Reborn To Change My Fate-Chapter 205 - Two Hundred And Five

The morning sun had climbed high into the sky, its bright, relentless light piercing through the heavy velvet drapes of Derek’s study. Dust motes danced in the beams, swirling around the stacks of parchment that littered his massive oak desk.

Derek sat in his high-backed chair, his posture rigid. He looked tired. He rubbed his temples, trying to focus on the ledger in front of him. Marissa had brought it to him earlier, pointing out the necessary preparations for winter for the household—firewood stocks, grain reserves, coal, wool for the servants.

"Winter is coming," Derek whispered to himself, reading a report on the grain silos.

Marissa had been thorough. She had audited not just the money, but the supplies.

Derek ran his hand over the ledger. He admired her handwriting—neat, sharp, and practical. She didn’t just spend money; she managed it. She was preparing the household for the harsh months ahead, ensuring that everyone, from the family to the stable boys, would be warm and fed.

He dipped his quill into the inkwell, scratching a note in the margin about coal deliveries. The sound of the pen on paper was the only noise in the quiet room.

Knock. Knock.

The sound was sharp, urgent. It broke the stillness like a stone through glass.

"Enter," Derek spoke without looking up, his voice weary.

The heavy door opened. Ian walked in. He didn’t bow. He didn’t wait for permission. He closed the door quickly behind him and strode to the desk, his boots heavy on the carpet. His face was grim, his eyes dark with a worry that he rarely showed.

"Your Grace," Ian said, his voice low.

Derek looked up. He saw the tension in Ian’s shoulders, the way his hand rested unconsciously near his sword. He set the quill down. The ink blotted on the page.

"What is it?" Derek asked, his attention fully captured.

"News from Strathmore," Ian said.

Derek went still. Strathmore. The small county on the border. The place where his brother died. The place where the answers lay buried under years of snow and silence. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

"Report," Derek commanded.

Ian took a breath. "Captain Nigel," he said. "He has disappeared."

Derek stared at him. He stood up slowly, his chair scraping loudly against the floor. He walked around the desk, needing to move.

"What do you mean, disappeared?" Derek asked, his voice hardening. "Captain Nigel is the commander of the garrison there. He has a duty there. He doesn’t just... leave."

"He is not in Strathmore anymore," Ian replied. "Our contact went to meet him after months of searching. He was never seen. Our man waited and inquired for hours."

Ian paused, his expression darkening.

"His house was searched," Ian continued. "It was empty. No signs of a struggle, but... his sword was gone. His uniform was gone. And the hidden compartment under his floorboards... it was open. And empty."

Derek walked to the window. He looked out at the peaceful garden, where the flowers were blooming in the sun. But his mind was hundreds of miles away, in the cold, windy plains of Strathmore.

"Captain Nigel served under Theodore," Derek murmured, almost to himself. "He was there the day of the ambush. He was one of the few survivors. He claimed he knew nothing, but I always suspected he knew more."

He chuckled " He was even promoted and kept in Strathmore to be in charge of the garrison there."

He turned back to Ian, his expression hardening once more.

"If he ran," Derek said, pacing the room, "it means he was spooked. Or he was taken."

He looked at Ian sharply.

"Has anyone from court visited Strathmore recently?" Derek asked. "Anyone from the capital...or from the royal court?"

Ian nodded. He reached into his tunic and pulled out a small, crumpled report.

"Prince Liam’s troops," Ian said, handing the paper to Derek. "They just returned from there three days ago. A full detachment of the Royal Guard."

Derek snatched the paper. He scanned the lines.

"They claimed it was a routine patrol," Ian explained. "A ’security check’ to ensure the border was safe for the coming winter. They stayed for two days. They left the morning Nigel vanished."

Derek’s eyes narrowed. He crushed the paper in his fist.

"A security check," Derek repeated, the words tasting bitter on his tongue. "Liam doesn’t care about border security. He cares about things that would be a threat to him now or in the future."

He walked back to his desk. He leaned on it with both hands, staring at the map spread out under the ledgers. He traced the route from the capital to Strathmore with his finger.

"It seems," Derek said, his voice dropping to a dangerous growl, "that the one behind Captain Nigel’s disappearance must be Prince Liam."

He looked up at Ian.

"Liam knows I am looking into the past," Derek said. "He knows I suspect him. He is cleaning up the loose ends. He took Nigel."

"To silence him?" Ian asked.

"Or to extract information," Derek said grimly.

"If Nigel talks... if he tells Liam that I have been asking questions... then Liam will know exactly how close I am."

Derek slammed his fist on the desk. The inkwell jumped, spilling black ink across the winter budget.

"We have to act," Derek said. "We cannot let him interrogate Nigel."

He looked at the door.

"Prepare my horse," Derek ordered. "And get Marissa. I need to tell her I am leaving."

Ian hesitated. "Leaving, Your Grace? To Strathmore?"

"No," Derek said, shaking his head. "If Liam has Nigel, he wouldn’t keep him at the border. He would bring him back to the capital. He would bring him to the palace dungeon."

Derek’s eyes were cold.

"I am going to the palace," Derek declared. "If Liam has him, I am going to get him back. Tonight."

Ian bowed. "Yes, Your Grace. I will gather the Shadows."

Ian turned to leave, but he stopped at the door. He looked back at his master.

"Your Grace," Ian said softly. "Be careful. The Prince is watching. If you walk into the palace now... you might not walk out."

"I know," Derek said. He picked up his sword belt from the chair. "But if I don’t go, the truth dies with Nigel. And I cannot let that happen."

"Let him watch," Derek whispered, buckling the sword around his waist. "Let him see what happens when he wakes a sleeping wolf."

Ian nodded and left the room.

Derek stood alone in the study. He looked at the map one last time.

"Looks like the game has change." He thought to himself.