Damon sat in silence, resting his chin on one hand.

Tap tap. 

Each time his fingertips drummed on the table, his ministers felt the air grow heavier, exchanging glances that finally settled on Timothy. Their eyes pleaded for him to say something, anything.

Timothy swallowed a sigh as he slowly turned the pages.

“Your Majesty. We should have heard from Clifford by now. Given their complete silence, it seems clear they intend to cover up the envoys’ sudden deaths. Perhaps we should send another?”

“I agree. They’re hesitating to give any word for fear of complications regarding the deaths. If we delay, who knows what escape route they’ll find? Shouldn’t we try sending another?”

“Rumors are rampant that the Black Moon rose and set over Clifford’s palace. We should consider the strong possibility that one or two have died…”

Knock knock.

Just then, movement was heard outside. Damon straightened up from his reclined position and quickly ordered them to enter. A flustered minister handed Timothy a neatly folded paper.

“An urgent message from Clifford.”

“How many died?”

“Ah, about that…”

Timothy glanced at Damon before carefully reciting.

“It says the envoys are all suffering from high fever and chills, and are being treated in Clifford. There’s no mention of deaths.”

The ministers furrowed their brows in disbelief, whispering among themselves. What was going on? Had the poison failed to work properly, leaving them alive? Or had something gone wrong along the way?

Damon read through the message with his striking violet eyes before smirking.

“Their lies are quite elaborate.”

“When you say lies…”

“The envoys are already dead. But they’re trying to avoid responsibility by reporting this way. It seems Clifford has noticed that Burgos is hiding its fangs.”

“Then, what should we do? Perhaps we should send another envoy to gather evidence and justification…”

“No. Anyone we send won’t return anyway. It would be pointless. Instead, we should recall our eyes and ears planted in their palace. Also, it’s important to gather the rumors circulating in Clifford’s streets and determine exactly what’s happening inside.”

“Understood, Your Majesty. I’ll make contact accordingly. Should we assume there are mages present?”

“That’s almost certainly correct. But something puzzles me.”

Damon murmured while lightly stroking his shoulder-length hair.

He was aware that Clifford and Bariel’s mages had caused a commotion at the border. Through Ruswena’s information, he also knew that they had entered Clifford’s palace and that most of the Ministry of Magic had gone to provide support.

But why weren’t the mages returning to Bariel?

The justification of protecting Clifford was too weak. They weren’t yet official allies, and leaving the imperial palace empty would be even more critical.

‘They say Ian has had some problem, but I don’t know what it is.’

He couldn’t understand what had diminished someone who had risen to Ministry of Magic Minister at such a young age.

‘Should I send Timothy?’

It was muddy water. Unable to see even a step ahead, having to navigate solely by touch.

If he threw Timothy into those waters, might he pull up something – anything? After all, Ian’s attitude toward Timothy seemed to go beyond that of a simple diplomat.

“Your Majesty?”

“Ah.”

When Timothy called out worriedly, Damon snapped back to attention and gave a small nod.

“First priority is securing evidence of the envoys’ deaths. It seems Bariel is looking for ways to intervene through Clifford, so we must proceed without leaving any openings. I trust everyone understands what I mean.”

“Yes, Your Majesty, of course. We shall obey.”

“Leave it to us.”

“However, about that…”

As the meeting was wrapping up, one minister raised his hand. He hesitated while fidgeting with petitions that had been arriving from the provinces.

“While the nobles’ private armies are gathering smoothly, several families want their heirlooms returned first. Given the inevitable chaos of war, they seem quite concerned about management and loss.”

Burgos’s royal forces alone weren’t sufficient. Especially considering the population difference with Clifford wasn’t small.

Burgos’s only solution was to gather all the military power dispersed among provincial nobles in one place. To do that, they needed to definitively settle the matter of the jewels that had been given to Bariel as tribute.

“My, they are quite worried. Did you tell them they’ll receive them when they come to the capital?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Send them letters with the royal seal as proof. These nobles, really.”

Damon muttered while rummaging through his desk drawer.

Soon his hand found a small box. It contained the golden diamond that should have been in Clifford’s possession.

This second life was clearly blessed by heaven. Not only had they secured a large amount of Idgal, but they’d also recovered the jewel that had almost gone to the other side – this was destiny’s signal to quickly commence war.

‘Rutherford.’

The mysterious man from Rutherford. Through unknown means, he had extracted the jewel from Prince Noah’s carriage and placed it in Damon’s hands. The price paid in return was negligible.

Damon noticed that what Rutherford truly wanted wasn’t material gain. War and destruction. Furthermore, tension between nations and perhaps even Bariel’s downfall.

Regardless of the merchant group’s intentions, it was fortunate their direction aligned with Burgos’s. Thus, they could now gather the nobles to the center without issue.

Rattle!

After closing the drawer, Damon instructed Timothy.

“Timothy.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“You’ll handle gathering intelligence in Clifford’s streets. Go personally and learn their status as quickly and accurately as possible.”

Just as Timothy was about to bow his head and accept the command-

“If you can’t find out from the streets, then even if you have to enter the palace.”

“Pardon?”

Hadn’t Damon himself just said that any envoy sent wouldn’t return? When Timothy raised his head in confusion, Damon laughed out loud.

“Hahaha. I jest. Just a joke.”

“Ah…”

Timothy uncomfortably rubbed his nape. Though this was his lord, sometimes he was too sharp and unfathomable, making things difficult. As Timothy bowed his head, Damon turned away without hesitation.

“Let’s watch what unfolds in Clifford.”

***

“Any reaction?”

“No, nothing. No movement.”

Ian crossed his arms and looked down at the map after receiving word from the border. A day had already passed. Burgos had remained quiet without any movement after receiving Clifford’s message.

No response despite news that all the envoys had fallen ill – this meant they recognized the content itself as false. Naturally, Damon would have enough sense for that.

“Should we maintain this standoff?”

“Yes. Bariel’s forces need time to move down, and more importantly, Burgos has likely infiltrated spies into Clifford to find fault. It’s only proper to give them time to investigate and search.”

“Ah, this is more tense than I expected.”

“There’s no need to be tense. Nothing gets done when you’re tense.”

Tak.

Ian continued moving stones around while closely examining Clifford’s terrain. Unable to guess what thoughts were passing through his mind, the Clifford minister just rolled his eyes. With even Prince Noah beside him having nothing to add, what could they say?

“Are the rumors progressing smoothly?”

“Yes. Since everyone’s already paying attention to the palace area, the rumors should spread quickly. It’s killing two birds with one stone – not only does it lure Burgos, but it also helps the people prepare in their own way.”

Three Burgos envoys died in the palace. This would develop into a diplomatic issue, so the palace was hushing it up and zealously handling the aftermath. Thus, people were unofficially warned to stock up on food, stay with family, and avoid going out in preparation for possible conflict with Burgos.

“If they don’t tire of singing all day, it might spread even faster than I expected.”

Tak tak tak!

Bang!

“Your Highness! Information has arrived!”

“What is it?”

“Word that Burgos’s Envoy Timothy has entered the country!”

Pause. Ian’s hand froze as he was about to place a stone. Though he had expected someone would infiltrate to gauge the reaction, he hadn’t thought it would be Timothy. As someone high-ranking enough to lead diplomatic delegations, this meant he was one of Damon’s closest confidants.

To send such a person to Clifford in this situation? Unlike Noah who seemed unconcerned, Ian quietly ran his fingers through his hair.

‘Is this Damon’s bait for me?’

This was why emotions and the resulting favorable actions shouldn’t be revealed to others. Damon clearly thought there was some unknown significance to Ian and Timothy’s special connection seen in Bariel. Timothy might not know, but Ian actually did have such feelings.

As Naum’s ancestor, he mustn’t be allowed to become entangled in unexpected death or incidents.

“Envoy Timothy. Ah. The one we saw in Bariel. Where did they say he went?”

“We lost track after he entered the capital.”

“He’ll approach the palace. Watch carefully.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

If there are spies in the palace, he’ll move to make contact with them. Ian pushed aside the stones and asked.

“Are there any likely candidates to be Burgos’s eyes and ears in the palace?”

“Ah, there are a few suspicious ones. Our children’s tutors and well…”

Since the imperial and royal palace organizations differed, he seemed unsure how to explain. Noah vaguely gestured with a nod.

“I’ve narrowed it down to five or six. We have surveillance on them, so we’ll be notified immediately if they show any suspicious behavior. This works out well. Damon would accept Timothy’s report without much suspicion. Since rumors among citizens alone might be insufficient, using the spies in reverse could be good too.”

If they leak false information to the spies, and Timothy reports that to Damon?

Already on edge, he wouldn’t leave Timothy be. He’s cruel enough to use envoys’ deaths as signals. Timothy’s life could be forfeit just for bringing incorrect information.

Ian crossed his arms and gave a hollow laugh.

‘The bait you’re throwing blindly is sinking quite deep, Damon.’

Ian rose from his seat and addressed Noah. At this point, he would have to directly persuade Timothy to defect.

“Please share that list with me as well.”

“…Alright.”

Noah looked up as Ian stood, reluctantly muttering. Within his agreement, he hid his intention not to actually share the information.

Though he didn’t know what Ian was thinking, matters concerning traitors were absolutely top secret. Ian didn’t need to know, nor did they need to risk the dangers that would come from his knowing.

Noah pretended to flip through documents while quietly watching Ian leave.