Chapter 110

The gates of the palace slammed shut the moment the assassin's body hit the floor. The walls, once open to courtiers and nobles, now became an impenetrable fortress.

No one left. No one entered.

Word of the attempt on Seraphina spread like wildfire, but not beyond the palace walls. The public was unaware-Tharx would not let weakness bleed into his empire. But within the court? Fear ruled. The air was thick with it, suffocating and heavy, pressing down on nobles and servants alike.

The halls of the palace were deathly silent in the aftermath. Servants walked quickly, heads down, afraid of making a sound that would draw attention to them. Nobles whispered behind closed doors, terrified that the emperor's wrath would soon fall upon them. Some debated fleeing, while others scrambled to reaffirm their loyalty. The air reeked of desperation.

Aeliana stood at the center of the war council chamber, her fingers pressed against the cool marble of the table, her mind racing. Across from her, Tharx was pacing, his golden eyes molten with fury. Every movement, every breath, every tightened muscle in his arms screamed violence barely restrained.

"We start immediately," Tharx growled, his voice low, dangerous, absolute. "Every servant. Every noble. Every general. I want them questioned."

His generals, lined along the massive war table, nodded stiffly. Even they, hardened by battle and conquest, feared what this meant.

Someone within their ranks-someone trusted-had orchestrated an assassination attempt on his child.

Aeliana exhaled slowly, pushing aside her emotions. Now was not the time for fear. Now was the time for war. She turned to Vaelkor, her scholar-ally, the man who had helped her build a network of spies beneath the nose of the empire.

"I need my informants mobilized immediately," she said. "Servants, merchants, attendants-anyone who might have heard a whisper."

Vaelkor hesitated for a breath. "It will be done," he said, but then added, "but if they discover we are watching, they will go deeper into hiding."

Aeliana's eyes hardened.

"They won't have the chance."

The first to be questioned were the palace staff.

Servants stood in the great hall, lined against the stone walls like prisoners awaiting sentencing. The room was silent except for the occasional rustling of fabric or the shuffling of nervous feet. Aeliana and Tharx stood before them, watching with unrelenting stares.

One by one, they were questioned.

"Did you see anything unusual?"

"Did anyone new enter the palace in the last two months?"

"Have you overheard talk of the heir?"

Some wept, swearing innocence. Others trembled so violently they could barely speak. One chambermaid collapsed onto her knees, sobbing uncontrollably, begging for her life before a single accusation had even been made.

Aeliana watched carefully, looking for the small signs of deception-a twitching lip, darting eyes, a heartbeat too fast.

Tharx, however, had no patience for hesitation.

One man-a steward-faltered under questioning. His hands shook as he tried to explain an overheard conversation in the kitchens.

Tharx grabbed him by the collar, dragging him forward with one hand. His grip was unyielding, fingers pressing against the man's throat just enough to make him panic.

"You will tell me exactly what you heard," Tharx said, voice calm-too calm. "Or you will never speak again."

The steward choked on his fear. His breath came in ragged gasps as he tried to form words.

"M-my lord-I heard whispers. Just whispers. That there were those who-who did not want the heir to-"

Aeliana stepped forward sharply. "Who said this?"

The steward hesitated. His eyes darted toward the nobles standing at the edges of the hall, their expressions unreadable masks of composed horror.

Aeliana felt the weight of his fear. He knew that if he named the wrong person, if he exposed the wrong name, his own life was forfeit.

Tharx's patience snapped. He lifted the steward off the ground as if he weighed nothing, his grip tightening. "I will carve the name from your throat if you do not give it freely," he said in a voice of absolute promise.

The steward broke.

"Lord Sareth!" The name spilled from his lips like poison.

Aeliana's breath caught.

Tharx froze.

Silence descended.

Then-chaos.

Lord Sareth.

A noble. A trusted member of Tharx's war council. A man who had served under him for years.

Tharx had fought beside him. Aeliana had shared meals with him.

And he had plotted the death of their child.

Aeliana watched Tharx closely. His entire body was rigid, stone-like, but it was the stillness that terrified her. His golden eyes burned, his breath slow and controlled-but it was a thin, dangerous control. One wrong word, one moment of hesitation, and he would erupt into a force of destruction.

She took a small step forward, just enough to touch his arm. "Tharx," she murmured.

He did not look at her.

His hand unclenched, releasing the steward, who crashed to the floor, coughing violently.

"Find him," Tharx ordered, voice deadly and sharp as a blade. "Now."

The war council chamber exploded into motion.

Guards stormed the halls, blades drawn, armor clanking. Servants fled from their path, terrified.

Aeliana moved with purpose, her mind calculating faster than her emotions could keep up. If Sareth was behind this, he would not be waiting to be caught. He would have a plan. A way to escape. A way to hide deeper within the palace walls.

But he wouldn't escape. She would not allow it.

Aeliana pressed a hand against Tharx's chest, forcing him to look at her. His muscles coiled like steel, but his gaze met hers at last.

"If we charge blindly, we'll lose him," she said, voice low but steady. "We need to think."

Tharx's breath was sharp, his fists clenched, shaking with rage, but he nodded.

"Then we outthink him," he said.

Aeliana turned to Vaelkor. "Where was Lord Sareth last seen?"

Vaelkor did not hesitate. "He left the banquet early. A messenger summoned him. No one saw him return."

Aeliana's blood ran cold.

"He's already running."

The hunt had begun.

She and Tharx moved as one, storming through the palace, their steps purposeful, deadly. The halls blurred past them, and as Aeliana's mind worked, her instincts whispered. Sareth wasn't just running.

He had planned this.

This was not an act of desperation.

This was calculated.

And that meant he had something else planned.

Tharx reached for his blade, golden eyes locked ahead, but Aeliana felt it first.

The air had changed.

The silence had shifted.

Someone-or something-was waiting for them.

And they were walking straight into it.