Reynard
leaned forward
, resting his elbows on the desk, his fingers steepled in front of him. The flickering candlelight cast long shadows across his sharp features.
"Since you're here," he said smoothly, "I have a job for you."
Seraphis raised an eyebrow.
"Straight to business? No foreplay?"
Reynard smirked.
"You're the one who barged in here unannounced, White Raven."
Seraphis
sighed dramatically
and slumped into the chair opposite his desk.
"Alright, hit me. Who’s the unlucky bastard this time?"
Reynard pulled out a
sealed black envelope
from his drawer and slid it across the desk.
"This one’s different."
Seraphis picked up the envelope,
weighing it in her hand.
She felt it immediately—
a faint magical aura.
The kind used to bind contracts in blood.
She flicked her eyes back to Reynard.
"High-profile?"
Reynard nodded.
"Very."
Seraphis slit the envelope open with a
thin dagger
and pulled out the parchment inside.
As she read,
her amused smirk faded.
Her grip on the paper
tightened.
The name written in bold, inked letters was
all too familiar.
Lord Cedric Vale
One of the
last remaining powerful nobles
in the kingdom. A man who had managed to
stay afloat
despite the chaos. A man
smart enough
to play both sides.
A man who had
once put a bounty on her head.
Seraphis clicked her tongue.
"Oh, this is personal."
Reynard
grinned.
"Figured you’d like it."
Seraphis leaned back in her chair,
tapping her fingers against her metal playing cards.
"Tell me everything."
The Mission: A Noble’s Web
Lord Cedric Vale wasn’t just
another noble.
He was
a strategist. A survivor.
A man who had carefully maneuvered through every shift of power.
When the Queen
fell
, most nobles either fled or were executed.
Not Cedric.
Instead, he
adapted.
He sent letters of loyalty to Alice, swore fealty to the new order, and
painted himself as an ally.
But behind the scenes?
He was playing a dangerous game.
"He’s been gathering forces," Reynard said,
tossing a second document onto the desk.
Seraphis picked it up.
A list of
names,
transactions,
movements.
He was funding mercenaries.
Buying assassins. Smuggling weapons.
He wasn’t trying to reclaim the kingdom.
No,
he was preparing for something else.
Seraphis narrowed her eyes.
"What’s his endgame?"
Reynard shrugged.
"That’s what I want you to find out—before you kill him."
Seraphis
grinned.
"Now we're talking."
A Deadly Plan
Objective 1:
Infiltrate Lord Cedric’s estate.
Objective 2:
Uncover his true intentions.
Objective 3:
Eliminate him.
Seraphis
stood up, flipping the contract between her fingers.
"Timeframe?"
Reynard tilted his head.
"As soon as possible. Before he makes his next move."
Seraphis smirked.
"Consider it done."
She turned on her heel, heading for the door—
but Reynard’s voice stopped her.
"Seraphis."
She glanced back.
Reynard
was watching her carefully now.
"Be careful with this one."
Seraphis
grinned, her white eyes glinting.
"When am I not?"
With that, she
vanished into the night.