"The carriage is ready, my lady," Octavi announced, returning from the rear and holding the flap open. "We must depart now."
I stood up, smoothing my skirt. But before I took a step, I paused.
"Cassius and Valerie?" I asked.
"They are waiting by the weapon racks, my lady," Octavi replied. "They will ride with the main army when your parents return."
"No," I stated. "They come with me."
Octavi blinked. "Come with you? Does it mean they will be with you inside the carriage? Or they can ride beside your carriage?"
"Inside with me…"
She blinked again. "My lady, in this event, to let them sit beside you inside the carriage will make a scene for the crowd and nobles."
"I do not care about crowding, and I certainly do not care about propriety," I snapped. "They are the retinue that I hired. I will not leave them behind in here."
I looked at Octavi.
"Retrieve them. Tell them to leave the horses. They ride with us."
"As you wish," Octavi bowed.
…
A few moments later, I walked out of the pavilion. I didn't look at the dais or the crowd. I walked straight to the white carriage bearing the Aurelius crest.
Cassius and Valerie were there, looking slightly out of place in their rough leather armour against the pristine white of the carriage.
I climbed inside.
"Get in," I ordered them.
Cassius hesitated, looking at his muddy boots and the crowd. "My lady, are you sure?"
"Get. In."
They obeyed.
The carriage was full. I sat on one side. Lady Octavi sat beside me. Cassius and Valerie took the spaces in front of us, filling the cabin with the scent of leather and iron. Adel took her place on the coachman's bench outside.
"Drive," Octavi ordered through the window.
The carriage pushed forward.
I leaned my head against the velvet cushion, turning my gaze to the small window. As we gathered speed, the main path of the encampment rolled past.
And there he was.
Fabian.
He was still standing where I had left him. He was staring at the ground. Anna stood a few paces behind him.
The sound of our departure finally snapped his head up.
He looked right at the carriage. He saw me in the window.
His eyes widened. He took a step forward, his mouth opening as if to call out, to beg for another chance.
But I didn't stop.
I reached out and pulled the curtain shut.
"He saw you," Octavi said quietly beside me. "He saw you leave him."
"Good," I replied.
"The court will call this a scandal, my lady," Valerie noted, leaning back with a grin that didn't quite reach her eyes. "Leaving the Prince in the dust? That's a declaration of independence if I've ever seen one."
"It is not a declaration of independence," I said, my voice heavy with exhaustion but sharp with intent. "It is a realignment of priorities."
I rested my head back against the cushion, but my eyes did not close. Instead, they drifted onto Valerie.
She sat in front of me. She seemed at ease, grinning at the chaos we had left behind. But I saw the tension in her shoulders.
"Speaking of priorities," I whispered. "We need to discuss yours, Valerie."
Her grin didn't fade, but her eyes hardened. "Mine, my lady?"
I straightened up.
"Duchess Valerie Valerius," I said the name deliberately, "The Iron Maiden. She stopped for you."
The air in the carriage grew instantly heavier. Cassius, sitting beside her, stiffened. He shifted his weight, putting his shoulder slightly in front of her. A protective instinct, like he tried to protect her from the Duchess.
"She stared at you as if she were seeing a ghost," I continued, my voice low and relentless. "She called you a 'wolf lost from her pack'. Why?"
Valerie looked away, feigning interest in the passing trees outside the window. "Maybe she just liked my armour. Or maybe she confused me with someone else. I have a common face."
"You do not have a common face," Octavi interjected, her voice cool. She seemed to notice a hidden dagger on the table.
"And you do not move like a common sellsword," Octavi added. "I watched you at the weapon racks. You stand at rest, but your weight is perfectly balanced. The case is the same with Cassius. That is not tavern-brawl instinct. That is drilled discipline. That is Academy training, or maybe more inside the walls of the castle."
Valerie shifted. "You flatter me…"
"I do not flatter," Octavi replied coldly. "I identify dangers."
"And the name," I cut in. "Valerie. And Duchess Valerie."
"It's a popular name in the North," Valerie shrugged, though her hands gripped her knee.
I turned my gaze to Cassius, who showed a defensive stiffness in his posture.
"You stepped between her and the Duchess," I recalled. "You looked terrified. Not of her killing Valerie… But like, you are scared of her taking her."
"A wolf lost from her pack," I repeated the Duchess's words. "That implies you belong to her pack, Valerie. Are you a deserter of the Phalanx? Or are you something more dangerous? You sit in this carriage with a posture that suggests you were born to command it."
No one spoke. The silence stretched, filled only by the rattle of wheels and the heavy breathing of four people with too many secrets.
Valerie finally looked at me fully. For the first time, I saw the resemblance, not just in the face, but in the eyes. The same cold, steel-grey intensity I had seen in the Duchess. However, her face was still raw, far from the polished facade the Duchess presented.
"If I were something dangerous," Valerie asked softly, her hand hovering inches from her blade, "would you throw me out of this carriage?"
Cassius held his breath. Octavi's hand tightened on her own hilt.
I looked at her. I saw the threat. I saw the lineage. And I saw the immense power she held. Now, I had another leverage.
"Depends…" I replied, my voice devoid of fear. "You already know my house secret of transmutation… I am maybe not throwing you…" I leaned closer to her. "But eliminating you…"
She froze.
Her instinct was to reach for her blades, but she stopped. Her eyes darted to the side, locking onto Octavi.
Octavi hadn't moved a muscle. She sat perfectly still, her breathing calm. Yet her hand was resting loosely on the hilt of her sword. In this confined space, she knew Octavi could easily take their head before she unsheathed her sword.
She slowly moved her hand away from her waist. She raised her hands slightly in a gesture of surrender.
"Point taken, my lady," she said, her voice tight. "The Knight would have my head before I could blink."
I held her gaze.
"Does the House of Valerius have a claim on you?"
She hesitated. She looked at Cassius, who gave a nearly nod, a silent permission to trust. She looked back at me.
"Let's just say," she whispered, "that the North is a cold place to grow up, my lady. And sometimes, a wolf prefers to hunt alone rather than run with the pack."
I exhaled slowly. She hadn't said the words 'heir' or 'daughter', but she had said enough. I would find her origin and story in the book. Yet, hearing from her, I knew it would not be an easy task.
"Good," I whispered, closing my eyes again. "Then we are all lost wolves here."
…
The carriage rolled to a halt in front of the house.
Octavi opened the door, stepping out first to scan the perimeter. The sun was beginning to dip, casting long, bruised shadows across the white stone of my home. My parents were not here; they would remain at the Royal Encampment for the Closing Feast.
I stepped out, the cool evening air doing little to soothe the tightness in my chest. Cassius and Valerie followed.
I watched them leave. Once they disappeared around the corner of the manor, I turned to Octavi.
"My lady," Octavi said, her voice low. "Is she really the daughter of Duchess Valerie? If she is, the Duchess asked you a question: 'What do you intend to do with her?' She was not just asking for conversation. She was weighing you."
"I know," I said, gathering my skirts. "And I need the book to tell me the right answer."
I walked into the house, ignoring the confused bows of the servants. I ascended the stairs and reached my room. I went straight to the desk as Adel was standing beside the door of my room.
I went through the text until I found the entry regarding the North.
761 NE-12-09
The Main Character encountered two mercenaries in the tavern. Their encounter binds the Main Character to the Cold War of the North. Between three daughters and the line of the throne.
These two mercenaries assumed as Cassius and Valerie. It meant Valerie was the line for the throne. I read further down the page. The entry didn't stop there.
The Wolf's den is not empty. Behind the Iron Maiden stand two shadows. The Second, a wall of silence. The Third, a blade of ambition. Without the 'Stolen Iron' to bind them, the pack devours itself.
The Third seeks the throne, sparking a cold war that freezes the North. The Second watches, holding the line but refusing to lead. If the Heir returns unprepared, the ice cracks, and the civil war begins.
I stopped reading, my finger tracing the line about the Third.
"Three daughters," I whispered.
Valerie wasn't just a runaway wolf.
I continued reading the solution provided for the Main Character.
By returning the Heir to the Mother, the Main Character does not merely restore a daughter. She must act as the bridge. She must diffuse the Cold War, forcing the Third to kneel and bringing the Second to stand. By reinstating the Heir, the Main Character gains the Duchess's favour and the unbreakable shield of the Phalanx.
I leaned back in my chair, the realisation settling over me like a heavy cloak.
It wasn't as simple as holding Valerie hostage.
If I kept Valerie here, the Third sister would likely seize the opportunity to claim the heirship. If the Third was ambitious, she might align with the Royals to secure her position.
Yet if I returned Valerie now, without "diffusing the Cold War," I would just be throwing her into a pit of serpents. The book said her return would make it worse unless managed perfectly.
"It is a mess," I whispered.
"What is a mess, my lady?" Adel asked, suddenly she was beside me…
"The timeline," I whispered, tapping the page with a trembling finger. "I broke it again."
"Broke it?" Adel asked, her brow furrowing.
"Look," I pointed to the date entry for the North. "The book says the Main Character encounters the Heir in the 12th month. But it is only the 8th month, Adel. I found her four months too early."
"First of all, who is the heir, and what do you mean by 'had found h—" She gasped. "Do you mean Valerie is the heir of the North?"
"Precisely…"
"However, is the North the next event of the book, my lady?"
I flipped the page to see the current timeline of the book. Where was the story supposed to go next?
The Grand Tournament of the South. 761 NE-09-01.The Duke of the South hosts a festival of lances and roses. The Crown Prince attends to heal his wounded pride. The Main Character shines in the stands, winning the favour of the Southern Court.
"The South," I whispered.
"Adel asked, "The South…You mean the tournament?"
"Yes," I corrected, my mind racing. The North is supposed to be later. In deep winter."
Adel went closer to the book. "The South," Adel read aloud. "Bright colours. Jousts. Low-stakes romance." She turned to me. "It means you have three months to prepare for the North, my lady."
"No," I corrected. "Not three months to prepare. Three months to wait."
I stood up and walked back and forth.
"The book wants Fabian and the Main Character to go South. It wants them to play out their fairytale in the sun. And it expects me to follow, to sit in the stands and seethe with jealousy while they win the crowd."
"And if you do not go?" Adel asked.
"If I go South, I am walking onto a stage that is already set for my defeat," I realised. "I will be the villainess in their story. But the North…"
I stopped.
"We know the South arc's main character is likely Lady Anna. However, the North arc isn't supposed to happen yet. Nona hasn't assigned a 'Main Character' there because the conflict hasn't started. The Third Sister is plotting… but the role of the Saviour is empty… Imagine, if I go North and Lady Anna goes South…It will be proving the theory of the Main Character as a placeholder."
"Because Nona will appoint her paragons to fulfil the Main Character, so she can prevent you…"
"Exactly…" I said, a cold thrill taking hold of me. "The story will be split into two. The South will have Lady Anna as the Main Character, playing out a romance in the sun. But the North… if I step into that vacuum now…" My voice suddenly dropped to a low and cold tone. "I force Nona to play the game…But this time, I will not wait for the narrative of the book; instead, I will make a new conflict in the book."