Despite having to sleep late, I still woke up earlier than I wanted. So early that none of my servants have yet to even knock on my door. I heaved a tired sigh and combed back my messy hair. I gently rubbed my eyes before glancing at the mirror and looking at myself.

Hm, at least I still look pretty beautiful... Yes, I just used two synonymous words.

The sight of myself gave me a little energy, just a liiitttle. I smiled at myself.

Right, no time to feel all tired.

I still had one thing left to finish, one that I have been planning to do after the encounter on that pleasurable and rough night. I know that almost sounded like some sort of innuendo — which I may have done on purpose — but I was referring to the night I killed that Marquis and faced that werewolf shit.

And oh gosh! Imagine my fucking shock when I learned there were others there as well. Like fuuuuck! I should have brought some soldiers to catch those motherfuckers. Or perhaps, if I was aware of where they were, I could have sent a signal or something. At least for a chance to have a showdown.

Although, perhaps that would be too dangerous to do. I was so weak after my fight to the point that I didn’t know what moment I would faint. Better safe than sorry. Besides I never expected I would face a damn werewolf.

But, can’t cry on spilled milk, or beans — whichever you prefer. I prefer beans to milk — like eeew, milk? Fuck that, it’s disgusting.

I walked over to my personal desk and placed upon it were sheets of paper pinned down by an ink bottle with a quill. I was writing. Oh my, what could I be writing? Could it be a wonderful, lovely, and peaceful story, a novel? Where an innocent maiden as a protagonist? The most beautiful of all? One with platinum hair, snow-white skin, and dazzling red blood eyes?

Ahem! Yes, yes that would be great to have. But a shame it’s not.

I was writing a proposal for my dear father. It concerns the damn foreign nation that’s threatening to destabilize my home kingdom. Hah! As if I would let that happen and give me even more headaches. Fuck them!

Okay sorry, lot swearing today. I’m just so angry, okay? Swearing helps lose some stress. Try it.

I sat down on the chair and began writing down. I should finish in several minutes. Just polishing out some details. When this is done, I’m just gonna submit this personally to my father, so I’ll be meeting with him later on in his office. After that, to the main business.

Wow, there are a lot of things to worry about. My life, my life, and my life.

A small amount of time passed and I set down my quill back to its container and I leaned my back then started stretching, my arms spread out.

“Aaaaaah.”

There were cracking sounds in my spine.

Damn, that felt good.

It was then knocking came on my door, I sighed the moment they reached my ears. When I open that door, reality will come in — yes reality, technically it’s already here, but that’s not the point. The point is, I have to do stuff again, serious stuff.

Fucking hell, it’s like waking up in the morning knowing that you have to go to work you hate, thus suffering continues. Although I didn’t exactly hate my old job, just some things were annoying. So I didn’t particularly go through that, but I just know it’s a thing, okay? I’m a sympathetic, and empathetic girl.

I did my usual morning routine, and a thought came to mind. I haven’t had a casual time with my servants for a while now. Not exactly a requirement to do that, but it’s boring to be all business all the time.

I had breakfast with the family, looking at the food reminded me of my old chef. Hmm, I wonder what she looks like now, guess it won’t be a mystery for long.

“Father, I have something to discuss with you later.”

“How later?”

“Shortly after breakfast. In your office.”

“Why not we just go together?”

“You can go ahead first, father. I still have to grab my papers.”

“Papers?”

“You will see.”

When eating was done, I made my way back to my room while Father went ahead to his office. I rolled the sheets of paper — oh yeah, I don’t have a pocket. When I came outside my room, I presented the rolled sheets in front of Vernon.

“This is…?” he asked with an inquisitive look.

“Just a plan I intend to give to my father. Keep it in your pocket for the meantime.”

He received the papers, he seemed to be having the desire to take a look at the contents. But he still ended up inserting it inside his coat pocket.

Rogan on the other hand, didn’t even bother hiding his curiosity. “What’s that about, princess? For what purpose did you make a plan?”

“I can tell you, but I don’t want the risk of it being discovered by other people when it has yet to be carried out.”

“You don’t trust us?”

“Not like that, I am merely concerned about any eavesdroppers. Besides, you will learn of it when it has been started.”

I know they wouldn’t blab around about the plan, but I rather choose secrecy in the meantime. As we began making our way to my father’s office, Rogan who was walking beside me, kept bothering me about the papers.

“Come on princess, care to give a little hint?”

I furrowed my brows. “Why are you so keen on learning about the contents of those papers? It is nothing too grand.”

“... Um, well, it’s just...” He sighed.

I stopped in my tracks and narrowed my eyes. “Sir Rogan, your prying can bring suspicions about you.”

His eyes widened and frantically shook both his hands and head. “No no, princess. It’s not like that. It’s just that you have been, um, acting strange…”

“Am I? What does that have to do with anything?”

“How do I say this…” he looked at Mera.

Mera seemed to panic for a moment as he received the gaze from Rogan, who seemed to be asking her to explain.

Mera had no choice but to speak. “...Milady, you seemed troubled when not in a formal time or with your family. Your eyes had darkened ever so slightly.”

I touched the skin under my eye.

Mera what the hell, they’re barely noticeable. How close were you observing me? Damn.

She continued. “We just want to relieve you of a little burden and help you in whatever way.”

“Aside from that,” Rogan said. “You’ve been acting a little too serious when it’s just us around. Are you okay?” he asked, a genuine sign of concern in his eyes.

I shifted my gaze at Vernon with furrowed brows, which he nodded.

“We three had a little discussion…”

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I sighed. “I appreciate the concern, but you will only have to fulfill the roles you have been given. There is nothing you can do to alleviate my troubles, no one can act on it but me… for now”

They didn’t seem to know how to respond to my seemingly final words.

“You will be ordered upon when needed.”

“Y-Yes, ma’am,” Rogan responded with a strained smile.

I continued on.

My servants often stared at each other with troubled expressions, but I ignored them. Yes, perhaps I am feeling a little irritated, and they sensed that as well. But I can’t help it.

Eventually we arrived at my father’s office. I knocked on the door. A second later, the door opened. Upon seeing who it was that opened the door, I recoiled a little.

Him again?!

Now who was it that was smiling at me by the door? It was my uncle Meril. Mizia’s father, and my mother’s brother.

I subtly gulped as I stared up at him.

“Hello, Estelia.”

“H-Hi, uncle. What are you doing here?”

“I am giving my report for the investigation of Marquis Vekenas’s assassination.”

I glanced inside and my father waved at me. “Come in Estelia.”

“Shouldn’t I be outside for the moment?”

“Oh no worries I was about done.”

I hesitantly stepped inside while subtly glancing at my uncle. He’s pretty disturbing, he always seemed to look deeply at me as though trying to see through me. Furthermore, he did some psychology shit on me all of a sudden.

Oh trust me I was familiar with what he damn did. It was something similar to the Rorschach test where they basically try to deduce your personality or something. How effective that is, I don’t know. But I was given that test in the past by my doctors.

I hated it. So damn annoying. Those sessions were always a study of my psychological state, not only that, they also try to find deterioration of the mind. Not figuring out if I have gotten stupid, but they were searching for changes psychologically, like for instance, dwindling loyalty. In addition to that, yes they also try to figure out if I’m still stable.

Strangely, I was given more psychologist session more than I ever saw with my colleagues. They were closely monitoring me. Of course, I knew who was behind that… the P-Professor. I don’t want to talk about him.

Given that I was familiar with the concept of my uncle’s sudden test, I knew what to do. I didn’t want him to see through me, so I answered in the opposite of what I saw in the pictures first. Sometimes I say what the second thing I saw. Basically just jumbled things up. I did what I could.

But who knows, he might come to a conclusion of his own despite all that. Psychologists, they have a lot of secrets, can’t even see through them… or perhaps that’s just the doctors I encountered. Our doctors were just built differently you know. Heh, some even will shoot you in the head despite being a child if you performed poorly.

Fuck that lady doctor, she was one of my trauma when I was a kid… But I got over it of course.

In any case, the point was to confuse my uncle. If that didn’t work, well shit.

“Um… have you found the killer of Lucious’s uncle?” I asked.

“Not yet.” my father responded before looking at my uncle. “Investigate the nobles on the list, subtly at first before going in person.”

“Understood.”

“Alright. So Estelia, what is it you want to talk about?” father asked as Uncle was just leaving.

“I have a proposal, a plan that will encompass the kingdom.”

“Hm?”

“...”

My uncle stopped in place while my father seemed to have lost the words.

Father after a moment regained his wits. “O-Okay…? This is a big deal then, good thing Meril is here, he might be able to share his thoughts on your plan. Close the door.”

Rogan closed the door.

I stared at my uncle inquisitively. As I thought, he must have a special place in this kingdom given that Father trusted him this much and was assigned to oversee the investigation. Doesn’t matter, everyone will know of this in the end.

“Uncle? What’s his position in your service?” I looked at my father.

“Something crucial.”

“Crucial? I don’t recall him being a member of military affairs. Or perhaps he is involved in the intelligence department?”

“Uh.”

“...”

Father let out a sound while uncle remained quiet. Military affairs had soldiers, and uncle didn’t look like a soldier, and he never looked like one judging from all my memories with him. So I just randomly said something that is crucial for me, the intelligence department. Which was our lifeblood in the organization.

And looks like my random guess hit the bullseye. Wow.

“I’m right, am I?” I asked as I sat down on the chair in front of my father’s desk.

The two looked at each other reluctantly.

Father formed a strained smile. “How did you guess?”

“The thought just came to mind.”

“I don’t think that is something that just comes to mind, Estelia,” Uncle said as he sat down opposite me. “How did you arrive at that guess precisely?”

He’s doing it again, giving me that piercing eye.

“That’s not important right now. If you uncle, are part of intelligence, then you might contribute greatly to my proposal, if it shall be accepted.”

“Hm.”

“Then, daughter, tell us about this proposal of yours.”

“Vernon.”

Vernon pulled out the sheets of paper and gave them to me, which I passed on to my father. “It has all the details I think you will need, so you have no need to question me… on the most part.”

Father, with a curious look, read the contents of the papers. A moment later, he froze with wide eyes. “Estelia, how did you even come to this…?”

“Continue reading please.”

“...” He returned his gaze to the papers.

A couple of minutes later, he lowered his hand and sighed.

“Allow me to read.” uncle received the papers and read them whole. “... So princess, are you implying that the Empire has infiltrated our nation’s system without my knowledge, as the head of intelligence?”

I tilted my head. “Head of Intelligence? I see. If that’s how it is, then it is. It should be acknowledged that the Empire’s spies are skilled enough to quietly get through our defenses, we cannot remain to undermine their abilities. As doing so would be our undoing.”

I’m not sure how they got through, but things happened. Perhaps one of the reasons why the Empire managed to do so is because Wisteria is more focused on the outside, rather that within our own system. That focus must be shifted.

“Princess… alright, I will take this criticism…”

“It was not intended to be a criticism, but for us to be aware of different methods on how the enemy might go about things.”

“Like how they will destabilize our nation from the inside, like seizing control of our nobles. And as well as killing the royals, bold as it is.”

“Daughter, how did your thoughts come to this point?”

“I thought about it when Marquis Vekenas was… was killed.”

“If we bear in mind your writing here, it is possible that the Empire was behind the elimination of the Marquis. But what of those strange creatures?”

Ah about that, I think they might have moved out because of me. Even though I did everything perfectly stealthily. How they figured it out, I don’t know. It almost felt like something gave me away. But that also didn’t explain the other guys that were killed at another place.

“I think that is a different matter entirely.”

“I see… But to think you would go to this much detail.”

I didn’t just state that an enemy nation, which at the moment was only the empire, might destabilize our nation from within, but also the methods and steps they might use. You can think I just wrote pages worth of how to destroy a kingdom from within. Even I delved into the market and how the enemies might manipulate the flow of goods and such.

Food is a crucial aspect of a nation. Hinder it, well a lot of bad things happen. Wisteria after all, both import and export. I even added to keep watch of the Republic which we traded a lot.

That and some other stuff.

“Indeed,” Father said. “The contents of this paper cannot just fall to anyone’s hand. Daughter, you have written something dangerous.” he looked at me with stern eyes.

Um, oops?

“I made it for us to use, to fight against it. How can we hope to resist if we do not know how they will attack? Please bear in mind that our enemy is an Empire that has conquered dozens upon dozens of states. We must use as much knowledge as we can.”

The Empire is used to that kind of shit. Who’s to say they wouldn’t do the same to Myra?

But they might you know, try to take Wisteria out first, then as they do so attack Myra’s border to divide their attention. Once they have taken care of our kingdom, they’ll enclose on Myra.

There is the Holy Kingdom, but to achieve the Empire’s goal, with the help of efficient and proficient soldiers, they only need to take half of Wisteria at most and lock down Myra. Given how big the Empire is, they have nothing to worry about the number of soldiers.

In short, the Empire likely had already planned very far ahead.

But I managed to stop them from their schemes, for a while. And I plan to keep doing so.

“I understand that daughter but… has anyone else seen the contents of this?”

“Nope. Aside from my servants hearing just a little of what’s inside, nothing else we have to worry about.”

“That’s alright then.”

“Estelia…” Uncle looked at me with a little concern. “This is a conqueror’s plan.”

“...”

“...”

Huh? Excuse me? Fucking hell, uncle’s weird as fuck. Suddenly saying some stupid crap. As if he’s implying something. Even Father was shocked by what he said.

“... Um, w-well the empire is what I’m worried about, they are conquerors. So, one needs to see from their perspective.”

“That’s not what I meant… The point is that you even came up with all of these. To see from a conqueror’s perspective.”

Ugh, this was irritating me so much. I’m just doing what must be done to get rid of these problems from my life. I don’t even have a conqueror’s mindset! I’m a damn former assassin.

Uncle looked at my father with concern. But I replied to him.

“Uncle, what does it matter? What’s important is how we respond to those who might try to attack us.”

“...”

“It does not matter if I made something, what matters is that we have an idea of what to do. So I recommend doing what I suggest in that paper. Especially one that involves the aristocrats first.”

“...To send an operative, a loyal operative to the houses of nobles…”

“Yes.”

Indeed, to send an operative of the crown to the houses of every single noble. They would be the ones to report the noble’s every action, of course the nobles would be aware as they will be living under the same roof.

“The nobles will not like this,” he added.

“That is to be expected. But it is a small price to pay. If they have nothing to hide, then they have no need for concern, do they?”

Father took a deep breath. “Good thing Meril is here. I need to discuss this with him in depth. Give us some time, daughter. This will take some time, go do something you enjoy.”

“I understand. But I have another matter to discuss with you, something very important.”

Father formed an expression of worry. “Another one? Then tell us here now.”

“No, it is a personal matter. I will tell you when you are done and it’s just the two of us.”

I stood up and began leaving the room.

“I’ll be in my study room.”

Concerning the plan about obstructing the Empire, it must be approved. If not, I will convince my father in some other way. I cannot let it be rejected. Otherwise, I fear my home wouldn’t last for long.

I left the room with my servants and made my way to my study room.