Chap 1: Prologue
The study of the Duke of Agott was silent save for the crackling of the fireplace.
A stack of military dispatches lay untouched on the heavy oak desk, buried beneath a thinner dossier sealed with the crest of House Agott. Duke Serak Agott held the report in one hand, his weathered face darkening with every line he read.
Across from him stood his son. Straight-backed. Hands clasped behind him. Expression as unreadable as carved marble.
" An attempted poisoning,...” Serak muttered, breaking the silence.
" Yes.”
The curt answer only deepened the furrow in the duke’s brow.
Of all the things Serak had ever been proud of, his eldest son had never disappointed him where it truly mattered. Balsam Agott possessed everything a successor should. Handsome enough to command admiration at first glance, gifted with talent on the battlefield so extraordinary that Serak had brought him to the northern front at the absurd age of fifteen.
By seventeen, enemy officers had already begun whispering his name with fear.
If House Agott had a future, it was standing before him.
Unfortunately...The gods had seen fit to balance such blessings with a personality that could freeze boiling water.
There were days Serak genuinely wondered whether he had fathered a son or a particularly articulate block of ice.
" Continue.”
Balsam inclined his head.
" We questioned every maid assigned, the attending servants, the kitchen staff, and the guards stationed around the eastern corridor.”
His voice remained measured to the point of indifference.
" The poison was administered through the celebration wine. However, the tray changed hands three times before reaching Lady Lilith’s hand.”
He slid another document across the desk.
" The testimonies conflict. None of them can be considered sufficiently reliable.”
" And?”
" There is insufficient evidence to conclusively accuse any individual.”
Silence.
Then —
Thwack.
The report flew across the room.
The bundle of papers struck Balsam squarely in the face before scattering across the carpet. One corner grazed his cheek, opening a thin crimson line beneath his left eye.
Not in any moment did the young man flinch or even bother wiping away the blood.
His pale red eyes remained fixed upon his father, as emotionless as ever. That composure finally snapped the last thread of Serak’s patience.
" You call this an investigation?”
The duke rose from his chair, palms slamming against the desk.
" A noble lady nearly dies under our protection, and your conclusion is that no one can be blamed ?"
" The evidence does not support a conviction.”
" To hell with your evidence!”
Serak’s voice echoed through the chamber.
" For once, stop thinking like a magistrate and start thinking like the man whose fiancée almost lost her life !”
Balsam remained silent.
His father let out a long, frustrated breath.
It was always like this.
No matter how furious the room became, Balsam never raised his voice. Never argued. Never defended himself. Every word he spoke was stripped of emotion, as though he were merely reporting the weather.
Sometimes Serak wondered if the boy had been born incapable of feeling anything at all.
" You know who Lady Lilith is, don’t you ?” Serak said, his tone lowering but no less severe. ” The youngest daughter of House Rhoeas.”
" I am aware.”
" No! I don’t think you understand what she means.”
The duke circled around the desk until he stood only a few paces from his son.
" The Empress herself arranged this engagement. Do you realize how many noble houses would kill for such favor ?”
Balsam offered no reply.
" Our influence has been waning for years. Every campaign we win...” Serak laughed bitterly. “...We end up selling half, if not all the glory to House Grimshaw in exchange for coin and political support.”
His jaw tightened.
" I am sick of it.”
House Agott had never lacked soldiers but money, highly influenced allies and connections.
And in the imperial capital, victories on the battlefield meant little without influence in the court.
" This marriage changes everything,” Serak continued.
" House Rhoeas stands closer to the throne than nearly any family in the Empire. Once Lady Lilith becomes the Duchess of Agott, we finally have a foothold in the capital without begging favors or bargaining away the blood our men spill at the border.”
He looked directly into his son’s eyes.
" So tell me, Balsam...”
His voice hardened once more.
“...how can you stand there looking as though none of this concerns you ?”
For the first time since entering the study, Balsam lowered his gaze. But surely, his father knows damn well is not because of guilt.
When he finally spoke, his answer was as calm as ever.
" I understand the political importance of Lady Lilith. That is precisely why I refuse to accuse an innocent person without proof.”
Serak closed his eyes.
There it was again.
That infuriating, unwavering sense of principle.
The very trait that made Balsam the finest commander House Agott had ever produced...
...and perhaps the worst possible heir to survive the vipers’ nest called the imperial court.
The memory refused to leave Serak’s mind.
Crystal glasses raised beneath the glittering chandeliers of House Agott’s grand banquet hall.
As the wine reached Lady Lilith’s hand, her usual poison taster stepped forward. Custom dictated, the servant poured a small portion of the Lady’s wine into a separate silver cup before taking a single sip.
The moment the wine or rather the poison hit, the man’s eyes widened as his cup slipped from his hand, shattering against the marble floor.
He collapsed.
Violent coughs tore through his body, each one sounding as though his lungs were being ripped apart. Blood mixed with dark crimson wine splattered across the polished stone as he clawed desperately at his own throat, retching until there was nothing left to vomit.
Screams erupted throughout the hall. Ladies stumbled backward in terror. Several nobles overturned entire tables trying to get away. Even veteran knights instinctively reached for their swords.
The joyous celebration descended into utter chaos.
No one who had witnessed that scene would ever forget it. To this day, the sound of the poor man’s choking still echoed in his ears whenever he closed his eyes.
And Lady Lilith...
For all the composure expected of the youngest daughter of House Rhoeas, for all the grace she had displayed throughout the evening was trembling.
She had come within a heartbeat of sharing the poison taster’s fate.
...
And then there was her.
Naupliia Grimshaw. Serak could still picture her standing amidst the chaos.
The young woman’s face had gone completely white, her eyes wide with disbelief. She looked less like the mastermind behind the incident than someone who had been trapped inside a blaze of her own moronic making.
Everyone standing in the capital knew of Naupliia Grimshaw’s infamous temperament: vindictive, spiteful, consumed by an obsessive hatred toward Lady Lilith that had become little short of common knowledge.
Who else would have both the motive and the audacity ? Who else would dare attempt to poison the Empress’s chosen daughter-in-law at a celebration attended by half the Empire’s nobility?
And yet...His infuriatingly principled son still Insisted that suspicion was not proof.
Serak clenched his jaw. Sometimes he wondered whether Balsam’s sense of justice was a virtue or simply another form of foolishness.
The moment the duke came to his senses, his son had already left.
The doors to the duke’s study closed behind Balsam with a muted click. His father’s voice still carried faintly through the thick oak panels.
“...Don’t you walk away when I’m talking to you !”
Balsam did not stop.
His footsteps echoed evenly along the quiet corridor, each measured pace as unhurried as the last. The servants lining the walls lowered their heads as he passed, instinctively shrinking from the oppressive calm that always seemed to accompany the heir of House Agott.
As he reached a bend in the hallway. Without slowing down, he spoke.
" You can come out now, Nyneve.”
Silence. Then a soft sigh emerged.
" You really are no fun.”
A young woman stepped from behind the marble pillar with her arms folded across her chest. Her silver-white hair, tied loosely behind her back, caught the afternoon sunlight spilling through the tall windows.
Nyneve Agott wrinkled her nose.
" I was hoping Father would at least manage to open your thick skull.”
" I’ve disappointed you.”
" As always. When did you not ?” She clicked her tongue. ” You’re honestly the most horrible and boring person I’ve ever met.”
Balsam regarded her for a brief moment.
" If you have enough time to hide outside Father’s office and eavesdrop, ” he said flatly, ” perhaps you should devote it to your studies and training.”
Nyneve blinked.
" You’ve been the loudest advocate for House Agott’s return to the capital. If that ambition is genuine, improve yourself accordingly.”
A grin spread across her lips.
" Oh ?”
" Unlike a certain someone who’s always acting as if he is above everyone else, I am doing everything I can.”
Her blue eyes gleamed.
" I simply choose to pursue my dream while staying true to myself.”
Balsam gave a small nod.
" Good for you.”
Before trying to turn to leave.
“...”
Nyneve’s smile twitched. The vein at her temple pulsed.
Seriously? That was it?
" Brother.”
He stopped.
" I wonder...”
Her voice was lighter now, almost playful yet full of venom.
" Do you actually expect Father to believe what you said back there?”
Balsam remained still.
“′ I don’t want to condemn an innocent without evidence.” She mimicked him with exaggerated seriousness before scoffing. ” What an excuse.”
" We both know who did it. The attempt was so clumsy it was almost embarrassing.”
Her smile sharpened.
" So why protect her ?”
For the first time since leaving the study, Balsam turned around. The corridor fell silent. Sunlight streamed through the towering windows, painting his snow-white hair in pale gold.
His crimson eyes, the eyes that people so often compared to a tranquil autumn lake had frozen over, resurfacing a quiet, unmistakable warning.
Nyneve’s breath caught. Without realizing it, she took a step backward. Cold !
Her fingers instinctively gripped the stone wall beside her. Yet as if she is fighting something, she forces herself to breathe and stay.
Don’t look away. Don’t you dare looking away.
The fear receded little by little until it transformed into something else entirely. And a chuckle escaped her lips.
" What now ?”
She tilted her head. Her smile widened in such a vindictive way.
“ Want to hit me just like before ?”
She glanced toward the closed study doors, grinning bigger than ever.
" Go on. Right here.”
Balsam said nothing.
His expression did not change. Nevertheless, that silence, that infuriating, unreadable silence, made Nyneve burst into laughter.
" There it is. The same ol' sulk face. Made me want to puke just looking at you."
She shook her head. Turning on her heel, she walked away down the corridor. Her laughter echoed long after she disappeared from sight.
" How pathetic, dear brother.”
Only then did Balsam move again. His gaze lingered on the empty hallway for a fleeting moment before he quietly resumed walking, as though nothing at all had happened.
