Soleah slowly panned over the trio in the room. They all would be crucial parts of removing Lira and the entirety of the council.
While removing her would cripple their spy networks, it did not mean much when those networks were already compromised.
Who knows what kind of lies she had fed us?
Their kingdom depended on the information that Lira delivered; thus, the seat of the 'Snake' had carried great weight in any decision that was made. For over two centuries, Lira had made sure that Elves could learn and outmaneuver their enemies.
"Lucia, what is discussed here can never be told to anyone. Do you understand?" She smiled warmly at Lucia, yet underneath that smile, she hid a threat.
The girl nodded while she sweated slightly. She had respected Soleah far too much to disrespect a direct order. "I understand your majesty, you have my word!"
The elven queen nodded in a satisfied manner. "Good, I can tell you have potential."
Lucia's eyes widened; she had just been praised by one of the monarchs of her home. She had to prove herself worthy of it now.
"I will not fail you, your majesty!" Lucia saluted.
"I know you will not."
"Soleah, tell me your plan." Aqua leaned forward and spoke in a tone of dissatisfaction. Azure was in danger for no reason other than whatever Soleah was planning, which made the woman drop slightly in her eyes.
Sheira raised her hand, "Come on, Aqua. Mom would never put anyone in needless danger."
"My Shei speaks truth, as long as Lira is able to manipulate us while also being legitimate in the eyes of the people, we are all in danger." Soleah closed her eyes as she leaned back slightly.
"Why do you seem so set on doing things according to the protocol instead of eradicating Lira?"
"Dear, I am aware you can turn her to ash with a flick of your wrist, but for one, we cannot rely on you to solve all our issues," She raised one finger.
Aqua's eyes widened. She is serious. I can't believe it. Despite this being what she wished for from people, that they do not attempt to exploit her, she truly wished to help the girls out of her own will.
"I do appreciate it, but what about Azure? I hate that she might be in danger because of this plan of yours."
At this point, Aqua had abandoned the false illusion that she did not care. Sun God had convinced her that it was detrimental to her to pretend, and thus she decided to show her genuine care for her new friends.
"If even a hair is missing from her head, I want you to personally show me why I felt dread when I gazed upon you."
Aqua exhaled loudly. "Sure, I will give you a chance."
"Thank you so much, dearie!" Soleah grabbed Aqua's hand and pinned it to her chest. "Once council is denounced, Lira is all yours."
Aqua's ears twitched, and her face turned slightly red, "I will deal with her…"
"I will not object to anything you do to her. And I mean it truly." Soleah let go of Aqua's hand and smiled.
"Now, I need to tell you what I managed to learn." The queen brought her hand to her chin and leaned slightly forward. "She plans to paint Azure as a traitor. Why you may ask?"
Trio nodded.
"In short, it is to crumble our morale. Can you imagine if someone celebrated as the pinnacle of Elven martial power betrayed us?"
"An absolute catastrophe." Sheira tilted her head slightly as she tapped her cheek
"That is merely a part of it, but tell me, is there anything else that could become an even bigger issue?"
The silence reigned for a solid minute before Lucia raised her hand.
"Go on, Lucia."
"Isn't Lady Azure one responsible for training most of our nation's military?"
"Bingo, Lucia, you seem to be quite knowledgeable." Soleah smiled before she turned her head to Aqua.
"And, I guess you can guess what that means."
The heroine nodded, "At best, you will have the entire army questioning why someone like Azure betrayed you, and at worst, rebellion."
"All that while in an ongoing war with the savages." Soleah crossed her arms, "Lira is trying to weaken us, but we do not know for what purpose, considering she likely… no, almost certainly works for Red Dawn."
Aqua groaned slightly, "I am not that good with intrigue. I guess I can leave it to you to do whatever you need to."
Soleah let out a soft chuckle, "To think there is something you aren't good at."
"Most of my problems were dealt with superior firepower." She awkwardly rubbed the back of her head.
"Some problems require finesse instead of power." Soleah giggled.
"I understand, it is the sole reason I am staying my hand."
"And I am incredibly thankful, name your reward after this, perhaps Azure's hand… Maybe even my Shei~"
"Mom!"
"Kidding."
Aqua couldn't help but smile. It was always so lively with her new friends that she could truly set her mind away from the usual self-destructive tendencies.
Her eyes wandered to Lucia, who still sat as straight as a branch. Despite being welcomed as a comrade, she believed herself to be lesser.
Soleah clapped her hands. While the chatting was healthy and well deserved, it truly was not the time to do so. The Queen had the duty to her people to remove a parasite that was the council and establish proper spy networks.
While most of the time, the removal of the spymaster would cause a process of assigning and taking over the spy networks the previous spymaster had established, however, Lira had proven herself far too dangerous.
It meant that every network she and her husband had was corrupted and riddled with sickness that was Lira's influence or magic.
Once Lira's plot had been dismantled and the council dissolved, Soleah would have to work herself to the bone to establish information networks in the beastman kingdom and possibly the Red Dawn.
Lira had reassured them that the spies who were sent to Red Dawn were safe; however, she now doubted it.
The magic that manipulated the mind was as dangerous as it was handy.
"Aqua, do you think that personnel we sent to Red Dawn are alive?"
Aqua shook her head. The likelihood they were alive was great; however, that was a curse when it came to the Kingdom of Red Dawn. They are likely enslaved.
She clenched her fist. "Unfortunately, while they are likely alive, their minds are likely shattered, and they are enslaved to some human. We cannot save them without reversing time."
Soleah slumped down. "Is that so… It's such a shame." A small tear formed at the corner of her eye. She had loved all her subjects, yet Lira had caused the fate worse than death for so many.
For a moment, the silence reigned in Aqua's bedroom before Soleah spoke once more. "Let's move away from such a grim topic and speak about what to do with Lira."
The other three girls nodded.
"She is likely to approach my husband to gather the council." She frowned, "I can put my honor on the possibility of her attempting to blame me for Azure's betrayal, which would, in her mind, discredit me."
"That is impossible, your majesty! You are an ideal monarch!" Lucia stood up and shouted.
The trio all stared at the girl.
For a moment, she seemed not to react, but soon her face turned bright red and her ears slumped, "Sorry! I didn't mean to!"
"Lucia… you are adorable. Once this is over, we can see about getting you a better work position."
The young maid's eyes widened in surprise, "It really is not necessary! I like my job!"
Soleah brought her hand before her mouth, "We will see. I know you were trying very hard to prove yourself."
Lucia's ears twitched as she slumped down. "Sure…"
The queen nodded before she continued, "My plan is as follows: once Lira inevitably tries to discredit me and Azure, I will bring forth evidence of all her wrongdoings… and this." Her hand disappeared inside her dress before she retrieved the vial of heartstopper poison.
Her grin widened, "Such a shame that Lira, the Spymaster and the one who sits in the seat of Snake, had attempted to poison Sheira's attendant."
Lucia reeled back in surprise while Aqua and Sheira merely nodded along.
"And with this fortunate proof, we also have a witness in Lucia… and it will make it incredibly easy to pin the blame for Azure's disappearance on Lira too."
She let the silence settle for a moment.
"Of course, I will tell my husband beforehand. No matter how much Lira attempts to seduce him or influence him, she will never be able to do so." She smiled wryly, "And if she did manage to do so… well, he knows what will happen."
Soleah turned to Lucia and then to Aqua, "You two, please continue as you did. Lucia, continue with your duties, and…" She turned to Sheira. "Shei, come with me."
"Sure, Mom." Sheira jumped from the bed and bowed before Aqua, "See you later, mommy~"
Lucia stood up and gave a deep bow before following after the royals; the experience she just had left her speechless.
Aqua smiled as the trio slowly left her room.