struggled to catch her breath before collapsing to her knees.

Everyone at the table looked toward her.

"Spahbed..." she gasped.

Spahbed Rostem Suren slowly lowered his cup and fixed her with an icy stare.

"What happened?" he asked, his voice calm, though it carried a quiet authority that silenced the room.

The head maid opened her mouth to speak, but the words refused to come.

"Spahbed..." she whispered again.

"Speak clearly," Spahbed Rostem Suren said coldly.

The woman's trembling hands rose as she held out a folded letter.

"Spahbed... Anahita Banu... she..." Her voice caught in her throat. "She ran away."

For a single heartbeat, absolute silence filled the hall.

Then every member of the family shot to their feet.

The head maid, unable to continue, held the letter forward with shaking hands.

Without a word, Spahbed Rostem Suren snatched it from her grasp.

He unfolded the parchment.

To the most fearsome and illustrious Shahbad Rostem Suren,

My dearest Father,

If you are reading this, it means you have finally noticed that your expensive, hand-woven Persian rugs are now completely empty of my presence.

Before you begin blaming my handmaidens, please don't. They slept like rocks, completely unaware that I was orchestrating a rather significant geopolitical scandal right beneath their noses.

I am writing to formally decline your incredibly generous offer to merge my life with that arrogant, dull-witted man you insist on calling the Crown Prince.

I know you spent a fortune paying tutors to teach me the fine art of seduction and proper royal etiquette so that I could keep him obediently beneath our family's thumb. I must confess-I did attend those lessons.

I now know exactly how to bat my eyelashes, pour wine gracefully, and sit quietly while looking pleasantly submissive.

As you can clearly see, those skills have worked wonders on you over the past few years.

However, while you believed I was learning how to become the perfect lady of the house, I was actually receiving a real education.

With a little help, I spent those long hours in the library mastering mathematics, astronomy, geography, languages, and even studying your private maps and advanced military strategies.

I refuse to spend the rest of my life imprisoned inside a gilded harem, smiling politely while the Crown Prince explains cavalry formations to me-especially when I can calculate the trajectory of an arrow faster than he can string his own bow.

Since you are so obsessed with securing international alliances, you will be absolutely delighted to learn that I am finally putting my education to excellent use.

I am currently traveling east along the northern trade routes, heading toward the magnificent Tang Dynasty of Chīn to study under the great scholars of Chang'an.

Please don't waste your elite guards searching for me in the west or the south.

By the time your horses are saddled, I shall probably be drinking green tea with the Chinese court.

Thank you, Father, for financing my journey.

Your gold paid for the very education that allowed me to escape your guards tonight.

And please, try not to burst a vein in your forehead from anger.

It truly ruins your terrifying general's aesthetic.

Anahita

The runaway scholar of the House of Suren.

"ANAHITA!"

Spahbed Suren's roar thundered through the palace, loud enough to make everyone nearby flinch. The heavy dining table toppled beneath his wrath, it's content crashing across the marble floor.

Somewhere in the ocean...

"Yes, yes, I hear him," Anahita said, turning toward the endless sea with an amused smile.

"My dear father is probably screaming like a madman. My brothers are undoubtedly just as furious, throwing around every curse word their limited vocabulary can manage. And my dear mother..."

She chuckled softly.

"She has most likely fainted already to avoid Father's shouting. Honestly, I always knew she was pretending. People don't simply lose consciousness the very second Father enters the room."

She laughed to herself, earning several puzzled glances from the passengers around her, who quietly questioned whether the young woman was entirely of sound mind.

"I mean, seriously... what did they expect? That I'd become the sixth slave....I mean, sixth wife of that witless ox who doesn't even know the difference between fruits and vegetables? He thinks tomatoes and cucumbers are vegetables. The hell-they're fruits!"

She scoffed before taking a deep breath.

"But it's fine. I'm going to... Hind."

She paused for a moment, then burst into laughter.

"Yes! Father will search for me in Chīn, not Hind."

Patting herself proudly on the back, she grinned.

"Ohh... I am so smart."

She turned toward the vast ocean stretching endlessly before her, her eyes shining with excitement.

"I am coming to you, Hind."

She said with her back squared and a big smile.

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