Chapter 13

Inside a quiet war room of the Imperial University’s Universal Guard captain annex, Astera sits at a long obsidian table with Asche Ace Kyezhen and Berwick von Blutschwert. Holograms flicker above the table—maps of the Northern and Southern Districts, sigil activity logs, and shifting planetary alignments.

Astera:
So…
What exactly happened to King Kalt XVII?
And his son, Kalt XVIII?

Berwick folds his arms, closing his eyes for a moment before responding.

Berwick:
Kalt XVII died around the time King Givre seized the throne of Raureif.

Asche:
Which means one of two things happened.

Berwick:
Option one: Givre assassinated Kalt XVII and staged it to look like succession.

Asche:
Option two: Kalt XVII went into hiding…
But let’s be honest—he was too proud and too public to just vanish.

Berwick:
So it’s probably number one.

Astera leans forward, eyes sharp.

Astera:
And his son?

Asche:
Kalt XVIII… is still alive.
We’ve felt it. He’s here—
Somewhere in Central City Minamo.

Berwick:
The pulse of his arcana is distinct. Regal. Tempered, but burning beneath.
He’s alive. Hiding. Watching. Maybe planning.

Astera stares at the Northern District’s planetary chart, eyebrows furrowing.

Astera:
Why is it that both the Northern and Southern central planetary kingdoms are always unstable?
Raureif is ruled by a tyrant. Havre de Glace is fracturing under its current regime.

Asche:
Because history repeats itself—especially in monarchies.
In Havre de Glace, the Elven Ice Queen, Verglas I, was assassinated by her own court noble—Neigeima.

Berwick:
Now Neigeima is queen. And she didn’t stop there.

Asche:
Verglas II—her daughter—is still alive.
But she’s not fighting back.

Astera:
Why not?

Asche:
Because Neigeima brainwashed her.
That girl wields the royal glacial arts in service of her mother’s killer.

Berwick:
And the Southern District’s been too quiet ever since. Unnaturally so.

Astera:
So we’ve got a missing heir, a murdered queen, and a brainwashed successor.
And the only reason we haven’t gone to war is because we are all focused on the sigil fragments.

Berwick:
Not for long. The balance is breaking again.

Asche:
And if those districts fall further, Givre and Neigeima won’t stop at the edges of their thrones.

 ...Then we find Kalt XVIII. And we start planning our next move.