"Welco to Kator, noble visitors," she said in a practiced, lodic tone, bowing ever so slightly. "You honor us with your presence. I hope the journey was... uneventful?"
The lead envoy, a man wrapped in ceremonial Nexum attire, glanced around the room with mild disdain, clearly uncomfortable with being greeted by a child. "We expected to speak to your commanding officer," he said bluntly.
"You are," the girl replied, still smiling. "I speak with my lord's voice, and he entrusted to govern this world. You'll find I am quite capable."
The envoy's expression twitched.
She led them further inside, down gilded corridors and into a lavish eting room, all while engaging them with innocent small talk and careful distractions, buying ti for the reinforcents to co.
"I must admit, I was expecting soone a bit more… mature to be the governor of this planet. Why is a little child sitting in such an important chair?" the envoy said coldly, his voice dripping with disdain as he stared down at the young girl.
The little girl didn't flinch. Instead, she let out a soft giggle, her eyes calm and clever. She looked straight at the envoy and replied with a sweet, innocent smile.
"It's actually very simple," she said, her voice cheerful. "When everyone else either dies or gives up, the one who is most prepared or maybe just the luckiest is the one who ends up in charge. And that's ."
She gestured kindly toward the long, beautifully set dining table and invited the envoy and his entourage to sit and eat. Plates were already full of warm food, the kind that slled like a comforting ho.
Despite the tension, the guests accepted the al, and for a little while, silence took over the room and only the sounds of silverware and glasses clinking could be heard.
Once dinner ended, the envoy wiped his mouth, leaned back, and pulled out a sleek data pad from his coat. He scrolled through the glowing screen until he found the information he wanted, the records about the planet Kator's taxes.
"Well then," he said smoothly, looking back at the girl with a smug expression, "I presu you at least understand why we've co here?"
The little girl smiled again, her hands neatly folded on her lap. "Of course, Your Excellency," she answered politely. "You're here for the annual tax collection."
"Good. Then let's get to it," the envoy continued, tapping the screen. "According to your latest tax report, you owe us 60% of your annual digital credits and 80% of your tallic currency. You have twenty-four hours to gather everything. Our rchant ships will arrive to pick it up."
He stood from the table with a self-important air and then added with a twisted smirk, "Now then, I will be resting in the mansion's master bedroom. Oh, and do send so of your local flowers to tend to . Or better yet…" His eyes scanned her young figure with vile intent. "You could join instead."
Without waiting for an answer, he turned and walked out, his entourage following closely behind. Laughter echoed softly as they disappeared down the grand hallway.
The cheerful mask the girl had worn throughout the eting crumbled the mont they left. She remained seated at the table, completely still, and then shivered slightly as she recalled the envoy's disgusting gaze. Her hands, once calm and folded, clenched tightly under the table.
One of the maids, who had been standing silently with the rest during the al, suddenly stepped forward. As she moved closer, her image shimred and her disguise flickered off, revealing a maid bot in sleek white plating.
"Young mistress," the bot said gently, "my master has instructed to send a few maid bots to the envoy's quarters. They will take care of him discreetly. We cannot allow such filth to defile any of your people."
The bot calmly poured more juice into the girl's cup, as if they were just having a peaceful tea ti.
The little girl exhaled a deep, relieved breath and nodded. "Very well. Carry out the plan exactly as Lady Cleo commanded it. But don't let him or anyone with him realize what's happening before her arrival. We can't risk alerting them."
"Understood, little mistress," the bot replied, bowing her head respectfully. "I will take my leave now. But rest assured, so of the shadows will always be nearby. We won't let anything happen to you."
The maid bot's disguise shimred back into place, and she turned silently, leaving the room like a ghost in the palace.
Left alone once more, the little girl took a small sip of her juice, trying to wash away the bitter feeling that lingered on her tongue, one that had nothing to do with the drink, and everything to do with the world she had been forced to rule.
A few minutes passed before two of the bot maids that were still in their perfect disguise as human attendants arrived at the envoy's bedroom door. With graceful precision, one of them knocked gently and spoke in a soft, polite tone.
"Your Excellency, we have arrived to serve all of your needs," she said, her voice sweet and inviting, exactly as programd.
From inside, the envoy's voice ca back with a sleazy chuckle. "Co in."
As the door slid open, the two maids stepped into the lavishly decorated room. The air was thick with the scent of expensive wine and arrogance. The envoy stood confidently at the center of the room, entirely naked except for a half-empty crystal glass of wine in one hand.
"Well, well," he purred, his eyes roaming over the two won. "A pair of beautiful flowers... Don't be shy now. I promise I'll only bite a little."
The two bot maids exchanged the briefest of glances; there were no words, just a shared signal sent through silent encrypted communication. Then they stepped forward slowly, their movents graceful and calculated.
When they reached just within striking distance, one of them activated a compact anti-sound barrier that instantly sealed off the room from all outside noise. In the sa split second, the other produced two sleek daggers from her hidden compartnts and lunged straight for the envoy's throat.
But just as the blades were about to pierce his neck, the envoy's eyes flared with a strange light that was unnatural and sharp. With a sudden burst of inhuman strength, he flung both attackers across the room like rag dolls.
"Hahaha!" he laughed wildly, standing tall and triumphant. "So... these pretty little flowers have thorns. tallic thorns, at that. That brat must've thought she could outsmart ."
His grin turned cruel as he lifted his arm and activated the device strapped to his wrist. "It doesn't matter. One call, and this whole miserable world will be turned to ash. But not before I strip it clean of every credit and gem."
He pressed his fingers to the device... but in that exact mont, his entire arm was severed clean from his body.
His eyes went wide as his hand and forearm hit the ground with a dull thud, the floor quickly stained with fresh, flowing blood.
"Eh…? Wh–what…?"
The envoy could hardly process what had happened. But the next mont, several small punctures opened up across his chest, nearly invisible cuts that caused blood to spurt from his body. He coughed violently, crimson spilling from his lips as he dropped to his knees, trembling.
Then ca the final strike... a deep slash across his neck, thin but devastating. He began convulsing, his breath becoming shallow, his eyes wide with the terror of soone who just realized they would not see another sunrise.
A figure erged from the shadows near the corner of the room; it was an elite shadow guard, nearly invisible a second before, now casually standing beside the dying envoy. In one hand, he held a gleaming dagger, and with the other, he calmly wiped the blade clean using the envoy's luxury robe.
"Your execution was inefficient," the shadow unit said coldly to the bot maids, not even glancing at the envoy anymore. "Report to the factory for a systems upgrade."
He disappeared back into the darkness just as silently as he had arrived, leaving behind only the soft hum of the anti-sound barrier and the envoy's broken body slumped on the floor.
"Little Mistress, the envoy has been successfully eliminated. He will no longer pose a problem," the bot maid said calmly while standing at attention beside the desk in the girl's office.
The little girl, seated on a high-backed chair too large for her fra, gave a small nod, her expression unreadable. "Good... and what about the others? The guards and attendants he brought with him?"
"They have been left alive for now," the bot maid replied, gently dusting off a nearby shelf as she spoke.
"Should the admiral of the treasure fleet attempt to reach the envoy, they will serve as convenient scapegoats. They've been fed a false narrative and are convinced that the envoy is simply... enjoying the company of so local girls."
The little girl tilted her head slightly, a faint glimr of unease in her eyes. "That should buy us so ti..."
She paused for a mont, fingers tapping nervously on the polished wood of her desk. "Any news from Lady Cleo?" she asked, her voice smaller now, touched with the weight of anticipation.
The bot maid didn't look up from her work but answered in the sa steady tone. "According to the latest report from central command, Lady Cleo and the Cleopatra fortress will arrive in five to six hours, give or take depending on final wormhole stability."
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