Chapter 94


    #94 The News from the Pce


    It took a couple more weeks for everything to be ready and the first samples to be sent to the frontlines.


    Eventually, Cassandra and Missandra hade up with little boxes, in two sizes: one that could fit in a


    pocket and be carried by any soldier, and a bigger one, for the ones who could store it in their horses’


    satchels or inside a chariot. Those medical boxes included medicine to the mostmon issues a


    soldier could meet on the battlefield, from fevers torge injuries, with very little exnation. ording


    to the Captain of Kareen’s guards, even the dumbest soldier could use it with confidence. The girls had


    they needed in one nce even if they opened that box for the first time. The longest part had been to


    find how to fit everything in a tiny size, but Missandra was the one who found a way to make all the


    medicine in solid tiny and colored pills that wouldn’t be crumbled by any rude movements. Cassandra


    had toe up with the improved medicinepared to the Empire’s old ones, and Missandra would


    take care of finding how to fit them inside. They also included some bandages and little bottles of


    alcohol to disinfect, making sure the smell was not the kind that would make the men want to drink it.


    The Imperial Concubine Kareen was most helpful in gathering the resources for all that. She spared no


    expenses to have all the bandages and medicine or nts Cassandra needed to be gathered to the


    Diamond Pce, even paying for the metal the boxes were shaped in, and every worker that


    participated in theirrge-scale production.


    Soon enough, news came from the Imperial Pce that the Emperor knew of their project and would


    shoulder all the costs, which made Kareenugh. She didn’t dismiss the chests of gold bars that


    arrived in her garden the next morning, though, and even sent a personal letter to thank the Emperor.


    Cassandra could easily picture the old man jumping around upon receiving a letter from the usually so


    cold concubine…


    Even after everything was finalized, they didn’t stop producing more. The first feedbacks from the front


    were very positive, but Cassandra read every letter very carefully to see where and how they could


    improve their letter. She realized they could even send bigger containers, and the army ountants


    could spread the contents depending on the situation. However, Missandra, Dahlia, and Kareen all


    stopped her from working on that new project: Cassandra’s pregnancy was starting to be too heavy for


    her to keep working like she was.


    Hence, Cassandra was almost locked away from the next steps of the boxes preparations and found


    herself bored again. While Missandra worked hard in her stead, the sweet Dahlia stayed with her, or


    more exactly, watched her. Cassandra couldn’tin, however. Her belly was big and hindering her


    in many ways. She felt tired no matter how long she slept, and her back was aching constantly. Kareen


    gave her some hot balm to calm her pain, but even if Dahlia massaged her, it would only numb the pain


    a short while.


    The only thing Cassandra was still authorized to do was taking care of her garden, and keeping her


    correspondence with her friends from the North. All of them answered her quite fast, and she was


    happy to get some news from Nebora and the girls, or from the camp. Evin was surprisingly diligent in


    telling her everything that was going on there, including how the Red Room had evolved. They now


    had a fully dedicated team taking care of it and applying all the instructions she had left to the letter. He


    would even include some more questions from them,piling any issue they encountered for


    Cassandra to take care of from where she was. Orwen was now a full-time cksmith, and quite busy,


    but he never missed a chance to tell Cassandra about whatever happened on his side of the camp.


    The men there still called her the Lady of the Mountain, as if she had been some royalty by herself


    instead of just the Third Prince’s Concubine. He even let her know about how Shareen’smand had


    changed the camp, and how the young Anour was doing under his older sister’s harsh training. It


    looked like the youngest prince wasn’t particrly cut for the military. 2


    However, no matter how fast they all tried to send their replies to her, it would take ten to twelve days


    for the letters to be delivered, and that was a long time for Cassandra to wait. She hadn’t realized how


    the Dragon flights had modified her perceptions of distance before, but now, it was cruelly showing.


    “Lady Kareen, you called for me?” Asked Cassandra one morning.


    For once, the Imperial Concubine wasn’t interested in her brunch. Instead, she was walking in circles in


    the rooms, looking very disturbed. That didn’t look like her at all, and Cassandra immediately knew


    something was wrong. Missandra arrived behind her sister, looking as confused as she was.


    On the side, a soldier was waiting, his head lowered, probably one of her spies. Finally, Kareen sighed.


    “There is some bad news from the Imperial Pce. Prince Sephir died…”


    “What?” Eximed Cassandra, astonished. “What happened?”


    “Nothing is certain at the moment, the Emperor has closed down the Imperial Pce for an


    investigation.”


    “That doesn’t sound like something they’d do for a natural death…” whispered Missandra.


    “No, it isn’t. Either the Emperor suspects Sephir was murdered, or he wants to be sure he wasn’t.


    Either way, the Emperor will get to the root of it. I have a bad feeling about this…”


    “Do you think he could really have been…?” Asked Cassandra.


    Kareen hesitated a second, looking lost deep in her thoughts. She shrugged.


    “The timing is really off. Only two princes are in the Capital at the moment, two are at the front, and the


    fifth went back to his own Pce days before that. There is no way Opheus has anything to do with it,


    that little idiot doesn’t give a damn about bing the Emperor. The main suspects would be Vrehan,


    someone close to him or one of the other concubines…”


    “You really think one of the Imperial Concubines could be behind his death?”


    “I am not too sure. They might have thought it was a good time to get rid of him, with Kairen, Shareen


    and Anour gone, Sephir doesn’t have many allies inside the Imperial Pce. Even Opheus’ mother


    could have acted without her son’s knowledge, but those are all assumptions. I think Vrehan is


    preparing something…”


    She turned to the servant that was waiting to the side.


    “I want another report as soon as possible about this investigation. And don’t lose Vrehan or his sister


    for one second!”


    “Yes, Your Highness.”


    The solider rushed outside. Cassandra already knew Kareen had an impressivework of spies, but


    she truly had no idea how it worked, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to know either. Kareen had


    Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    probably dirtied her hands several times to protect herself and her children, and if she didn’t share


    about it with Cassandra, it meant she had no intention to.


    “Anyway,” sighed the Imperial Concubine. “We will know more about this soon… The Imperial Pce


    will have to make an official statement. This is truly too sad… Sephir wouldn’t have be an


    Emperor, but he was a smart and gentle boy. His mother would have been… Oh, poor Saphia…”


    “You knew his mother personally?” Asked Cassandra.


    “She and I got pregnant around the same time, and we both lost children. She was gentler than me,


    and way too nice. She died in childbirth, sadly.”


    Cassandra immediately thought about her own baby. She couldn’t imagine her child growing without


    her around… She had seen it many times, though. The streets of the Capital were filled with orphans


    children, too young to fend for themselves, resorting to mendicity or very to survive. Cassandra was


    well aware that, even if no one attempted to kill her, she could die from the childbirth or natural causes.


    She only hoped that, if anything happened, Kairen and his family would take care of her son…


    “Have you heard anything from the concubines, Hinue?” Asked Missandra. “Didn’t you exchange letters


    with themtely?”


    Cassandra nodded.


    “Thest letter I received was already two weeks ago, but the concubines were saying Prince Sephir


    was well… My


    remedies were helping with his Dust Disease, there was nothing rming about his current state.


    Maybe something happened since, or he had a bad crisis…”


    “Or maybe someone pulled some dirty strings,” said Kareen. “Anyway, there is no use thinking too


    much about it, it’s all in the Capital for now. Let’s see in the uing weeks what bes of it.


    However, be careful, dear. My spy also told me Phetra was getting back on her feet, and able to walk


    already.”


    “What! Already?” eximed Missandra, shocked.


    “She is of the Dragon Blood, just like Shareen. It’s not that surprising that she can heal that fast. It


    would have been more of a fuss for Kairen two throw her out the window if she’d die from this much!”


    Cassandra didn’t know if she should be happy or sad about this. She certainly didn’t like the idea of


    Phetra getting back to her old state. The Princess was definitely waiting to pay them back for what


    Kairen had done to her… She may be healed, but this kind of pain would go away so easily.


    The young concubine sighed, and after breakfast promptly eaten, she went back to her room. She


    needed to be alone for a while, and write to her Prince. She had no idea if Kairen received her letter at


    the front. She hadn’t gotten any answer from all the letters she had sent, but she was hoping he was


    only too busy to answer. Moreover, no matter if the Prince received them or not, those letters had


    be her personal therapy. Writing to Kairen every day, to let him know about what she had done


    that day, how she felt, how their baby and the dragon egg were growing, about her project of a


    medicinal box, was making her feel so much better. It was her only get away from the Diamond Pce.


    Anytime-Cassandra tried to imagine what her Prince could be doing at the moment, she imagined him


    on a throne, like the one in his tent in the North Camp, talking military strategies with some old general.


    She could only pray that he was doing fine, safe, and unharmed, and was winning this battle bit by bit.


    (8)


    The news received from Lady Kareen were all going that way, too. The Eastern Army was slowly losing


    ground to the War God’s men, and his fierce dragon. Cassandra even heard from it when she’d go to


    the markets, in the Diamond City. The locals all knew who she was and admired her a lot. Moreover,


    Cassandra never went alone, and always in a pink dress, but the merchants liked her very much. They


    were impressed to see a young concubine so graceful, gentle, and nice to the ordinary people, and


    would gift her with some extras at any given chance. Somehow, they had heard about her doings in the


    North Army Camp, too, and her nickname the Lady of the Mountain was now used here too to refer to


    her.


    Just like that, Cassandra was getting her own reputation around the Diamond City and, by herself, she


    was given some rumors of how the war was going. Some merchants would congratte her when it


    was known that the War God had freed another City. Some of the women would tell her to take care of


    herself and her baby, for when her beloved woulde back. Truth was, under Kareen’s impulse, the


    baby’s room was already ready and full. The Imperial Concubine was ready for her first grandchild and


    was overdoing it a bit, in Cassandra’s opinion. First, the nursery was way too big and full of so many


    toys for both the baby and the young dragon, it was almost ridiculous… Secondly, there were no less


    than three maids already hired to take care of her son, no matter how many times Cassandra argued


    that she wanted to take care of her son by herself, with maybe Dahlia’s help from time to time.


    However, as the weeks passed, Cassandra was slowly getting used to the idea that Kairen wouldn’t be


    able to keep his promise. The war would still be raging when her baby woulde to this world…