At the summit of a snowy mountain.

Sleeps a frozen dragon.

Its anger is tempered.

By the city under its feet.

Leïn, Janis the White.

Nay was looking at her reflection in the mirror. The blouse exposing her shoulders was of a grey colour, slightly clearer than the grey of the skirt reaching her knees. With her eyes, it showed a beautiful gradient of clouds.

“It’s tight on my chest.” She said out loud.

“Yeah, well they only took your measurements this morning so, I used what I had. It does not show. Well, it emphasizes it more than anything.”

Trinne had already dressed for the dinner, wearing a magnificent blue dress with high heels of the same colour. Her dress was slightly too big for her, but Ra’fa had mended the clothing for it not to be noticeable. Cardinal red lines of fabric crossed the dress, as if to recall her hair. She also wore grey pearl earrings.

“You’re lovely Nay, so suffer in silence.” Ra’fa was following the whole thing closely but had not made any comment about the red-haired woman’s choices, which was the greatest compliment she could make.

“You’re so beautiful!” Lisana added with a smile.

Nay understood she had lost her right to speak, so she shut up and caught the collar of her blouse to pull it slightly up.

Trinne slapped her hand. “Don’t touch.”

The young Legio sighed. Apparently, she had not even the right to move.

“Remember what I told you.” Her mother looked at her with a serious expression.

“I know, a dinner isn’t the same thing as a private audience. I must act as if I was with noblemen. You taught me how to behave.”

“Yes, I taught you how to behave with nobles, not with the Imperatrix. If the situation gets out of control, remind them Hyn is your godmother.”

Nay raised an eyebrow. “Wait, was that the truth?”

“…She said so, so it is.”

Nay didn’t know what to respond to that but didn’t have to because Trinne interrupted them as she stood back up, finally looking satisfied.

“Perfect. Try to avoid fights, and it’ll hold.”

The young Legio raised her left arm. “I’m not suicidal.”

She saw a shadow hang from the ceiling in a room void of light.

“Nay?”

“Yes, sorry, it’s nothing.”

Trinne did not seem convinced.

“Also, whatever happens, trust me.” Her friend put a necklace around Nay’s neck, it had a cute little ruby hanging from it.

“Really?”

“For me.”

Nay sighed again.

“Liz, I’ll be back soon.”

“Mhh…” Said her sister.

“We’ll train together this afternoon.” Nay had no idea if such a promise could be held, but she would do everything for it to become true.

Her little sister had no doubts in her answer. “See you this afternoon then!” Her blue eyes gave courage to the young Legio.

“I don’t know which game you’re playing Trinne, but don’t put her in any danger, will you?” Nay heard Ra’fa whisper the sentence in her friend’s ear.

The red head answered with a smile. “Don’t worry.”

Nay’s eyebrows wrinkled, not reassured.

After a short hug with her mother, Konnie knocked on the door.

“Oh.” Said the maid as she entered.

“Barely recognizable, isn’t she?” Despite her joyful voice, Trinne showed no emotions.

“I…yes. Thank you, Duchess, you have done much more than I could ever do myself.”

“Lack of training then.”

“Most likely. The Imperatrix is waiting for you. You shall also be joined by the Archbishop of Ja and the High-Priest of Adienha. The merchant guild master and the priestess of Lebe were also invited but couldn’t free their schedule in order to be present today. You will certainly meet them in the days to come.”

With one last look to her family, Nay with Trinne in toe followed Konnie outside. The maid informed them of everything they needed to know on the way towards the upper floor. She even warned them not to talk about magic in front of the priests, and only use the word miracle.

“A misstep on your part would be a direct insult towards the Sovereign.”

On those reassuring words, Nay and Trinne were brought inside a large room, windows showing the immense valley below, with a large oak table at its centre and fireplaces on the adjacent walls.

The other guests were already there, but not the Sovereign. Sage Defin was sitting not far away from the main door, and in front of him was sitting an old man in brown robes, hair white as snow and drooping face. He seemed to be peacefully sleeping. Nay did not feel the traces of a Touched on him. Five servants were standing inside the room and already bringing chariots of food and drinks.

“Holy priests, here come the Duchess of Gite and Nay, Imperatrix’s goddaughter.” Konnie announced.

Ja’s Archbishop turned his head towards the young Legio. He should have had a large blackeye, but his face was perfectly untouched.

His Rreico immediately made Nay uneasy. The fascination he was expressing towards her was unsettling.

“You are sitting here, miss.” A servant Nay had not met before brought her to her chair…to the right of the Imperatrix, next to the sleeping Sage-Brother. Trinne was brought left to the Archbishop. She stared at Nay’s neighbour with an expression seemingly saying. “Is he seriously sleeping right now?” And the young Legio almost burst out laughing.

“Imperatrix Hyn, sovereign of the Empire of men.” A chambermaid announced.

Coming from another door, the Imperatrix entered the room.

Trinne and Nay stood up. The Archbishop did the same, but not before coughing loudly. Nay’s neighbour woke up.

“Wh…” He stopped himself, and as if nothing were wrong, rose to his feet.

Hyn was wearing masculine clothes: Kaki trousers with boots and a thick wool shirt. The collar of the clothing was reaching high on her neck.

She had a svelte physique but mistaking her for a man would have been impossible. Dressed like this, she only expressed sensuality mixed with savage beauty. Once again, she wore no jewellery, and her long hair was pulled up in a complex bun.

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She sat at the table’s end.

“Hello to you all. Thank you for joining me in this beautiful sunny day. Sit down, please.” She said warmly.

Everyone sat down.

Nay looked at Trinne.

Her friend’s Rreico had shown stupor when looking at the Imperatrix for the first time, then something much more worrying.

There was nothing surprising at the fact of being overcome by the most beautiful of women, but cogs and wheels turning inside her eyes was not the reaction Nay was expecting.

Trinne met her gaze and winked.

It was now definitive, Nay was terrified.

The meal was an atrocious experience. Ja’s Archbishop was staring at her the whole time, and the Imperatrix was talking about nothing and everything. But behind the superficial talk, the young Legio understood very well the ferocious negotiation that was going on in with Sage Defin.

“You should make your colleagues travel more, Defin!” The Imperatrix exclaimed after a series of compliments towards the Cathedral’s management.

“With the coming of winter?”

“Oh, they shouldn’t be faced with any problems, the opportunities for them lie in Hymere, the temperatures will be perfect there.”

“Many workers are currently working there, isn’t it? They certainly could benefit from the supervision of the Gods. But I have to admit our priests are sometimes superstitious, and I doubt the Hymere will be attractive to them.

“Oh? What do you say about it Pohart?”

The old Sage-brother seemed as annoyed by the conversation as Nay was.

“That if the Imperatrix desires to spread the word of the Gods, it shall be so.”

“Oh no no no, it’s not for me. It’s for all of us. Don’t you agree with this Nay? Oh, silly me, you never met my new goddaughter. One of my old servants had hidden this extraordinary lady from me. She’ll be staying with us for a while.”

Nay tried to smile. It had to have been a disastrous attempt because she saw Trinne look away to stop herself from laughing.

“She will stay here?” Said the Archbishop, suddenly very interested.

“Yes, you’ll most likely see her when you come meet me. Well, I suppose that with all those priests at your orders, you won’t have much time to…”

“No, no. I believe your idea of holidays is a great one, even the men of Gods deserve rest. And that will give me more opportunities to come and seek your counsel, Imperatrix.”

The most beautiful woman in the world showed a radiant expression. “Perfect. Oh, I also forgot our other new guest, Trinne isn’t it?”

“That is correct.” The red-haired woman almost seemed relaxed, despite the sudden pressure on her shoulders.

“I heard quite some good about you. I hope you have recovered from your ordeal in Gite.”

“Not quite yet, Imperatrix, the events were traumatising.”

“Your sacrifice to go and help the trapped people on top of the Plateau was admirable. You are all forgiven.”

“…I did what every leader would do for his people.”

“Well, that is not related to our dear ecclesiastic friends, but I would enjoy talking about the situation in our beautiful coastal city with you after the meal.”

“That would be perfect, Imperatrix. I would also like to discuss a thing with you.”

“Oh?”

Nay had decided to close her eyes and hope that the situation passed.

Unfortunately, the Rreico and her ears were good enough for her to understand the discussion between the Empire’s sovereign and her friend.

The Sage-Brother decided to speak. “Well then, I think we’ll leave you to it, the meal was delightful, and your invitations always most welcome, Imperatrix. Nonetheless, I am getting old, and unlike my Touched friend here, the power of the Gods does not relieve the pain in my bones. I doubt I will be able to come here myself next time.”

“Of course. You’ll send…what was his name?” Said the Imperatrix.

“My successor, the Sage-Brother Castor, will be overjoyed to come in my stead.”

“Very well. Defin, Pohart, you may leave us.”

The two men left, the Archbishop looking at Nay until the very last moment.

“And so, what is it you wanted to tell me, young Duchess?”

“Maybe we could we speak of it in private, it is family matters, after all.” Trinne smiled.

Nay trembled.

The Imperatrix’s expression became dark. “Leave us.”

The servants had a moment of hesitation, then obeyed the orders given to them.

Hyn met Nay’s eyes. “Revealing this particular thing to her was a bad idea. I cannot let this go around freely, Nay.”

“Tell her what?”

“That the Imperatrix of the largest empire of men is a Leïn.” Trinne announced.

Nay blinked in disbelief. “What? You can’t know that!”

The Imperatrix looked Nay and Trinne in turn.

“I see, so, I underestimated you young girl.” She said to Trinne. “But I do not know what you wish to gain, but I assure you have made a mistake.”

Nay began to look for potential exits through the number of Rreicos behind each door.

Trinne seemed perfectly calm.

“Strange, as this secret is worth quite a lot. I wasn’t even sure of it; despite the fact I am the one who did the most research on Leïns in a century. Well, me and Redrick Darkstar. I was inspired by some of his reading material. But the resemblance between your appearance and Nay transformed my doubts in certitude.”

No, Nay corrected herself as she felt her friend’s Rreico. She was perfectly calm.

The young Legio examined the red-haired girl’s expression.

She had a plan.

The Imperatrix showed a cold and distanced expression.

“It is a well-hidden secret, true. In a century I could count those who discovered it on their own with one hand. No one will believe it. But the simple doubt will bring discord and trouble that will break the order of the Empire. And it is unacceptable. I wasn’t lying when I was saying that you gave your life to those people on the Plateau. I have heard the stories of the survivors. Calling you a hero is weak. I met a lot of heroes in my time, and very few have ever managed to make an Angel fall back. You more than anyone should understand how important this secret is.”

Trinne frowned. “What I had to do to make the Angel flee…there was nothing heroic in there. And a secret like this is a disaster yes, but not if it is revealed to the people of the Empire. But if I spoke of it to the Carradins? Oh, they already know, don’t they? Why do they hate us so much? Jealousy? No, they have some similarities with the Trechuite pirates, but the Carradin clans like the clan Mindor are fuelled by a desire of liberation. They are aware of the truth, at least partially, and have claimed it is reality for a long time. It is likely the other clans do not really believe them. But what if a Duchess backed their claim? That would give them the necessary conviction to go to war quickly…before you can finish the railway, for example.”

Nay felt the Imperatrix’s Rreico. Anger.

But the rhythm was owned by the woman with hair colour of flames.

“You don’t have any reason to do this. Carradins are not your family, not your home, whatever you could gain with this secret you would have much more to lose…” Hyn tried.

“You are mistaken Imperatrix. What I could gain?” Trinne pushed away hair behind her ears.

The Imperatrix’s eyes fell on her earrings. The Sovereign of the empire of men understood. She turned her gaze towards Nay’s necklace.

“Ah. I see.” Her anger fell back down, and she sat down more comfortably in her chair.

“I have proved that I was ready to give up a lot for the people around me. A lot, but not her.” Trinne announced with an unflinching voice.

“Trinne?” Nay was a bit speechless.

She met her friend’s blue eyes.

“I’m sorry Nay, but you suck at negotiating, I’m taking charge.”

“But I have enough…”

“No. You are important. Your family is safe and a friend is freed? That’s all?”

One corner of Hyn’s lips was raised. “I could just execute you.”

Trinne laughed mockingly. “Do I need to tell you why that would be a bad idea?” She looked at the young Legio who had tensed up immediately.

“No. You’re putting me in a difficult spot. What do you want?”

“She’ll be free two years from now. Ra’fa, Lisana and I will be free to visit her when we want. She’ll be paid three imperial gold coins every week, with the right to refuse any experiment she doesn’t want to be part of.

The Imperatrix thought about it, and Nay felt something in the ambient Rreico change.

Trinne had just lost the rhythm, it was now belonging to the sovereign.

“Fifty normal gold pieces. I’m not seeing any problem with her sister visiting, but her mother is a security breach in the Chambers. Only once a week. She’ll be free after two years but will stay at my service and the Empires for ten years afterwards. As for the experiment, I was not going to let anyone do to her something she didn’t want to.”

Trinne opened her mouth, then closed it. She realized she had lost the initiative. This wasn’t a negotiation anymore. The Imperatrix had listened to her, then had given her one offer.

There was no refusing the Imperatrix.

“What about Trinne?” Nay asked.

Exceptionally, Trinne had forgotten herself.

Hyn addressed the young Legio: “You found the perfect person to complement your weaknesses. I like her a lot. But your friend is also too smart. I can’t let her leave with my secret like that.”

“Then we have no deal.” The young woman with cloudy eyes stood up from her chair.

Trinne made a sign for her to calm down.

Hyn didn’t get offended by the young Legio’s reaction, she spoke to the red-haired woman.

“You’ll stay with my goddaughter here. You can’t return to Gite at the moment anyway, the military faction of the new Commandare is too solid. Moreover, stability provided by the army is essential. But you won’t be exiled eternally, not after what you did on the Plateau. I want you at the service of the Empire, Duchess.”

“Not yours?”

“No. I won’t stay in power forever. I have thought about giving up the throne to my son before the start of the war. People need strength and energy to overcome the next crisis, something I don’t have anymore. I lost my purpose to reign. But I love my kingdom, and it needs you. Leïn is the example, now, all the cities of the Empire need to follow it. During the two years here, I’ll teach you how to make your city comparable to Leïn.”

“I want to visit the capital, speak with the refugees. I need to keep in touch with my informants…”

“Mhh. Good point. I think we’ll manage something, under surveillance of course, with Nay if she so desires. But in any case, this will be details we’ll have to discuss in our written contract for Jewels.”

“Jewels?” Nay and Trinne asked at the same time.

The Imperatrix looked at them, amused.

“To the contract so atrociously to my disadvantage, our conversation is remarkably similar to the one I have with my employees. I don’t see why we shouldn’t call it by its name if it has all the characteristics of a Jewel. Do we have a deal?”

Nay met her friend’s gaze, and nodded.

Trinne sighed.

“We accept your generous offer, Imperatrix. I will protect your secret.”

The most beautiful of women clapped her hands together in a pleased reaction. “Perfect. One good thing done! I’ll leave you to it then, I have a merchant guild to reassure. See you later.” And as if she were a farmer jumping happily in a wheat field, Hyn, Imperatrix of the empire of men, left the two women alone in the room.

“Biach.” Trinne swore. “How far did do you think she expected it all?”

“She was really surprised when you told her you had discovered her true identity. As was I. Seriously, what were you thinking?”

“I will accept your thanks in their entirety. So, she took control of the conversation by…improvising?”

“I am eternally indebted to you, Trinne. And yes, I believe so.”

“Biach. I don’t know what’s worse.”

Nay felt nostalgia grip her heart. “You always find someone better than you.”

“Well, that pisses me off, because we’re now stuck together for two years. We’re going to kill each other.”

“Yes!” Nay responded with a large smile.