Prince Edmond's carriage came to a stop in front of a rge manor. A day ago, it would've been the rgest building I'd ever seen. pared to the rest of the capital, it was hardly hy.

  One of Prince Edmond's knights helped Bir and I out of the carriage. As the knight guided me out by the hand, I couldn't help but gasp. A dozen women all wearing identical dresses and aprons filed out of the manor. One of them, an older blonde woman, stepped ahead of the group and took a knee in front of Prince Edmond.

  "Yhness, Lady Edna is waiting in the parlor. Might I guide you there?"

  "Of course," Prince Edmond's smile made the younger servant girls melt into giddy grins of their own. "Also, this is Bir and hey are privileged guests of mine, and will be attending my meeting with Edna. Please tell the staff to make aodations for them as well."

  "I will do as you ask, Yhness. Please follow me, I'll guide you to the parlor."

  The blonde woman led us ihe manor and into a room filled with plush furniture. As soon as we entered a dark-skinned woman stood and bowed to Prince Edmond. "Yhness, it brings my heart great joy to see you in good health."

  "I am equally joyed to see you doing well, Edna. Allow me to introduce my panions, Bir and hey are critical to what I have to discuss with you today, so I've ihem to sit in on our meeting."

  "It is a honor to meet the two of you. I am Edna, tess of Marwood. As yuests of His Highness, I implore you to rex within these walls. There is o stand on ceremony with me."

  Edna's gaze drifted from Bir to me. I found myself captivated by her. She was far youhan I'd expected, likely only a few years older than I was. Her dark sanguine-colored dress was ated with grey ce. It wasn’t as gaudy as what the noble women of Duwan wore, yet it appeared twice as elegant. But there was more to her than just her appearance. Something about her felt off. Edna radiated pressure. The air around her was akin to the feeling of a storm on the horizon.

  "Lady ne," Bir whispered. "It is extremely rude not to return a noble's greeting."

  My eyes widened and I hastily signed a greeting for Edna. Bir transted my words and followed them with an expnation that while I could hear perfectly fine, I couldn't speak.

  "I see. I now uand the importance of keeping you by her side, Bir." Edna smiled and beed us to sit. "Now please, sit. Make yourselves fortable."

  "What we o discuss ot be said until the maids have finished ying out their favors." Prince Edmond noted as he sat across from Edna. "I will have to request they be barred from the room for the length of our discussion."

  "Is it truly so dire?"

  "I believe we have found a ray of hope. I ot risk it being snuffed out before it has been nurtured."

  "Girls. Serve tea and cakes to the prind his guests and then please leave the room. Inform Rebecca she is to keep everyo until I instruct her otherwise."

  We sat quietly as the maids quickly carried out Edna's orders. Oray of sweets and cups of tea had been pced in front of us, they quickly filed out of the room.

  "Now then, Yhness, what is it you'd like to discuss?"

  "Edna, ne is the reinated saint." Prince Edmond noted casually as if he was discussing the weather. With theatrionce he lifted his cup and began sipping at its tents.

  "The saint?" Edna's jaw dropped as she looked between Prince Edmond and me. "As in, thesaint?!"

  "Yes."

  "You have to be joking. There's no way the saint herself would be here with us. She'd be at the cathedral surrounded by priests."

  "She happeo arrive during my meeting with the Exalted. I was there to witness her ization."

  "That makes this even more unlikely, Yhness I—"

  Assuming that I'd be asked to show my palm to Edna, I raised my hand, exposing the lotus-shaped birthmark on my palm. Edna froze mid-sentence, her breath caught ihroat as she stared at my hand.

  Grinning deviously, Prince Edmond began to expihing. From the point I arrived at the Exalted's office, to the discussion that followed my ization. "And that's why," Prince Edmond tinued, ing up his expnation. "I io task you with housing ne for the time being. I will send guards, but you will be responsible for her wellbeing. I’d also ask that you tutor her in magic.”

  "I couldn't possibly house and care for the saint!" Edna’s eyes widened as she looked from Prince Edmond to me.

  "There is no one else who could possibly care for her. Takio the castle is impossible, and there are no others I trust as much as you, Edna."

  Twisting a finger in her hair, Edna's eyes unfocused. She seemed to be imagining tless sarios where she failed to protect me—or perhaps where I got upset with her. I didn't wao live in a stant state of unease in her own home. Even if this was the best path forward, I couldn't take it if it meant distressing her.

  ?Please don’t force her, Prince Edmond. I don’t o live somewhere so luxurious.?

  Edna jolted as Bir transted my signs. Looking at me, her eyes misted over. "Lady ne, please know it isn't that i don't want to. You deserve more luxury than I could offer you. Your life is a treasure I feel ill-equipped to safeguard. Even if Prince Edmond sends guards, there is a limit to he a force we mass here without rousing suspi. I fear your life will be needlessly jeopardized.”

  "Are you not the great witarwood, herself?" Prince Edmond narrowed his gaze. "Did you not single-handedly fight one of Ezin's warbands into a stalemate while you waited on reinforts from the knights?"

  "I was seventeen and foolish. I pushed my body far beyond what should be possible. That is not a power I could ever dispy again."

  "You survived and carved out a legend of your own, Edna. You should see the truth of that every time you look into a mirror. Who better to guide and protect the saint herself than another hero?"

  ?What do you mean when you call her a great witch?? I signed, curious as to how Edna had gained her title. Was that why I felt such pressure from her? Did all great witches exert such power?

  "Edna Louise, tess of Marwood, imbibed over a hundred vials of ichor as she flung an endless barrage of spells at an army over five-hundred men strong. She fought without rest or food for five days. When the knights finally arrived Ezin's forces had nearly crumbled. After that she was decred a hero and earhe title of Marwood's great witch."

  "As punishment for my insolehe gods have cursed me with near-agelessness," Edna sighed. "I'll be celebrating my fiftieth birthday this year. But I’ve hardly aged a day sihat battle.”

  "Most would call your curse a blessing," Prince Edmond replied.

  "They romanticize it all they want. It is no blessing to watch those you love grow old while you remain stagnant. I’m even incapable of having children. Soon I will be the st of my bloodline, and there is nothing I do for it."

  "You could've bee a demon."

  "I should have bee a demon. No mage short of the saint herself should be able to sustain that much stress to their body and not be ed."

  "Which is exactly why you're the perfect caretaker for our fledgling saint," Prince Edmond said as he carefully plucked a small cake from the assortment in front of us. "You're the perfect match."

  "Very well," Edna sighed as she leaned forward. F a weak smile, she turo me. "I swear to do everything in my power to proted guide you, Lady ne. Until the day es when you no longer need me."

  ?Thank you.? I smiled back at Edna. Looking at her I could hardly believe that she was as old as she cimed. Of course, few looked at me and believed I was the saint. Holy, it was a surprise that my birthmark was all it took to vince people. Prince Edmond's pn to lie and say my birthmark only looked like the lotusmark was more than proof enough that simir marks were possible. Why didn't anyone demand more proof before believing us?

  "Now then, as for ne's alias while she's here. I believe you should tell your staff that she is a princess of Ezin. That will ehey give her preferential treatment, even as we keep them in the dark as to her true identity."

  ?Is Ezin not your enemy?? I asked curiously. If Edna had fought off Ezin's soldiers in the past, why would she house one of their princesses?

  "Ezin is less a try, and more a collective of smaller states." Edna replied. "They were a mighty nation long ago, but those days passed have long passed. Their attempt to capture Marwood was less a war and more the dying gasp of a venerable predator. After their failure the royal family lost all trol over the kingdom. Most of them were executed. The royals who survived now live in exile.

  "It would be easy to spin taking in a fledgling princess of the fallen nation as quite ing on my part. g territory from the crumbling remains of Ezin would take more soldiers than are givehreats we currently face to the north. But if I helped empower a young princess, perhaps she could rally what little support remains for the royal bloodline. Assuming she could recim her nation, it would be expected she’d swear fealty to Nakara after all of the aid she received.”

  ?They wouldn't believe you pn to betray them??

  "My brother already views Edna with suspi," Prince Edmond noted with a sardonic chuckle. "But, despite her fame she holds little sway over my father. Sihere’s no ce Edna will get in the way of his pns, Owen has made no move against her. He likely believes he’ll be able to more effectively manipute her once he has obtaihe .”

  "We already believe a few of the servants w for me are informants for Prince Owen," Edna sighed. "It won't be long before he hears of your existence."

  "Which is why we o trol the narrative he hears."

  ?What if he hears about me failing to bee the saint? Won't he find it weird that I'm both the thief Azmoria brought in, and a princess of a fn nation??

  "I'll make sure he doesn't put the two together. Ezin's king was known for taking wives of all races, so it wouldn't be farfetched for him to have a wolfkin daughter. As peculiar as it is for two white-haired wolfkin girls to arrive in the capital at the same time, it isn't impossible."

  "We'll have to think of a new name for her to take while she's here." Edna mused holding her .

  ?I refuse.?

  "Why?"

  ?Someone special to me gave me my name. I refuse to go by any other.? Elise named me on the day she found me. Among my tribe, having a name carried weight. It meant that my life had value. My father refused to give me oo him I was worthless. I didn’t deserve a name a Elise had given me one anyway. Even if I k was because she was human and didn't know of my tribe's s, I still cherished it. My name was a gift, I would not sully it by taking on another.

  "It's fine," Prince Edmond shrugged. "I'm sure few actually learned ne's name duririp to the capital. As beneficial as it would be to have her take on another, I doubt keeping her name as it is would ge much. Owen will likely piece everything together in time. We just have to dey him as much as possible."

  "Yhness, even if it's Lady ne's desire, are you sure it's okay to back down so readily?"

  "Keeping Owen in the dark is my job," Prince Edmond replied before standing. "Your job is simply to keep ne safe and help her grow into her power. Now then, I believe I've stayed long enough. I'll leave you dies to discuss aodations. Expect additional guards and tutors to arrive in a week or two. Until then, ne's safety will rely entirely on the force you have here, Edna."

  "I will do everything in my power to protect her," Edna replied, bowing to the prince.

  "I know you will. It leasure meeting you ne. I look forward to spending time with you again iure."

  ?Thank you for everything, Prince Edmond.?

  eri