Her dress came with an unexpected visitor. Arham grinned at her, the bundle in his hand extended towards her.

  “You’ve made the best choice. She’s the best at her craft.” he winked.

  Haitham scowled at him. “Are you here for the mission report or to flirt with the princess?” he asked dryly.

  Arham held his hands up in a placating manner. “I would never!” He put his fist on his chest, two fingers spread in a solemn vow. “I swear on Ma’arib’s honor and glory.”

  “Right.” The scowl didn’t leave Haitham’s face as he mentioned for the assassin to report on what he found.

  Daliya watched the pair with an amused glint in her eyes. She put the beautifully wrapped box on her bed and sat down to listen to Arham’s report.

  “Are you sure it’s inside the castle?” Haitham asked.

  Arham shrugged. “We looked everywhere. We’ve searched every nook and cranny in Assyla with no success. It’s the only place we still haven’t looked.”

  For good reasons. With the tight security in the palace, she doubted they would be able to infiltrate its grounds.

  “There’s also the missing Elementalists.” Arham sighed.

  Daliya’s ears perked up. “You mean the ones killed by the empire?”

  He shook his head. “No. The empire has been snatching people up from their homes, people suspected of being Elementalists. They were neither executed nor put on trial for whatever false crime the empire accused them of. Then they were not seen or heard from again.”

  Daliya frowned. What could the empire want with them?

  “Focus on the Souldeath Steel,” Haitham instructed.

  Arham nodded. “I’ll look into it tonight. If anything comes up, I’ll let you know. Laila is already tracking a lead into the disappearances.”

  After he left, Daliya tore into the box to see Mina’s masterpiece. Arham didn’t lie, nor was he exaggerating. The dress was gorgeous. It was an off-shoulder dress with loose sleeves. The silk was smooth and soft. The skirt shifted under her touch like dark waves under the starlight midnight sky.

  “Beautiful,” she whispered.

  Haitham hummed. “She’s the Duchess’ personnel tailor for a reason.”

  Daliya shot him a confused look. “How so? Her shop didn’t seem to be that popular.”

  “She doesn’t like to be under the spotlight.” He shrugged. “Also, she doesn’t seem to be on good terms with Awsanian nobility.”

  “What happened?” Daliya asked, intrigued. Mina was cheerful, bubbly, and bright, and her cheerfulness was contagious. What could she have done to offend their tender sensibilities?

  “Don’t know. She refused to say. But rumors have it that she refused the advances of someone high-ranking in the empire’s military. He couldn’t take a no to face value.” At her quizzical look, he said, “It might have been General Nasir. He commands the empire’s whole army and acts as the emperor’s right-hand man.”

  Daliya paused. “Wait. Shouldn’t the princess command the army? Isn’t she the crown princess and the next Empress?”

  “While she was indeed recognized as a royal, she doesn’t—you don’t—” He titled his head to the side. “Hold the title of crown princess. 5the slot is still open, and both the general and you—now—compete for it. Though it’s widely known that the Emperor favors the general and is waiting for the slightest faut pas to declare him as heir.”

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  Daliya hummed. “I didn’t think the relationship between them was so dire. I mean, I knew things were bad, but that bad. Doesn’t he want to, like, preserve his bloodline?”

  “Not when there is magic cursing through the heir’s veins, no.”

  Daliya sighed. At this point, she couldn’t fault the princess for wanting to escape all this shitfest. Heck, if she could, if she had access to a crystal, she would have done the same. This was too high above her pay grade.

  If she could ever get back home, she would never complain about whatever life seemed fit to throw at her. She would be ready to tackle all the exams and part-time jobs with a beaming and grateful heart. She was even willing to pay a whole month’s worth of food for her favorite customer. The bastard wouldn’t have to sacrifice innocent insects for a chance at a free meal.

  “Right!” she turned to Haitham, arms crossed over her chest. “Do you guys intend to use my room as your rendezvous point? I don’t remember giving my consent.”

  “Where else would the servants, or anyone for that matter, need permission to enter?” He shrugged.

  Daliya scoffed. The nerves of this man. Well, at least it allowed her serious intel into what he was planning.

  She suddenly remembered the terms of their cooperation. A favor from the princess. She felt an involuntary shiver run down her spine. She glanced at Haitham as he paced around her room, muttering under his breath. Half words of a still-forming plan spilled through his lips.

  She couldn’t help but wonder whether he would soon cash in that favor.

  Daliya didn’t expect to receive another invite to the palace. She followed the servant assigned to the task of greeting her to the meeting room. It wasn’t the hall, nor was it another room with only a throne elevated on the dais from where he would look down on her with his scrutinizing gaze. Instead, to her surprise, it was the war room.

  On one side of the wall was a gigantic map of the whole continent. The Awasanina Empire stood at the center of the map, surrounded by the four kingdoms. Lyria in the north. Ma’arib in the south. An out grouping of small islands in the east in the shape of a crescent moon—Duchess Husniya’s duchy, she noted—and on the other side, what once was the Ardun Kingdom loomed like a giant, almost double the size of the empire. Riyah was comparably a small kingdom that connected Lyria and Ardun, like a small bridge.

  A large table was at the center of the room. Miniature figurines of towers, knights, and different banners lay in a scattered heap. The red and golden banner representing the empire was significantly bigger than the others and more shinier.

  Emperor Suhail was occupying the chair at the farthest corner of the table, his eyes gazing at the smaller map replica fastened to the wooden surface.

  Another man was standing a few distance from him, his brows furrowed in concentration. As Daliya entered the room, the man looked up, a scowl deepening on his face, pulling at the scar and cutting his lips in half. He wore heavy armor with a sword strapped to his waist. Daliya scowed at the sight of the weapon. Why did he bring his word inside when she wasn’t allowed to enter the premises of the castle without discarding hers? Were they so fearful of her?

  “Your Highness, you finally honor us with your presence.”

  Despite the respectful words, there was nothing respectful about his tone. And unlike what Haitham had insisted on, the man had spoken without the emperor’s permission. Daliya raised an eyebrow at him. She had an inkling who this man was.

  “General Nasir, I almost didn’t recognize you. Your vigil for the empire, while highly commanded, had surely left its mark on you. I can only thank you for your hard work and urge you to get some much-needed rest.” She smiled.

  He looked at her, opened his mouth, closed it, opened it, and closed it again before his mouth pulled into a snarl.

  “I thank you for your kind words,” he gritted through his clenched teeth.

  Daliya grinned at him. But her smile soon slid off her face when she met the emperor’s gaze. He motioned for her to approach the table. She did so without a second invite. She looked at the map on the table. The only difference to the one mounted on the wall was the red line crossing over the kingdom’s names and the sun banners stabbed over its surface, reaching far beyond the empire’s territory.

  There wasn’t much the empire hadn’t conquered. Lyria was fully theirs. Riyah was nothing but ragged lands with no population to assert control over. The only regions still not fully integrated were Ma’arib and Ardun. Half of Ma’arib was already under imperial rule, but Ardun was strangely bereft of sun banners. Only two lone banners at the shore were standing.

  Strange. Didn’t the library books boast about the subjugation of all kingdoms?

  The Emperor splayed his fingers over Ardun, a dangerous glint over his face.

  “Let us start the meeting,” he said in a calm voice, though it reverberated over the room as if magnified by some charm.