There are strands of red hairs on the bangs of her majesty today.
But it's not that important right now.
They all stood straighter, each one aware of her mood, though the exact reason behind it was known to only a few. To most, this seed like Aurelia at her worst—fiery, irritable, and pressuring them with a silent intensity. But the pri minister and the most seasoned ministers recognized it for what it truly was: a rare mont of absolute focus.
Whenever Queen Aurelia was in this state, sothing serious was occupying her mind, sothing that set her in motion like a storm over the horizon. It didn't happen often. Once or twice a year, at most. But when it did, the entire court braced for impact. Today was one of those days.
And although her commands were crisp and efficient, there was an unspoken pressure, like a wave about to crash over them.
The first minister stepped forward, his hands trembling slightly as he held a stack of docunts. "Your Majesty, the report from the southern provinces—"
"Summarize it," Aurelia snapped, her voice echoing in the hall. She didn't raise her tone, but the weight of her words was enough to make the minister's knees buckle.
"Y-Yes, Your Majesty," he stamred. "The crops have been failing, and the local nobles are requesting aid from the crown's treasury to—"
"Tell them to cut their expenses and reinvest into their farmlands. Send the treasury a warning if they ask again. Next."
The minister blinked, surprised at how quickly she'd dismantled the issue, but he nodded and stepped back, grateful he wasn't being hung for wasting her ti.
The next minister approached cautiously, glancing nervously at the objects floating in the air around her—tables, chairs, even the heavy iron chandelier above their heads, all suspended mid-air by her psychokinesis. She wasn't even looking at them, wasn't focused on them in the slightest. It was just there, part of the background, her power manifesting as she directed her attention elsewhere.
One of the newer ministers, a young man who had only recently joined the council, looked like he was about to ask why everything was floating, but a single glance from Aurelia silenced him. He swallowed hard and kept his mouth shut.
The next report poured in, this ti from the military. "Your Majesty, there have been increased border skirmishes with the neighboring kingdom. We believe it's a precursor to—"
"Double the patrols, have General Istvan oversee the defense, and send a ssage to their ambassador. Make it clear that another step into our lands will be considered an act of war," Aurelia said smoothly, her eyes locked on the military advisor with a calm intensity. "Remind them that they are not in a position to fight us. If they persist, crush them. Next."
Her mind was like a finely tuned machine, moving from one issue to the next with ruthless efficiency. Every command was precise, decisive, leaving no room for argunt or hesitation. It was as though she already knew the answers before the ministers even opened their mouths. The reports kept coming, each one handled with the sa calculated brilliance, leaving the court in awe.
It wasn't often that they saw her like this—calm, efficient, focused. Normally, Aurelia was fiery, prone to outbursts of swearing, calling everyone bastards and idiots if they dared to waste her ti. But today, she was in complete control.
Yet, there was a weight to the air. The way the objects floated around her, heavy things like the marble table and thick wooden doors hovering effortlessly, seed more than just a display of power. The ministers exchanged glances, the rumor that had been circling for days now buzzing at the back of their minds. They all had heard it: Queen Aurelia was preparing for sothing.
More specifically, she was preparing for soone.
Professor Draven Arcanum von Drakhan, the Earl of Drakhan, had challenged her.
The words hung unspoken in the air. Nobody dared to ntion it outright, but the rumors were clear: Draven had issued so kind of challenge to the queen, and it had lit a fire inside her. Perhaps the professor, known for his cold intellect and razor-sharp mind, had underestimated her. Perhaps he'd pushed just a bit too far with his condescending air.
Or maybe, just maybe, he knew exactly how to get under her skin.
The ministers could see it—the subtle changes. Aurelia's fierce focus wasn't just because of the reports or the state of the kingdom. It was because she was determined to defeat him, to prove that no one, not even Draven, could stand above her. Her pride as both a ruler and a genius was at stake, and everyone in the room felt the pressure of that unspoken battle.
One minister, braver than the rest, dared to ask, "Your Majesty… about the floating—"
He stopped mid-sentence when she shot him a glare that could freeze lava. The man's mouth snapped shut, and he bowed low, not daring to finish his question. Aurelia didn't even need to speak. The ssage was clear: Don't ask. Just keep up.
The reports ended as abruptly as they had begun, with each minister dismissed as quickly as they had arrived. Aurelia leaned back in her chair—though it was floating three feet off the ground—and let out a long breath, her mind still spinning with thoughts. Draven. That cold, calculating bastard. She was going to make him eat his words, whatever those words had been.
The specifics of the challenge didn't matter. All that mattered was that she would win.
Once the ministers had cleared out, Aurelia rose from her floating throne, stretching her arms above her head, and began walking toward the private chambers where her next eting was scheduled. Unlike other rulers, Aurelia didn't waste ti inspecting every little detail of her kingdom herself. She delegated, trusted her people, and showed an iron fist when necessary.
Anyone caught tampering with reports, giving false information, or trying to deceive her t a swift end. Hanging was the preferred thod—it sent a ssage. Deception was not tolerated in her court.
Yet, she was not naive. Even in her genius, Aurelia knew that ruling a kingdom required more than just delegation and punishnt. It required understanding, an intellect sharp enough to catch lies before they even ford on soone's lips. And that, she had in abundance. Today, however, her mind wasn't on matters of state. It was on sothing far more personal.
"Send them in," she called as she approached the grand chamber. Her voice rang with authority, and the guards quickly moved to open the doors. Inside, a group of n and won sat around a large, ornate table. Each one of them was a master of the ga of Go, the ancient strategy ga that required patience, foresight, and a brilliant mind to master.
Aurelia had never cared much for the ga before. She found it tedious, preferring action over slow, thodical thinking. But now, things were different. Draven had challenged her, and Go was his arena. She would et him there, and she would crush him.
The players around the table looked nervous. They had all heard the rumors, too, about the queen's newfound obsession with the ga. So whispered that she was trying to sharpen her intellect even further, to beco unbeatable. But none of them knew the real reason. None of them knew that the queen didn't care about Go at all. This wasn't about the ga—it was about beating Draven.
"Your Majesty," one of the Go masters, an older man with a silver beard, bowed deeply as she approached. "We are honored to have been summoned."
"Good," Aurelia said, seating herself at the head of the table. "Let's begin."
The ga started quickly, the Go masters taking turns placing their stones on the board with deliberate precision. Each move was calculated, thought out several steps in advance. They played slowly, carefully, as though testing the waters before committing to a full strategy. But Aurelia had no ti for such caution.
She slamd her stone onto the board with a fierce intensity that made the players jump. "Let's move this along, shall we? I'm not here for your little gas. I need the best strategies you've got."
The Go masters exchanged nervous glances. They had never seen soone approach the ga with such aggression, such impatience. But Aurelia wasn't interested in playing by the rules. She was here to win, and she was here to win quickly.
One by one, the Go masters tried to outwit her, laying traps, setting up defensive strategies, but Aurelia saw through them all. She wasn't a master of the ga, not by a long shot, but her mind was a battlefield, constantly calculating, shifting, adapting. She saw the patterns, the weaknesses, and she exploited them rcilessly.
The older man with the silver beard, clearly the most experienced of the group, placed his stone on the board with a satisfied smile. "A clever move, Your Majesty," he said, his tone gentle but confident. "But I'm afraid this is where your strategy ends."
Aurelia stared at the board for a mont, her eyes narrowing. The man had set a trap, a clever one, but she wasn't about to walk into it. Her fingers hovered over the board for just a second before she slamd her stone down with a grin. "Not today, old man."
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