"Stop holding back?" Eleanor repeated softly, her eyes studying Arthur more closely than before.
Arthur didn't answer right away. He simply looked out toward the dark garden below the balcony, as if weighing something he had kept restrained for far too long. His usual relaxed demeanor was still there but now it felt like a thin layer, ready to be shed at any moment.
"What I mean," he said at last, "is that I'm done pretending not to know."
Eleanor gave a small nod, as if it was exactly the answer she had expected.
"Good," she replied. "Because I'm done moving halfway, too."
The next morning, Eleanor didn't go about her usual routine. Instead, she asked Mira to prepare the carriage without offering much explanation. The palace was busy with its own affairs, so the departure of a princess considered "insignificant" didn't attract much attention.
But Eleanor wasn't heading somewhere ordinary.
She returned to her family estate.
"Your Highness, are you sure this is safe?" Mira asked quietly as they entered the Ainsworth residence grounds.
Eleanor stepped down calmly. "This is my home," she said. "If I can't walk in here, then we've already lost."
The house still stood as grand as ever. The guards immediately bowed when they saw her, though faint surprise flickered across their faces.
But Eleanor hadn't come as a daughter returning home.
She came as someone searching.
"I want access to my father's study," she said directly to the head butler.
The man hesitated. "Your Highness, that room hasn't been opened since…."
"It will be opened now," Eleanor cut in calmly.
There was no raised voice, no force yet it was enough.
Moments later, the large doors creaked open. A thin layer of dust greeted them, along with the scent of aged wood and long-undisturbed ink. The room remained just as she had last seen it, filled with maps and documents.
Eleanor stepped inside slowly, her eyes moving, reading, remembering.
"Nothing is ever truly left behind," she murmured.
Mira stayed a few steps behind. "Are you looking for something, Your Highness?"
Eleanor stopped in front of the large desk.
"Not something," she said. "Someone."
She began opening drawer after drawer not hurried, but certain. Every document she touched wasn't just paper, but a fragment of the network her father had once built.
The more she read, the clearer the pattern became. Connections. Alliances. And something far more hidden beneath it all.
"This isn't just about the military," Eleanor said quietly.
Mira stepped a little closer. "Then what is it about?"
Eleanor lifted a small document, her eyes narrowing.
"Influence."
Elsewhere, Arthur remained in the palace, playing his role as usual. He looked relaxed—he had even been seen dozing off in the sitting room, prompting a few nobles to shake their heads in quiet disdain.
But beneath that façade, he was watching everything.
"You look more useless by the day," one noble remarked mockingly.
Arthur let out a small yawn. "I'm just enjoying life," he replied lightly.
A few people chuckled.
But none of them realized that in moments like these, Arthur heard more than anyone else.
And that day, he heard something interesting.
"The Crown Prince has started gathering the old circle again," someone whispered.
Arthur didn't open his eyes.
But his mind was already moving.
"The old circle, huh," he thought.
Back at the Ainsworth estate, Eleanor finally found something that made her pause.
A small notebook, hidden behind a nearly invisible wooden panel.
She opened it slowly. It wasn't an official report, but personal notes. Names, dates, and symbols that could only be understood by someone who knew how to read them.
"Father…" she whispered.
Mira looked at her anxiously. "What is it?"
Eleanor closed the notebook gently, but her eyes had changed sharper now, more alive.
"This is why he was never truly alone," she said.
Mira frowned. "What do you mean?"
Eleanor met her gaze.
"He built something… even the palace doesn't fully understand."
Silence fell not empty, but heavy with the beginning of something larger.
That night, Eleanor returned to the palace with steadier steps. There was no hesitation now. She was no longer simply reacting.
She was taking control.
"You found something," Arthur said when he saw her on the balcony.
Eleanor didn't deny it. "More than I expected."
Arthur crossed his arms. "And?"
Eleanor pulled out the small notebook but didn't hand it over just yet.
"My father's influence wasn't just a name," she said softly. "It was a network."
Arthur gave a faint smile. "I never doubted it."
Eleanor looked at him. "But I doubt who's still loyal."
Arthur nodded slightly. "That's the hardest part."
The night wind swept through again, sharper than before.
Eleanor looked into the distance.
"If I use this too quickly, they'll grow suspicious," she said.
Arthur glanced at her. "And if you move too slowly?"
Eleanor smiled faintly. "We lose our chance."
Silence fell again, this time filled with calculation.
Arthur spoke at last. "Then we don't use all of it."
Eleanor turned to him. "Then what?"
Arthur stepped a little closer, his voice lower. "We start small."
Eleanor watched him carefully.
"Connections that don't stand out. People who seem unimportant."
Arthur nodded. "Because they're usually the most loyal."
Eleanor smiled slightly. "And the most underestimated."
For the first time that night, they were truly aligned.
Not just allies but two people moving in the same direction.
"Alright," Eleanor said quietly.
Arthur looked at her. "Where do we start?"
Eleanor opened the notebook again and pointed to a name.
"Someone who's been out of the spotlight for a long time."
Arthur narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Interesting," he said.
Eleanor closed the notebook. "And if he's still loyal…"
Arthur finished the thought. "Then we're no longer alone."
In the distance, the palace still stood grand and serene, but beneath that calm, something had begun to move again not just plans or whispers, but a legacy rising once more.
And this time, Eleanor wouldn't let it be buried.
"And if he isn't loyal?" Arthur asked quietly, his gaze still fixed on her.
Eleanor didn't answer immediately. She closed the notebook calmly, her fingers resting on its cover as if weighing the worst possibilities. Her expression didn't change but there was a new firmness that couldn't be hidden.
"Then," she said at last, "we'll find out quickly who needs to be removed from the board."
The night air sharpened. There was no longer room for doubt. Every move now carried clear consequences.
Arthur smiled faintly not out of ease, but understanding.
"Harsh," he said lightly. "But efficient."
Eleanor glanced at him. "We don't have the luxury of being gentle."
A few seconds passed in silence but not an empty one. Their minds were already moving, calculating every possibility.
Arthur finally leaned against the balcony railing, his relaxed posture now more controlled than ever.
"When do we start?" he asked.
Eleanor stared straight ahead, her eyes calm yet precise.
"Tomorrow."
Arthur nodded slightly. "Soon."
Eleanor gave a faint smile. "Too late is a luxury we don't have."