In the gardens of Taymer Palace, the afternoon sun streamed through the gaps in a wisteria-covered trellis, scattering small, trembling flecks of light onto the flagstone path. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

The fragrance of roses and damp earth drifted through the air, and the faint sound of a distant fountain could be heard.

Beside a white stone table under the trellis, a young lady was leaning over, teasing Eleanor, who sat across from her, with a crystalline piece of candy held between her fingertips.

The young lady looked to be no more than fifteen or sixteen, with a slender and delicate figure.

She wore an exquisitely tailored, sea-blue silk court dress. Its collar and cuffs were trimmed with fine, silver-threaded lace, and the layered skirt was embroidered with intricate, subtle patterns of interwoven gears and stars in a deeper blue thread, which shimmered faintly in the sun as she moved.

Her thick, black hair wasn’t styled in a complex bun but was loosely tied back with a silver chain adorned with small sapphires, allowing a few strands to fall against the pale skin of her neck.

Her face bore a strong resemblance to Margaret’s. They were especially similar in their eyes, which were as dark as ink, their clarity holding a hint of lively cunning. However, her features were slightly softer than Margaret’s. She lacked the imposing aura of someone long accustomed to high station, possessing instead a young girl’s radiance.

White lace stockings encased her slender calves, and on her feet were low-heeled satin shoes of a matching blue, their tips adorned with pearls.

"Come on, Little Eleanor, guess which hand the candy is in?" the young lady’s voice was crisp and pleasant, tinged with a smile.

She put her hands behind her back, swapped the candy between them a few times with swift movements, and then held out both clenched fists in front of Eleanor.

Five-year-old Eleanor, dressed in a little pale-yellow dress, sat in a chair that was slightly too high for her, her short legs dangling and swinging gently.

Her large, dark eyes moved seriously back and forth between the young lady’s two fists, her little face a picture of concentration.

She didn’t point right away. Instead, she tilted her head as if sensing something. A moment later, she extended a small finger and gently tapped the young lady’s left hand.

"Are you sure?" The smile in the young lady’s eyes deepened.

Eleanor nodded emphatically.

The young lady opened her left hand. Her palm was empty.

She then opened her right hand, where the amber-colored piece of candy lay waiting.

"Oh, you guessed wrong!" she sighed with feigned disappointment, though she couldn’t hide the smile in her eyes. She handed the candy to a slightly crestfallen Eleanor. "But, since you’re so cute, you get the prize anyway."

Eleanor took the candy but didn’t eat it right away. She held it in her palm and looked up at the young lady, asking in a clear voice, "Auntie Othilia, how did you make it go to the other hand? I’m sure I felt it here just now."

She pointed to the young lady’s left hand, where it had been before.

The young lady, Othilia, blinked. Just as she was about to speak, a gentle and familiar voice called out from the other end of the garden path.

"She has her ways, of course, Eleanor. Your Auntie Othilia is an expert at making things appear where they aren’t supposed to be."

Margaret approached with a graceful stride.

Today, she wore a simple, moon-white informal dress, her black hair held up by a single jade pin. Compared to Othilia’s exquisite finery, she appeared more poised and serene.

She first smiled gently at Eleanor, then her gaze fell upon Othilia, the corners of her lips turning up slightly. "Having fun, Cousin Othilia? You’re fifty-three, yet you haven’t gotten rusty at these little tricks for teasing children."

Othilia stood up, her sea-blue skirt flaring out like a fleeting ocean wave. "Maggie, for people like you and me, time is merely sand flowing slowly through an hourglass. As for tricks..."

She glanced at Eleanor, her smile radiant. "With a little one this perceptive, I had to use some real skill. Her talent for perception is far stronger than yours was at her age."

Margaret walked to the table and gently stroked Eleanor’s hair. "Darling, go find Leia and have her show you the clutch of little songbirds that hatched yesterday. And remember to finish that candy, don’t just hold it in your mouth."

Eleanor nodded obediently, slid down from her chair, and after giving a little curtsy to Margaret and Othilia, ran off with small steps toward the lady-in-waiting, Leia, who was standing nearby, the piece of candy clutched in her hand.

As Margaret watched Eleanor walk away, the gentle smile on her face faded, replaced by a calm profundity. She sat down across from Othilia.

"It seems the ’fireworks’ over at the Iron Ridge Mountain Range were more effective than we anticipated. Saint Cyril and the Valkendu Metropolitan Bishop took action personally, which caused quite a stir. Both old men were seriously injured. Now, their attention—along with most of the resources of the Holy City and the Northern Shepherd Chief District—is completely pinned on that new hole in the Deep Red Wilderness."

"The Holy City especially. They lost a Cardinal Level combatant and now have to deal with an unplanned, permanent Plane Rift. That should keep them scrambling for a while."

Othilia’s playful expression also vanished. She picked up the half-cool teacup before her, her fingertips tracing the fine porcelain.

"Alonso and his people really are reliable. Once the aura of the Deep Red Wilderness leaked out, it was like tearing an unignorable wound in the God of Truth’s perfect veil. Those old men in the Church Court probably aren’t worried about us right now. They’re worried about what might crawl out from the other side of the rift, and... whether this tear will grow larger and affect the ’purity’ of the Holy City’s very foundations."

She paused, then continued, "Their attention has been diverted. The barrier has loosened. It’s time to let those ’old antiques’ buried beneath the Holy City, the ones that have been slumbering for nearly two thousand years, get a breath of fresh air, Maggie."