Chapter 35: Shadows Behind the Secret Door

The sound of soft knocking from outside the old library's wooden door broke the silence that had gripped the underground basement. The three of us immediately adopted high alert gestures; Raven quickly dimmed the magic glow on the bluish candles, while Prince Leonhardt placed his right hand near the hilt of the sword tucked behind his cloak. I focused mana in my palm, preparing to conjure ice crystals if the approaching figure turned out to be an enemy who had managed to track our secret hideout.

"Calm down," Raven whispered softly, his eyes glancing toward the small gap near the floor where outside shadows could be seen. "That is not an enemy. That is the knocking code from the underground spy network."

Hearing that, I exhaled softly, though the tension in my chest did not decrease at all. Raven stepped forward silently, opening the heavy iron bolt securing the secret door. The figure emerging from the dark corridor's gloom was a dark-haired senior academy student wearing a dull grey cloak—one of the trusted informants Raven recruited from scholarship students outside the noble circle.

"There is crazy development in the palace's east wing tonight, Lord Raven," the informant reported out of breath, trying to keep his voice from echoing in the damp corridor. "The Sterling faction just smuggled secret documents from the ministerial council. They utilized the chaos of yesterday's magic explosion to ratify an emergency decree transferring the northern border military command."

Prince Leonhardt clenched his right fist until his knuckles turned white. "An emergency decree? Without passing through palace plenary session approval? My father must be heavily pressured by the ministers' vote of no confidence faction."

"Not only that, Your Highness," the informant continued with a trembling tone. "The document states that the Valerian family is accused of negligence in securing the northern border seal, and troop command will soon be taken over directly by the Sterling faction in less than a week. They intend to use the northern military troops to frame Lady Alicia."

Instantly, the temperature inside the underground basement dropped drastically. Small ice crystals unconsciously began to form at my fingertips, responding to the cold anger surging inside my chest. So, their dirty plan was not just kidnapping me or ruining my reputation at the academy; they wanted to seize the Valerian family's military power and make me a legitimate scapegoat for the breaking of the ancient monster gate seal.

"Their move is far more aggressive than our estimate," I said coldly, looking sharply at Prince Leonhardt and Raven in turn. "If that decree gets officially ratified by the imperial council, my father will be branded a national traitor before we even manage to dismantle the shadow faction network."

Raven narrowed his grey eyes, his brain working fast to assemble a counter-strategy. "We must not let that decree document reach the prime minister's hands tomorrow morning. The original archive copy is currently stored in the private safe of the Sterling faction's main study room in the academy's west wing."

"The Sterling study room?" Prince Leonhardt snorted cynically. "That place is heavily guarded by dozens of elite mercenary knights and filled with high-level protective magic traps. Sneaking in there is the same as handing our heads on a silver platter."

I wore a cold-blooded villainess smirk, standing from the old wooden chair where I sat and stepping closer to the two youths. "Since when did a crown prince and a former exiled noble become cowards just because of a few cheap magic traps?" I asked sharply, challenging their courage. "If the front door is heavily guarded, we simply tear down the back wall or freeze all the guards in a single night."

Raven stared intently, then a thin smile curved on his lips. "A very interesting notion from a Valerian daughter. It seems tonight we will hold a sudden working visit to the Sterling faction office."

Prince Leonhardt shook his head slightly, yet a flash of steel determination gleamed within his blue eyes. "Fine. If we must play dirty to save this empire, let us ruin their night."