"Isolde, you will go to the kingdom of Regium Aeternum."
"Yes, my queen."
"The prince contacted us with a plan against his sister. In exchange, he offers certain advantages once he becomes king."
"Although his thoughts are… questionable, we can use that to our advantage, to weaken the kingdom from within, even if it takes time."
"You mean… through food?"
"Yes."
"Very well, I shall do it, my queen."
The queen dismissed me.
When I left the kingdom, I took a few of my most trusted handmaidens for this mission.
Upon arrival, the prince was already there.
"Welcome, Lady Isolde."
"Thank you for receiving us, Prince."
After a few polite greetings, we got straight to business.
"Here is the contract: you help me completely destroy my sister—keeping her alive—and in exchange, once I become king, you'll receive land adjoining your kingdom, Célarion."
"Very well. We accept."
I read the contract, and everything was written clearly, no traps.
"I will go see the princess directly."
"Yes, go see her. Our plan will unfold over several months."
"Mhm."
Before visiting the princess, I first went to see the merchant building I would use over the next few years for the queen's plan.
The building is large. It only has one floor, but it's quite long, built on a stone foundation. The ground floor walls are stone, the roof sloped and covered in slate tiles. Thick wooden beams support the framework, visible once inside. The windows are small and few in number.
After inspecting it, I went to see the princess. A woman of average height, with yellow hair styled to the side in a loose braid. Her eyes were blue like jewels.
Contrary to what is said, though a bit arrogant, she isn't truly evil.
The contract was done quite simply… To be honest, too simply. She agreed. And now that it's settled, I only need to exchange money for exclusive financial rights within the kingdom.
I simply left. Days turned into months, and I saw many things—so many that I began to wonder if my eyes were still working properly.
Plenty of opportunities to make money appeared, only to turn out to be complete garbage.
But I found a technique to avoid mistakes: I simply have my choices validated by my handmaidens. Thanks to that, I hardly make any errors now.
But soon, a woman named Elysia came to work as a handmaiden in my business.
That woman gave me subtle looks, light touches… and even played music—a tune I adore.
But I saw her training diligently—with the sword, with painting, and with her lute.
I couldn't help but watch her. I love women who are passionate and diligent like that. My past partners were like that too… but once we were together, or once they got rich, they changed.
Elysia intrigues me, but I hope she won't be like that...
Our touches became more frequent. Our eyes met often as well.
One time, she even walked in on me while I was discussing a sale with one of my clients—Mirelia!
She's just too cute, that girl…
Later that same day, outside, I took her hand and led her to the main hall of the shop. There, she asked me if she could play the lute, and I agreed, simply because the day was ending.
I sat down by a window, reading a book. My thoughts wandered, accompanied by the music. But my focus on the book soon vanished, as Elysia played one of the tunes I love dearly.
My eyes turned to her. My expression softened, my eyes narrowed slightly, a smile rose to my lips—a gentle smile.
Our gestures toward each other became more and more frequent. We hold hands when we're alone, and Elysia loves to give me kisses on the cheek—those soft, sweet things.
One evening, under a full moon, Elysia was playing her lute, offering a gentle atmosphere as I read over my reports.
"Isolde..."
"Yes?"
"I have something to tell you. May I?"
"Of course."
"I love you."
I looked at Elysia, my eyes widening slightly in surprise. Then they narrowed, and my lips curled into a soft smile.
"I love you too, Elysia."
Our faces moved closer. Our lips brushed before we kissed. Our tongues danced together. I was more proactive, and Elysia was gentler.