The carriage finally stopped shaking as the wheels moved off the rough dirt road and onto sothing solid. The sound changed right away, no more loose rattling, just a steady roll over smooth black stone.
After that, it took them a few more hours to reach the capital city, Vareth.
Lena leaned closer to the small window to get a better look. She had seen cities before. Ashfen was crowded and busy, and Veth was large and spread out. But this place felt different the mont she saw it.
Vareth didn’t just look big, it felt different, like the whole city was pressing down on the ground. The buildings were tall and dark, made of black stone that didn’t shine or reflect light. Instead, it seed to take in the light, making everything look dull and dim, even during the day.
As the carriage moved further into the city, Lena noticed the air felt strange too. It wasn’t just the usual sll of smoke, dust, and too many people.
There was sothing else in it, sothing she couldn’t see but could still feel. It felt like a steady pressure on her skin, a thick and uncomfortable kind of magic. It didn’t feel clean or calm. It felt heavy and unpleasant, like sothing that stuck to you and wouldn’t go away.
The people outside didn’t make her feel any better. In Veth, guards were just normal n doing their jobs, holding spears and watching the streets. But here, things were different.
The guards in Vareth stood stiff and still, like they were not alive at all. There was sothing off about them, sothing unnatural that made it clear they weren’t like anyone else on the street.
Their dark armor made them look more like iron statues than anything real or alive. And even when they didn’t move, they felt dangerous, like they could act at any mont without warning.
"We’re here," Caelum said. His voice was quiet. He wasn’t looking out the window.
"Yes, your Highness," Lena replied.
The carriage kept moving deeper into the city, slowly climbing higher. The roads beca cleaner, quieter, and more guarded.
They passed through three gates, each one tighter than the last, with more guards watching every movent.
At last, they reached a large place called the Aethelgard. This was where the princes lived. It looked impressive at first glance. There were neat gardens, trimd so perfectly they didn’t feel real, and tall buildings that rose up into the gray sky.
But as the carriage moved further inside, Lena started to notice the difference.
They passed the Golden Wing first. It looked bright, almost glowing, like it was ant to be seen. Then ca the Silver Wing, just as clean and well-kept. And then, without any announcent, the carriage turned toward the back.
It stopped in front of a smaller building. This place was called the Iron Thicket. It was older, dull, and clearly neglected. Dust sat on the edges, and nothing about it looked cared for.
This wasn’t a place fit for any prince of the demon Empire to live in. The discrimination was obvious. No one was even trying to hide it.
It was a clear ssage. A direct insult toward Caelum, ant to remind him exactly where he stood.
Lena stepped out first. Her face stayed calm, giving nothing away. She stood straight and opened the door for Caelum.
When he stepped out, he looked up at the gray, worn walls of the building. He didn’t speak, but Lena noticed that his face had beco even more unreadable.
"I’ll prepare the rooms," she said.
She moved as soon as they went inside. To anyone watching, it looked like simple work, checking furniture, opening windows, walking through the space.
But she wasn’t just settling in. She was studying everything.
She counted the exits. Three at the front, two at the back. One narrow staircase ant for servants.
She checked the windows. The glass was thick, but the locks were old and worn.
She tested the walls. Thin enough in places, sound could pass through if you knew where to listen.
Then she slowed.
Because she found sothing.
And it wasn’t part of the building.
In the corner of Caelum’s bedroom, hidden behind a heavy curtain, Lena found a small, smooth stone. It gave off a faint yellow glow, weak and unhealthy, like sothing slowly rotting.
It was a listening stone.
She didn’t break it. If she destroyed it, whoever placed it would know right away that she had found it. That would only make things worse.
Instead, she quietly moved a heavy chair in front of it, blocking it from view. Then she placed a small music box on a nearby table and wound it up. The steady ticking and soft noise from the chanism would interfere with whatever the stone was trying to pick up.
She continued checking the rest of the building and found two more stones, one hidden in the dining room and another near the main entrance. That made three in total.
The people wasn’t wasting any ti. They had been under watch from the mont they arrived.
"Lena," Caelum called from the hallway. "We have to go to the main hall for the introduction."
Lena straightened her apron and stepped out to join him. Together, they walked down a long corridor that connected the different wings of the complex.
The floor was polished so clean that it reflected light like still water, almost making it hard to judge distance while walking.
Halfway down the corridor, a group of people approached from the opposite direction.
At the center of them was a man who stood out imdiately. He was tall and confident, with hair the color of a fading sunset. His clothes were screaming wealth, he was almost shining, drawing attention without effort.
He was Prince Voss. Caelum’s older brother.
Voss didn’t slow down or stop. As they passed each other, he turned his head slightly and looked at Caelum with a smile that held no warmth at all. It wasn’t a friendly smile, it was mocking, the kind of look soone gives when they don’t take the other person seriously.
"Ah, the little brother is here," Voss said, his voice smooth but loud enough for everyone nearby to hear clearly. "I heard they placed you in the Thicket. Try not to get lost in the dust, Caelum. It would be unfortunate if we forgot you were even here before the conference begins."
The guards behind him laughed, their voices sharp and quick, echoing slightly in the long corridor.
Caelum didn’t react. He didn’t look up or show any anger. He just kept walking, his eyes fixed ahead. "I’ll try, brother," he replied quietly.
Voss laughed again, clearly amused with himself, and continued on his way without slowing down. As he passed, his gaze slid toward Lena. His eyes lingered longer than they should have, not with respect, but with a kind of interest that made her skin crawl.
I felt like he was sizing her up, like prey being judged for its worth. Then, just as easily, he looked away.
Lena felt a cold, steady anger rise in her chest. She watched him walk away and, for a brief mont, imagined exactly where she would place a blade if given the chance.
He was strong, she could feel his mana like heat from a fire, but he was also careless.
He carried himself like soone who already believed he had won, and that kind of thinking made people predictable.
"Don’t," Caelum said quietly, almost under his breath, as if he could sense her thoughts.
"I didn’t say anything, your Highness," Lena replied, her voice calm and controlled.
They stepped out into a wide central courtyard. The ground was made of clean white stone, and several fountains stood around the space, flowing with dark, scented water that gave off a faint sll in the air. The open space made everything feel exposed.
As they walked across the courtyard, Lena felt it again, that faint warning at the back of her neck.
Soone was watching them.
She didn’t react right away. She kept walking at the sa pace, staying in step with Caelum. When they passed near a large fountain, she used the curved surface of the water to look instead of turning her head directly.
There, high above them on a balcony, stood another man. He wore deep violet clothing, so dark it almost looked black. His build was thin, his skin pale, and his eyes sharp and focused, like soone who missed nothing.
He was Prince Mireth.
He wasn’t speaking to anyone or reacting to anything around him. He simply leaned against the railing and watched. When Lena caught his reflection in the water, he didn’t look away.
After a long mont, he finally turned and walked back into the shadows behind him, disappearing from sight without a word.
"The brothers are all here," Caelum said. His voice sounded cold, "The vipers are gathered."
Lena looked around at the high walls and the wide space of the courtyard. The scale of the city was overwhelming. The power here was enough to crush most people, and everyone who lived here seed to be waiting for Caelum to fail.
And sowhere in this sa city, the Hollow Seal assassins were hiding. Waiting quietly.
She looked at Caelum’s back as he walked ahead.
"I won’t let them kill him no matter, He’s my only way out of this dungeon." she whispered to herself, low enough that no one else could hear.
"What was that?" Caelum asked, turning his head slightly.
"Nothing, your Highness," Lena said smoothly, her tone professional.
Caelum gave a small nod, though his expression showed he didn’t fully believe her.
They walked forward and entered the main hall, leaving the cold air of the courtyard behind them.
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