He ran a rough hand through his hair, his golden eyes burning with rising passion.
“Haa.”
His lips parted, releasing a sigh laced with complex emotions.
His hand slowly reached toward my chest. My bodice, somehow undone, revealed pale skin beneath.
“Your hands have a mind of their own,” I said.
“Pfft, I didn’t know they were *this* naughty,” he chuckled, adjusting my bodice with a smirk.
“It doesn’t seem like their first offense.”
As I smoothed my skirt, which had ridden up to my thighs, his face clouded with mock indignation.
“It’s all your fault.”
“Don’t make excuses.”
I sat up on the bed, and he pouted.
“It’s unfair that you look so lovely even with that curt tone. It’s your fault I turn into such a beast.”
Unlike his earlier fierce kisses, soft, butterfly-like kisses fluttered onto my lips.
“Ngh!”
A sharp sting from my chafed lips drew a moan. I pushed him back, and he pulled away, sighing softly.
“Sorry, I forgot about the soreness.”
His fingers hovered near my lips, hesitant to touch.
“You should get treated first.”
He stood, and I tried to follow, but he gently pressed my shoulders down.
Puzzled, I looked up. He stepped back a few paces from the bed, smiling as he mouthed, *“We’ll pick this up soon.”*
“…!”
“Call in the physician,” he said aloud.
Before I could respond, the door opened, and the attendant entered with the physician. I shot Sys a glare as he grinned like a satisfied cat.
—
“Lady Daysha’s appearance has the capital in a frenzy,” Anasha said, sighing as she handed me a stack of documents.
The papers detailed Duke Daysha’s movements and contacts since arriving in the capital. His sudden appearance after over thirty years of exile in the west, never once showing himself, had stunned nobles and commoners alike.
Everyone watched his every move, speculating on how his presence would affect the empire.
“We should’ve kept monitoring the west. It’s my fault,” Anasha said.
“Don’t blame yourself. No one could’ve predicted Duke Daysha’s move. Besides, I’m the one who ordered the shift of surveillance from him to the First Consort and Canaan. If anyone’s at fault, it’s me.”
It was indeed my miscalculation. Managing the guild while keeping tabs on both the First Consort and First Prince left no resources to monitor Duke Daysha.
According to my memories, he and his daughter weren’t supposed to appear in the capital for another year and a half. I hadn’t hesitated to pull surveillance from them, never imagining they’d act so soon.
To think they’d move in that brief window.
Their unexpected actions threw me into confusion.
“What’s his motive? Since arriving, he hasn’t left the palace,” Anasha added, flipping through the documents.
“He’s staying in the outer palace, claiming he has no residence in the capital, but the imperial family is watching him closely.”
“The entourage is smaller than expected,” I noted.
According to the documents, only his daughter and five knights from House Daysha accompanied him.
“Is it really just these five?”
“I had my doubts and kept digging, but that’s all we’ve confirmed.”
What was it like back then?
I tried to recall, but nothing came to mind.
Of course, I wouldn’t remember.
Back then, I dismissed the duke and his daughter as western bumpkins, uncaring of their intentions or entourage.
It was a regrettable oversight now.
“What’s the nobles’ reaction?”
“They’re split—some are closely observing him, others are trying to approach him.”
“The ones approaching are likely the noble faction.”
“With the First Prince gone, they’re directionless.”
As Anasha said, the noble faction was floundering without the First Prince as their anchor. Duke Daysha was an ideal new figurehead.
Though stripped of succession rights and absent from the imperial register, he was the legitimate heir of the former crown prince. His actions could shift the balance of power.
Even without that, the imperial family couldn’t ignore a duke governing a key western region.
“What about the First Prince?”
“He’s lying low in his territory. It’s in his best interest to stay quiet for now.”
I tapped the table, organizing my thoughts.
The First Prince, dragged from the east to Asten in the north by the emperor’s order, faced a region loyal to the emperor for generations, unlike the noble-heavy east. To defy the emperor and return to the capital, he’d need to contend with Viscount Asteya, the Second Prince’s maternal family, and many northern nobles.
“Keep a close eye on the First Prince and Consort, especially now.”
Contrary to expectations that attention would remain on them, Duke Daysha’s arrival had loosened their surveillance faster than anticipated.
While the First Prince might stay quiet, the First Consort I knew wouldn’t retreat so easily. She’d be scheming to reclaim her position.
“The sealed palace is hard to access from outside and equally hard to monitor from within. Stay vigilant.”
Unlike the First Prince, exiled to the north, the First Consort was confined to a remote palace in the inner court. Her former residence was vacated, and her new one sealed by imperial decree.
Without the emperor’s explicit order, no one could enter or leave.
The airtight security bound her hands and blinded her eyes, but it also meant we couldn’t see what was happening inside.
“Don’t worry. I’ve planted spies among her maids,” Anasha said.
“Would she trust anyone not her own?”
Anasha grinned confidently.
“She won’t suspect a maid who’s served her since childhood. There’s no link to the guild, so you can rest easy.”
I was often amazed by the guild’s reach, despite being its nominal head. My grandfather’s network spanned the empire and beyond. Most worked for the guild, but some lived independently, periodically relaying local events. Their reports formed the guild’s intelligence, serving as its eyes and ears.
“That’s a relief. Keep up the good work, Anasha.”
“Conversation not done yet?”
The door cracked open, and a small head peeked in. El’s cheeks were puffed out, evidently tired of waiting.
“Come in, El.”
“Yay, Bee… whoa!”
“El!”
“Little one!”
Calling my name, El stumbled, perhaps tripping. Anasha and I leapt from the sofa, but the child behind El moved faster.
“El, are you okay?”
“Ugh…”
Anasha rushed to the two children sprawled on the floor. Thanks to the child beneath, El seemed unharmed.
“Lai, you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
Anasha helped El up first, then the child underneath, whose arm bore beads of blood from scraping the floor. Despite the painful-looking injury, Lai only grimaced, neither crying nor whining. The stubborn lips and mischievous eyes felt familiar.
Inayari half-blood.
“Oh no, we need to treat that. Wait here,” Anasha said, hurrying out for medicine, as I’d dismissed the maids for our talk.
“Lai, does it hurt a lot?”
“It’s fine. Doesn’t hurt at all.”
Unable to see, El fidgeted anxiously, pacing. Lai took El’s hand, comforting her.
“You always say you’re fine,” El said.
“I really am…”
