Chapter 13: Games in the Shadows
The Capital Was Not a Place for Love
In the 22nd century, love had no place in politics. And yet, that's exactly what Sher Wolter was forced to protect.
As the airship descended into the glowing capital of Karsia, neon lights danced below like a siren's call — hiding the vultures that waited beneath.
Cenric Vane wasn't finished.
And Sher knew it.
---
### A Meeting of Wolves
The Summit Hall was cold — glass floors, towering metal vines curling up the walls, and a circular table filled with the most dangerous minds in the country.
Senators.
Military heads.
Corporate lords.
And Sher Wolter — the silent storm in a midnight-black suit, eyes sharper than knives.
"Wolter," one of them sneered. "Heard you let your little wife speak for you now."
A flicker of a smile. "Only when I need someone who's better at taking down enemies without blood."
Laughter. Tension.
But Cenric wasn't in that room.
He was deeper — in the shadows of boardrooms, leaking documents, twisting narratives.
And Sher was playing a game where one wrong move could destroy everything he had built… and loved.
---
### Meanwhile… Back at the Mansion
Hana stood in the Wolter garden wearing one of Sher's oversized black shirts and fuzzy combat boots Mira made just for her. She looked like a chaotic empress.
Klein walked up, flinching. "You're going to war?"
"Emotionally," Hana said with a deep sigh. "I'm going to clean Sher's office."
"…oh."
Everyone in the mansion knew Sher's office was a sacred zone. Entering it without a death wish required Sher's permission — or Hana's bold recklessness.
As she dusted the hundreds of files and glowy AI tabs, her hand paused over a small locked drawer.
A thin black bracelet peeked out from the corner. Hana tugged it.
*It was hers.*
Not just any bracelet — it was one she lost five years ago, on the night before her wedding. The one she cried over for hours.
Why… did Sher keep it?
Why was it hidden?
And why did it still smell faintly of vanilla and danger?
She sat back on his office chair, stunned.
"Mira," she whispered, "How long has this been here?"
Mira chirped awkwardly. "That drawer was last opened… 1,843 days ago."
Her heart stuttered.
So Sher had been hiding pieces of her, cherishing things silently, for *years*.
And never said a word.
---
### Back to the Capital — The Trap
Sher stood in the Grand Council as a sudden broadcast flickered on every screen.
> "Sher Wolter allegedly forged pre-marriage contracts with Hana Chorl's family before she came of legal age — a violation of Federation Law."
The room exploded.
Whispers. Accusations.
Sher's jaw clenched.
Cenric was pushing *that* card now.
He didn't need facts — just doubt.
Sher didn't flinch. Instead, he calmly placed a datachip on the table and tapped it.
> *Recording:*
> "...We won't force her. I want her to choose me. If she doesn't… I'll never marry."
It was Sher's voice.
A private meeting with Hana's father.
And it was real.
"Careful who you call a liar," Sher said coldly. "I only manipulate people who deserve it."
---
### Interruption at Midnight
Hana sat by the window when the security alert chimed.
A visitor. At midnight.
Mira flickered nervously. "It's… Naomi Reeve."
Hana's heart dropped.
Her *fake best friend*.
The woman who had betrayed her in the past — and was now standing at her gate in a perfectly tailored coat, holding flowers.
For a second, Hana wanted to ignore it.
But troublemakers never turned away trouble.
She opened the gates.
"Naomi," she said with a tight smile. "What a surprise."
Naomi smiled sweetly. "I just heard what the capital is saying. I thought you might need… a friend."
Liar.
But Hana tilted her head. "Then come in. Let's talk about betrayal over tea."
Game on.
---
**"A king doesn't fall to a sword. He falls to whispers."**
That's what Sher muttered before leaving the mansion.
The capital had summoned him — a sudden political summit regarding the defense coalitions. But both he and Hana knew the real reason: Cenric. The snake wasn't finished yet.
Sher dressed in obsidian-black formals, tall and unreadable. His silver cufflinks bore the Wolter crest. Hana leaned against the doorframe, arms folded, an exaggerated yawn escaping her lips.
"Try not to declare war on your way out."
Sher smirked. "Try not to blow up the house while I'm gone."
"I make no promises."
---
### The Cold of Absence
Sher's hovercraft left a trail of glowing rings in the sky. Mira floated beside Hana, flickering nervously.
**Mira:** "Mistress, are you… feeling sad?"
"Sad?" Hana scoffed. "Please. The house is finally quiet."
But an hour later, she was in Sher's library.
Two hours later, she was in his closet.
Three hours later, she'd eaten all his favorite chocolate-covered grapes and claimed it as 'revenge snacking.'
By the time night fell, she found herself lying across his side of the bed, staring at the ceiling.
Ugh. She missed the idiot.
---
### A Guest With Golden Eyes
At midnight, the mansion gates buzzed. Klein was asleep. Mira hesitated.
Then Hana's voice cracked through the intercom: "Open it."
A man stepped through the entry hall. Tall. Dark. And eyes like golden glass — gleaming with too much knowledge.
"Cenric sent me," he said with a smile. "But I'm not his friend."
Hana narrowed her eyes. "That's comforting."
The man bowed slightly. "I'm Dr. Felix Roan. Strategic analyst. And I think your husband's in danger."
---
### The Deal in the Dark
Felix laid it out clearly. Cenric wasn't just spreading rumors. He was orchestrating a quiet political coup — rallying old royalists and sabotaging Sher's seat on the Board of Dominance.
"He'll never touch Sher face-to-face," Felix said. "He'll just let the weight of scandal, doubt, and board votes crush him."
Hana's fingers tightened on the glass of water in her hand.
"I need access to Wolter's internal archives," Felix said. "I can help clear Sher's name."
Hana tilted her head. "And why should I trust you?"
Felix smiled. "Because I hate Cenric more than you do."
"Hmm. Tempting. But I've never trusted pretty faces with smooth words."
"You married one."
"I married a blunt weapon, not a velvet dagger," she said flatly.
Felix grinned wider. "Then let me be your dagger."
---
### When Wolves Aren't Watching
Hana knew what she was doing might cause a political quake. Giving a stranger — even one with secrets — access to the Wolter vaults wasn't small.
But Sher would have done worse for her.
She left a single message on her private channel, encrypted only the way Sher would understand:
> **"If you're playing with wolves, don't expect me to be a lamb. I bite too."**
She couldn't say she missed him.
She couldn't say she loved him.
But she could fight for him in silence — her way.
---
### Meanwhile: The Capital's Poisoned Tables
Sher sat in a room of power — men and women whose words controlled armies.
Cenric stood across the marble circle, a charming serpent in navy silk.
"Sher Wolter," he said smoothly, "is no longer objective. He's compromised by love."
Sher didn't flinch.
But deep down, his rage burned cold.
They were turning his strength — Hana — into a weakness.
---
### A Shadowed Alliance
Back at the mansion, Hana and Felix dug deeper.
One hidden file. One erased record. One trail that pointed to *exactly* what Cenric feared most.
"Got him," Felix whispered.
But just as he handed her the drive — the lights flickered.
Then a shot rang out.
Hana ducked.
Someone had breached the Wolter estate.
---
### Wolf's Return
Hours later, blood on his sleeve and fury in his heart, Sher stormed into the mansion.
He found Hana standing barefoot in the center hall, holding a disarmed blaster in one hand and the data drive in the other.
"You're early," she said.
"You're bleeding," he said.
"I had it under control."
He reached her in two steps, yanked her into his arms.
"You drive me insane," he murmured into her hair. "You're a lunatic."
"You're the one who married me."
"I should've locked you in the vault."
"I *live* in your head rent-free, that's enough."
He pulled back and looked into her eyes, softer now.
"You didn't have to fight for me."
"I didn't," she said. "I fought for *me*. You just happened to be attached."
Sher smirked, lifting her off the ground.
"You heartless little liar," he whispered.
"I know," she smiled, resting her head on his shoulder.
And for once, they said nothing more.