Polite smiles and hushed conversations filled the great hall. I sat at the far end of the oak table, nervously drumming my fingers on the armrest of a carved chair. Never liked these assemblies. Courtiers in gilded uniforms nodded along to the otherworlders' words like bobbleheads. Their shiny badges caught the light of crystal chandeliers. The treasurer had insisted on those. A waste of money. Showboating.

  My older brother Cassius had dragged me here, claiming the "youngest princess ought to know matters of state." At least Father couldn't see what a shitshow they'd turned things into while he was gone.

  I was supposed to be at Arcanum. Especially after the nightmare at the tournament. A demon had broken through right into the arena and killed three professors. Eva Mirell too. Good girl from the medical department. Elliot blamed himself, thought he could've saved her. Idiot. As if anyone could've predicted the creature would show up right in the middle of the academy.

  And Cassius still dragged me to these assemblies like nothing had happened.

  "As our reports indicate, the zone near the Northern Ridge has been fully cleared," the tall otherworlder in the silver suit announced.

  Artificial implants on his temples flickered faintly blue with every word. His name was Larveit, representative of the Nexus Corporation. A "Researcher," as they liked to call themselves. For some reason, I always singled him out from the crowd of otherworlders. He was the only one who looked me straight in the eyes, as if searching for something.

  "The latest joint operation was a success. We eliminated two major nests."

  A holographic map unfolded across the table, red dots marking demon clusters. I leaned forward without thinking. This was new technology. Maps like this were rarely shown in public.

  "Complaints from local residents have ceased."

  Of course they have, I thought. Not because the problem was solved, but because the village of Oldstown was empty now. Half the people had fled. The other half were slaughtered by third-rank demons. The ones conveniently absent from any reports. Cassius, sitting beside me, seemed oblivious to these inconsistencies.

  I scanned the hall. Heavy tapestries lining the walls, the kingdom's history in pictures. Military advisors stifling yawns behind their fists. Guild representatives whispering among themselves. Nobody cared about the truth. All that mattered was keeping up the illusion of control.

  "I have a question."

  I rose, and silence fell over the hall. Cassius flinched, reaching for my sleeve, but I was already on my feet. Every pair of eyes turned toward me. Surprised, wary, annoyed.

  "Princess Selena?" the advisor said with a bow, disapproval thick in his voice.

  I wasn't supposed to interrupt. I was supposed to listen and smile. Like a puppet. Like a fraud in a crown. My gut clenched. But it was too late to back down.

  "There's no information about the northern mines in the reports," I said. My voice came out steadier than I expected. "Meanwhile, we've been receiving reports of unusual demon activity in that exact area."

  Larveit leaned forward, smoothly adjusting the silver collar of his suit.

  "That sector houses our training complexes for Arcanum students," he said. "The mines were decommissioned long ago. They're not in use."

  "Then why are we receiving reports of students dying in the mines, not in your complexes?"

  A tense silence hung in the air. Cassius hissed something at me, but I wasn't listening. To hell with his opinion. This country was mine too, even if my blood told a different story.

  "The Academy conducts training missions according to its own schedule," the Minister of Finance cut in, nervously fidgeting with his pocket watch chain. "Routes and locations are the Academy's internal affair. Not our agenda."

  I pulled a sheet of paper from my folder. One I'd prepared in advance.

  "I have a formal request here, bearing the royal seal."

  I felt Cassius's heavy gaze on me, but pressed on.

  "I'm requesting full intelligence reports on all operations in the Northern Ridge sector over the past two months. Including data on the mines and any demon presence."

  The Lord Chancellor took the paper, scanned it, then exchanged a look with Cassius. My brother gave an almost imperceptible nod. So they'd worked this out beforehand. Morons.

  "Princess, perhaps this would be better discussed in a more..."

  "No, it's quite alright," Larveit interrupted with a smile. His teeth were blindingly white, like artificial snow. An unpleasant smile, more like a predator baring its fangs. "We have nothing to hide from the royal family."

  His silver suit moved stiffly shifted with every movement. Strange material. Not fabric. Something metallic? The longer I looked at it, the less I wanted to be near him.

  "Mr. Reiz will provide the princess with all the data," he continued. "There was indeed a minor... anomaly in the area, which we are currently investigating."

  My spine went cold. Reiz. The same man who ran the trials for Luten and his class. Too many coincidences to be coincidence.

  "What kind of anomaly?"

  I tried to keep my voice steady, but something tightened inside me. My fingers went numb. Cassius radiated hostility beside me. Little sister sticking her nose where it doesn't belong again, ruining his plans.

  "Ancient ruins," Larveit said.

  His silver cufflinks flashed the same blue as his implants for an instant.

  "We're examining them for... archaeological value."

  A lie. He chose his words carefully, like walking on thin ice. And archaeology was hardly Nexus Corporation's usual line of work. Why did everyone think I was that stupid?

  "Thank you. I expect the full report by tomorrow morning."

  Cassius slammed his folder on the table.

  "Let's move on to the current matters."

  Nobody looked at me anymore. Easier that way. For them and for me.

  After the assembly, I gathered my papers into a folder. My fingers trembled slightly, but I kept myself in check. A thin thread of wind magic wrapped around me in an invisible cocoon, calming my nerves.

  Long palace corridors lined with coats of arms. Portraits of ancestors staring down with judgment in their painted eyes. I picked up my pace, eager to get away. Then I heard a voice behind me.

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  "Princess Selena."

  I turned. Larveit stood just a few steps away, holding a transparent tablet with moving diagrams. No guards accompanied him. Odd, for a palace with this level of security.

  "I wanted to personally deliver the materials you requested," he said.

  He held out a small memory card: a flat metallic rectangle with multicolored ports. Strange technology, designed to be compatible with our devices. The otherworlders had thought of everything in advance.

  "That was fast," I said.

  "We're always ready to cooperate."

  He smiled, but his gaze stayed cold. Like many high-ranking otherworlders, his eyes had been modified. Angular pupils, irises with a metallic sheen. I wanted to look away but forced myself to hold his gaze. Don't show fear.

  Sunlight from the tall windows fell on the burgundy carpet, casting golden stripes between us. Whether by accident or not, Larveit stood in shadow while I stood in the light. Like I was on stage.

  I gripped the memory card tighter, ready to leave, but Larveit was in no hurry to end the conversation.

  "How are your charges at the Academy?" he asked.

  "The students are doing perfectly well with the curriculum," I replied. I tried to keep my voice even, the way my tutors had taught me. A princess always maintains her posture and her tone. But right now, I couldn't care less about any of those lessons. I just wanted to run.

  "And young Caers? The one who... lost his magic."

  My heart skipped a beat. I clenched my fists in the folds of my dress. They were still watching Luten!

  "Why does the fate of one student interest you?" I asked.

  Larveit tilted his head. The gesture always felt inhuman.

  "Purely scientific interest," he said. "A student with such... peculiarities. His brother is a notable metal mage, yet he himself lost his gift. Unusual."

  "All students of the Academy are under the crown's protection."

  I straightened up, trying to look older than fourteen.

  "Of course, Princess. We only wish to help. Our technology could examine his condition."

  He took a step forward.

  "Between us, this is a rare case of... curious adaptation."

  "He is not a specimen for your research."

  "You know, Princess, we originally planned more intensive observation," Larveit said. "But certain processes require natural development. Interference could distort the results."

  "What results, exactly?"

  "A transformation, Princess. Young Caers may be the key to understanding the interaction between magic, the human body, and the forces our corporation is studying."

  "Luten Caers is under my protection."

  Larveit gave a slight bow.

  "Your concern does you credit. Though I hear you don't visit the second-rank classes."

  When his footsteps faded into the distance, I pressed my back against the cold wall. So the otherworlders were expecting something from Luten. Some kind of transformation. I had to do something. Let the adults call me a child. Something had to be done.

  I slipped out of the palace through a side entrance and changed from my formal dress into a plain academy uniform. Moving around as a regular student was easier. Fewer eyes on me. No curtsies. No "Your Highness." Freedom.

  After the conversation with Larveit, one thought wouldn't leave me alone. Too many coincidences. The demon at the tournament, students dying in the mines, "anomalies" in the north. It was all connected. I needed to get to the cartography chamber at the Academy. That was the only place I could properly study the data Larveit had given me. If the government was hiding something, I'd find out myself.

  The Academy was quiet in the evening. I slipped toward the faculty wing. Nobody paid attention to one more figure in a blue cloak. I was almost at the western tower when I heard a familiar voice.

  "Selena! There you are."

  Cassandra Veil fluttered around the corner with a book tucked under her arm. Her long dark hair was woven into an elaborate braid. A new style I hadn't seen before.

  "Cass!"

  I smiled despite myself, then remembered the memory card in my pocket.

  "I thought you had extra classes on mirror maintenance," I said.

  "Finished early." She stepped closer, studying my face. "You seem tense. Did something happen at the palace?"

  Cassandra always sensed shifts in my mood. Sometimes even before I did. She read people too well. It was unnerving.

  "Just a tiresome council meeting. Politics, taxes, demons."

  "And that's why you're sneaking toward the faculty wing?"

  "I need to check something... for myself."

  Cassandra stepped closer, lowering her voice.

  "Is this about Luten? Elliot mentioned his class was sent somewhere up north. One of them didn't come back. Aris, I think?"

  "Why are you asking about Luten?"

  "Because you're always asking about him," she said. A strange note crept into her voice. Not jealousy, more like... worry? "I could help. Whatever you're planning."

  I wanted to tell her everything. About Larveit, the data, the approaching demon breach. But something held me back. Instinct? Fear of dragging someone else into this?

  "I'll tell you later, I promise. Right now I just need an hour alone."

  Cassandra studied me for a long moment, then nodded.

  "Alright. But if you need help..."

  "You'll be the first person I come to."

  She smiled, but the worry lingered in her eyes.

  "I'll be in our room. Waiting for you."

  When her footsteps faded down the corridor, I exhaled. Cassandra deserved the truth. But first, I needed to understand what was happening myself.

  The cartography chamber sat on the third floor of the western tower. I opened the heavy door with a thin current of wind, pushing the lock mechanism from the inside.

  At the center of the room stood a massive table stretched with bleached silk. Sight Silk, they called it. A local craftsmen's attempt to replicate otherworlder technology using magic and traditional materials. I inserted the memory card into a slot on the side of the table. The mechanisms hummed to life, lamps beneath the surface glowing a pale blue.

  The silk came alive. Continents took shape, then mountains, rivers, forests. Magical ink, activated by the card's technology, rendered a stunningly detailed map of our world.

  I held my breath at the sight of the red dots. Hotspots of demon activity. There were far too many, especially near the eastern mountains. Triangles marked the forts of Creolis and the allied Garakspire, and around them, particularly bright red patches pulsed. Gods. This was far worse than I'd thought.

  I activated the timeline and watched the map shift over the past three months. The demon concentration around the forts had quadrupled. Organized. Methodical.

  They were preparing to break through.

  Now everything was becoming clear. The council knew about this. Larveit knew. Cassius, the ministers, the commanders. They'd all seen this same data. And all of them stayed silent.

  Why didn't the people know about this threat? Why did official reports speak of "localized incidents" and a "controlled situation" when the map clearly showed preparations for a full-scale invasion? The old generation's favorite tactic: keep the people ignorant "for the sake of stability." Father would've done the same. Screw this policy!

  I zoomed in on the northern mines. "Training complexes," they called them officially. But the reports pointed to strange energy anomalies. And right there on the map, clear data on Aris's death.

  The otherworlders hadn't tried to hide the information from me. On the contrary, Larveit had handed over the card willingly. Why? Maybe the Researchers were also unhappy with the government's position? Or maybe they had their own agenda?

  Maybe that's why the otherworlders were so interested in Luten? He'd seen something in those mines. Either way, the council's position, and my brother's, felt wrong. How could you prepare for war without warning the people who'd be doing the fighting? I copied the key data into a notebook, then removed the memory card. The image on the silk slowly faded away.

  I moved to the desk and wrote a short letter to Cassius.

  "Demons are massing for a breach through the eastern forts. Why aren't we warning the citizens? Why aren't we evacuating the nearest villages? The old methods won't work against this kind of threat. S."

  I knew Cassius would just wave it off. "You don't understand anything about governing." That's what he always said. Self-righteous prick.

  I needed advice. The perspective of someone who'd seen real danger, not just sat in council meetings. Luten had been in the mines, fought demons, lost a comrade. He would understand.

  I slipped out of the chamber and headed for the second-class dormitory. Ten minutes across the inner courtyard, pretending to be just another student. Maybe I was too young and inexperienced? Maybe there were reasons to keep the information secret? But if the people weren't prepared, if we kept ignoring a real threat just to preserve "peace of mind"...

  Father, Cassius, the entire council. They believed in the old ways. But the world was changing. Otherworlders, demons, ancient secrets. All of it demanded a new approach. Luten would understand. He had to. If not him, then who?

  I adjusted my hood. Everyone saw me as just a kid playing at politics. But I wasn't going to be a silent princess while a real threat loomed over the kingdom. To hell with their protocols. Time to act. While I still could.