The royal servant, following her majesty's orders, brought the book and the letter that the envoys had sent.
The Earth Queen had decided to cut some of her time and not meet with her friends early, to see what was going on.
After all, she had been promised that she could get an infinite army of airbenders, provided that they got the mutant airbender, by her scientist.
She had sent the envoys to investigate Tarrlok, why he had failed to bring the airbender, and see if they could do anything.
"I'm reading the letter," the servant cleared his throat and began to read. "Your Majesty. It brings us great shame to inform you that one of us died while retrieving the book that Tarrlok said contains heresy directed at you.
"We believe, through our investigation, that Detective Akashi had gotten secretive information about the book and Tarrlok through a leakage from the royal palace. We believe that the writer followed their assumption, given that Tarrlok himself admitted that his backstory is true in that book, only that it says lies about your majesty. Their names are…"
The eight agents, not only did they kill the ninth agent to preserve their lives from reading the book,
But they had given some credit to their enemies and rivals within the royal palace, trying to manipulate her majesty.
"Hmm…. Seeing them talk about this book so badly makes me very curious…" the Earth Queen muttered. "But for my envoys to think that there's a leakage within the palace and working with the enemy that I want to kidnap. That's a very serious crime, and it deserves a death penalty. Don't you think so?"
The servant bowed deeply, his forehead drenched in sweat. He said, "I thank your majesty for blessing us with her wisdom."
The Earth Queen narrowed her eyebrows. She may be cruel, but she wasn't stupid. She had managed to stay on the throne despite the internal conflicts and the powers that wanted to take her down, while keeping the kingdom safe and people's bellies full. She knew that the palace feared her. And she knew that the eight agents had read the book, and they were the ones to kill the ninth, and now they were trying to use her to frame others so they could rise through the ranks.
'Trying to use me, the Queen, to get rid of their enemies. They are too lucky that they died. There's no point in killing three generations of their family, as they wouldn't know the feeling when they're dead.'
She extended her hand to the servant. "Get me the book."
Although she had made her assumption, the cruel queen had to consider every possibility and eliminate every threat.
She'd read the book, and she'd determine how much had truly been leaked.
If Tarrlok had said that he'd confirmed the details of the book himself, and if there's a real resemblance to reality, she would take action and kill the people the dead agents accused.
After all, it's better to have no enemies than having a potential enemy at all, even if they were innocent.
The servant approached her and gave her the book.
"Did you read it?" she asked.
"I wouldn't dare to do so without your permission, your majesty," he said.
"You can leave for now," she shooed him.
He turned and walked quickly, sighing in relief when he got out of the main door.
——————
The old queen grabbed the book with her wrinkled fingers, and she opened it, feeling so curious about what might be in there.
She had begun to read.
The story started with a bang. A bloodbender, almost managing to kill the Avatar.
That story seemed too real to verify the claim, 'this is a work of pure fiction.'
She kept reading.
Fair enough, it continued, revealing the backstory of Tarrlok.
She had known Tarrlok and Yakone for some time, as both had been her way to have influence in Republic City and have eyes and ears inside it. And she had known their backstories for some extent, through her Dai Lee agent investigations.
'Okay. The writer knows how to write. His writing style is quite direct and there is no hint of trying to appear noble through exaggerated words. Unlike most of the fools in the palace, he focuses more on making his intention clear than making his writing seem beautiful. The fools should learn. They make me read the reports many times to understand their intention.'
Of course, in old times, the writing was more likely aristocratic. From the era Akashi came, using such language would make him feel like an insecure person. His style seemed quite refreshing here.
"Not bad… Not bad… I got entertained for a moment," she nodded as she continued flipping the pages. She reached the part where she had commissioned Tarrlok to kidnap Akashi. And such information could only be leaked through a few in her palace.
There seemed to be a possibility of inner leakage. The envoys may have had said some truth.
Then she paused.
One of the things she had liked about the book was the usage of drawings. It helped stimulate imagination and immerse herself.
But then, there it was. Tarrlok with a mole, and her, with silver hair, pegging Tarrlok.
She had thought about Tarrlok's reaction for a second.
And she was almost amused.
She didn't mind appearing like a strong ruler who pegged a bloodbender. It was obvious that this book was to piss off Tarrlok.
But as she turned it, her eyes bulged.
Sex scenes about her getting gang-banged by the Dai Lee, acting like a whore who craved for big cocks, small cocks, and any cock.
She was already old, and she wasn't married.
Yet, she wasn't the type of person who denied herself anything she desired.
When she had desired her father's pet as a meal, she ate it. When she desired sex, she got it.
The thing is…. Such an event with the Dai Lee had happened and was still happening. But everyone who had known about it had already been buried deep.
And it was exaggerated, making her appear like a submissive whore.
Her chest tightened, and for a second, she was unable to breathe. Her teeth produced a sound as they clenched against each other.
"That motherfucker! Daring to make me appear like a whore!" she yelled loudly. At the same time, she felt relieved that such a book was retrieved from the evidence archive before it was too late.
"Send an order to the Republic City. For killing my men, Akashi should be brought for a trial in the Earth Kingdom. Otherwise, it's war," she said, fully desiring to peg Akashi before donating him to science.
Another man, a consoler, who stood by the side, hearing her order, bowed and said, "Your majesty. We can't do that. It's already been confirmed that our men had died by a waterbender."
"That motherfucker has definitely planted evidence on them," she said. She didn't know if it was the truth. But her hatred, desire to get him, made her say any bias that came to her mind.
"It will cause a diplomatic incident with other nations, your majesty. The Fire Lord, and the Poles wouldn't stand aside. Besides, he's considered a national treasure and the one who could repopulate the air nation. We'll find a very difficult time getting him."
"Tsk…. Is there anything we can do?" she asked.
"Yes, there is," he replied.