Prince William exchanged a glance with Nolan. The gravity of the situation was beginning to sink in. For all their political maneuvering, none of them had anticipated Ravenna’s return to be so dramatic, so… mythic.
“She has rewritten her image overnight,” Prince Nolan said quietly, mostly to himself. “From disgrace to divine heroine.”
“And now,” Princess Serena said, her voice low and bitter, “we’re the ones who look like cowards.”
Leaning back in his chair, Prince Landon stretched his arms and sighed. “Whatever. She saved my daughter. That earns her a bit of breathing room, don’t you think?”
Serena turned to him with a frown of disbelief. “Landon, are you serious? This is important!”
“I am serious,” he replied, rising from his chair and brushing imaginary dust from his silver-embroidered tunic. “But I’ve got more pressing matters. There’s unrest in the Estra Kingdom. The Conley Empire has been stirring up trouble again, and as the so-called ‘token fixer’ for the empire’s reputation in the vassal states, I have to be there to play diplomat.”
Serena's fists clenched at her sides. “You’re just going to walk away from this?!”
Landon smirked as he adjusted his cloak. “Stay out of my way, little sister. I have a better shot at the throne than any of you. These childish etings won’t change that.”
He turned on his heel and began to walk toward the door.
“Landon—!” Serena’s shout echoed through the chamber, but he didn’t stop.
Prince William let out a low hum of amusent, his fingers tapping rhythmically on the table. “Well,” he said as he stood, “it looks like I’ll be taking my leave too. I’ve got business elsewhere.”
Serena’s eyes widened. “You too?!”
William gave her a charming smile that never quite reached his eyes. “Dear sister, you and big brother Nolan are the only ones here with no real pull in the empire. I am the celebrated hero who liberated the slaves from underground trade rings. Landon is the empire’s chosen envoy for dealing with the unrest in vassal states.”
He straightened his coat and gave a small shrug. “And you? A princess with a talent for magic, sure… but one who ran away from the empire to the west and ca back only to cower during a beast invasion. That’s not the kind of legacy that sways the court.”
He then turned to Nolan with a knowing look. “And you? You left the Empire to beco a scholar in the Hilde Kingdom, and you returned… still a scholar. You command no armies, hold no estates, and have no court faction backing you.”
Walking toward the exit, William’s voice echoed grandly across the room, “This little eting may be important to you two, but to ? It’s a waste of ti.”
The doors opened and closed behind him, leaving a long silence in his wake.
Serena slamd her fist onto the table with a sharp crack, her anger barely contained. “That arrogant bastard!”
Nolan, now alone with her, calmly sipped from his goblet of wine. “He’s arrogant,” he agreed. “But he’s also right. You need to stop reacting emotionally and start thinking logically. If Ravenna’s rise isn’t stopped soon, it’ll be too late.”
“Oh, shut up” Serena muttered, her voice seething with frustration as she sat back down.
Imperial Palace, Emperor’s Office — Capital City
A golden light filtered in through the tall arched windows of the emperor’s private office, casting long shadows across the ornate floor tiles. The scent of old parchnt and polished wood filled the air. Behind a grand mahogany desk, Emperor Andrew sat, draped in a finely embroidered robe of midnight blue trimd with silver. His cold eyes skimd the stack of reports in front of him, each bearing the crimson wax seal of urgency.
Across from him stood Minister Frank Eldric, the emperor’s long-trusted advisor. The man’s posture was perfectly straight, his expression unreadable, as always.
Emperor Andrew spoke first, his voice low and pensive. “What are they calling her again?”
“The Beast Slayer, Your Majesty,” Frank answered calmly.
A mont of silence passed as the emperor flipped another page, his gloved fingers brushing lightly over the paper. He paused, eyes narrowing slightly.
“And what do you think of all this, Frank?” the emperor asked, without looking up.
Frank blinked. “Your Majesty?”
Andrew finally raised his eyes, locking onto his minister’s. “Was this orchestrated? A sche to restore her reputation and claw her way back into the succession race? Or… was it truly divine intervention?” He leaned back in his chair, tapping the parchnt with a single finger. “Either way, this incident has changed the entire court’s opinion of her.”
Frank hesitated for a beat before answering. “It’s difficult to say with certainty, your majesty. Both the Imperial Mages and the High Priests examined the remains of the beasts. Their conclusion was unanimous—there were undeniable traces of divine energy within the corpses.”
“And no human can fake that?” Andrew pressed, brows furrowed.
“Not without direct aid from a divine being,” Frank replied with a neutral tone. “Only Saintesses, blessed heroes in the legends of the creation, or currently high-ranking priests conducting sacred rituals under the eyes of their gods can manifest divine energy in a tangible form. Even then, it is never enough to slay magical beasts of that caliber. This… this was different.”
Andrew’s jaw tensed as he steepled his fingers beneath his chin. “So you’re telling that both Goddess Herptian and Solius responded to her plea? That two rival gods acted through one girl?”
“That is what the priests are claiming, Your Majesty,” Frank said, his voice as even as ever. “They’ve already begun whispering that she might be divinely favored… or perhaps even the reincarnated saintess as the legends said.”
The emperor let out a slow, thoughtful sigh, turning his gaze toward the window. Outside, the capital city bustled with recovery efforts, its skyline marred by distant wisps of smoke where the beasts had run rampant. And yet, amidst all the chaos, Ravenna had risen—not just as a survivor, but as a savior.
“I’ve ruled long enough to know that gods rarely intervene without purpose,” Andrew said at last. “And if this wasn’t divine intervention, then soone is playing a very, very long ga.”
Frank gave a small nod. “Either way, Your Majesty, the people are already singing her praises. And the nobility has begun to shift. So are calling for her reinstatent into the line of succession.”
Andrew chuckled darkly. “Of course they are. Nobles always go where the wind blows strongest.”
He looked back down at the reports and muttered, “The Beast Slayer, huh? Ravenna... you were supposed to be a discarded piece on this board, yet here you are rewriting the ga.”
Frank remained silent, knowing better than to interrupt the emperor when he was thinking.
After a mont, Andrew leaned forward again. “Keep an eye on her. I want reports on who she ets, what she says, and what favors she begins collecting. And Frank...”
“Yes, Your Majesty?” Frank replied.
“I can overlook small personal ambitions since you are my best friend but..” Emperor Andrew looked him in the eye and said “This will be the last”
I am sorry, I have to go on a break for few days, I suddenly fell ill and it seems a bit serious so I hope for your understanding.
I hope to be back in two days, If I don’t recover enough to upload by then. I will post an announcent post again to keep you all updated.
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