[The Deep South The Thorne Estate]
Thirty blocks of solid, unmelting ice containing the shattered bodies of elite assassins sat directly in front of the Thorne Estate gates.
Instead of panicking, Marquis Thorne suddenly threw his head back and began to laugh. A deep, echoing, arrogant laugh that bordered on madness.
"Father!" Lady Vanya yelled, staring at him as if he had lost his mind.
"Why are you laughing?! The Crown Princess defeated them all and sent them back! She knows we are behind this attack!"
The heavy parlor doors opened, and a tall, elegantly dressed woman walked into the room. It was Marchioness Cassandra Thorne the Marquis's wife, and the younger sister of Duke Alistair Valerius. She shared the exact same calculating, snake like eyes as her brother.
"Oh, do not worry, my sweet daughter," Cassandra smirked, smoothly pouring herself a glass of dark wine.
"Let the Crown Princess be angry. Let her freeze our front lawn. It does not matter, because she has zero proof that we hired them. Without proof, the Emperor cannot move his army against us without breaking the ancient treaty."
Vanya crossed her arms, still pouting. "But why shouldn't I worry?! That half breed rat is still alive!"
"For now," Cassandra replied smoothly, taking a delicate sip of her wine.
"But her days are numbered. In exactly one week, she is being sent to attend the Imperial Zenith Academy."
Vanya frowned. "But how do we
strike her there? The Emperor's guards cannot follow, but Seraphina and the Second Prince will be right beside her."
Cassandra's smile widened into something truly venomous.
"We don't need to send assassins from the outside, Vanya. My brother and I have been preparing for this inevitable day for years. We already have our most lethal piece permanently placed deep inside the Academy. And they won't see him coming until it is far too late."
[The Imperial Capital The Emperor's Study]
"THE IMPERIAL ACADEMY OF THE EAST?!"
My eighteen year old voice echoed so loudly it rattled the heavy glass windows of the study. The volatile Three Aditya mana was practically boiling off my shoulders in sheer frustration.
"Father, do you not know that place is freezing cold?!" I argued, slamming my hands flat on his obsidian desk.
"It snows eight months out of the year in the Eastern Territory! Why can't we go to the Western Academy?!"
Emperor Aldric calmly flipped a page of his ledger, unfazed by my outburst.
"I know it is cold, Zion. But it is far better than sending her to the North or the South. And as for the Western Academy, it is permanently closed. The Previous Emperor shut it down decades ago due to rampant corruption. The East is our only option."
"Fine," I gritted my teeth, rubbing my temples.
"But if Lyra, Seraphina, Elian, and I are all going to the East... who is going to take care of the twins? We can't take Leo and Mia to a dangerous Academy."
"You do not need to worry about the twins," Aldric said smoothly, not even looking up from his paperwork.
"Because I am here. I will take care of them. I am very nice at that work."
I paused. I blinked once. Twice.
"Nice? Did you just say you are nice at taking care of children?"
"Yes. I am nice at that work," Aldric repeated with a straight, terrifyingly serious face.
"And besides, Leo and Mia are sweet, polite children. They are not absolute troublemakers like you were when you were little. I still remember how you used to create trouble."
"When did I ever create trouble?!" I crossed my arms defensively, my pride wounded.
Aldric slowly lowered his quill and looked me dead in the eye.
"Who was the one who jumped head first into a massive, four tier chocolate cake just to grab a wooden toy during your Uncle Yash's fourteenth birthday party?"
My face instantly turned bright red. "That was not my fault! You were the one who threw the toy into the cake in the first place like it was nothing! Do normal fathers do such things?!"
"What?" Aldric raised an eyebrow, completely unbothered by his own chaotic parenting.
"You are an idiot, stupid, reckless, and a massive pervert... just like your mother."
"My mother was not a pervert!" I yelled, my voice cracking in pure embarrassment.
"You are the one who is a pervert!"
"A bold claim," Aldric smirked faintly.
"Now get out of my study and go tell your family to pack their bags."
[The Imperial Dining Room Dinner Time]
The grand table was filled with a massive, delicious feast, but the atmosphere was suffocatingly tense.
Emperor Aldric cleared his throat, looking at the family gathered around the table.
"I told Zion to tell all of you earlier today, but I see his empty brain forgot. So, I will tell you myself. In one week, all four of you Zion, Seraphina, Elian, and Lyra will be attending the Imperial Zenith Academy in the East."
"I strongly disagree," twenty year old Seraphina stated instantly, slamming her silver fork down.
"The nature of the East is freezing! Lyra is pregnant! Her body cannot handle that kind of extreme temperature shift right now!"
Before anyone else could argue, eight year old Prince Elian casually took a bite of his warm bread and sighed dramatically.
"Big Sister Seraphina is right," Elian chirped innocently.
"But Big Brother Zion is too stupid and lazy to protect her properly, and Father is too stubborn to change his mind. What a disaster."
I choked violently on my water. Aldric's eye twitched. The eight year old had just flawlessly, casually roasted both the Emperor of the continent and the Second Prince in a single breath.
"I will attend."
Everyone at the table stopped and looked over. Seventeen year old Lyra was holding her teacup, her deep blue eyes calm and full of an unbreakable resolve.
"Lyra, you don't have to force yourself" I started, my protective instincts flaring.
"I'm not forcing myself, Prince Zion," Lyra smiled softly. She looked directly at the Emperor.
"I know Father would never make a dangerous decision like this if he could simply delay it. If he is sending me, it means it is the absolute only way to protect the babies' legitimacy. I trust him."
Emperor Aldric's cold, tyrannical mask softened entirely. A look of deep, profound respect crossed his scarred face.
"Do not worry, Lyra," Aldric said gently.
"I have already sent a direct request to Duchess Serene Orion, the Head of the Eastern Territory. House Orion is fiercely loyal to the Crown. They will help us protect you. Because of my request, they have constructed a new, private estate inside the Academy grounds. All four of you will live there together, safely away from the other students."
"Grandpa?"
A tiny, heartbroken voice spoke up from the end of the long table.
Little Leo was holding his silver spoon, his bottom lip quivering. Mia was sitting right next to him, looking equally devastated.
"Does that mean... we don't get to go? We can't see Mom and Dad anymore?"
The entire table's collective heart broke.
"No, Leo, you will stay here with me,"
Emperor Aldric said, his voice softer and warmer than anyone in the Empire had ever heard it. He walked around the table and gently patted the five year old's head.
"But it is not forever."
Leo looked up, massive tears welling in his eyes.
"When do they come back?"
"Your Mom will come home to visit you once every two months," Aldric explained, offering a reassuring smile to the twins.
"But your Dad, your Aunt Seraphina, and your Uncle Elian will only come home once every six months."
Leo tilted his head in sheer confusion.
"Why does Dad take so long?"
"Because your Dad is incredibly lazy," Aldric deadpanned, shooting me a merciless side eye.
"Hey!" I protested loudly.
"And until they come back," Emperor Aldric continued, ignoring my outrage and smiling down at the tiny twins.
"Your grandfather will take care of you. We will play every single day. I promise."