Yuna's POV
The summons arrives at midnight.
His Imperial Majesty requests your presence in his private study. Come alone. Now.
My hands shake as I read the note. Commander Chen delivered it himself, his expression unreadable. Don't keep him waiting, is all he says before disappearing into the shadows.
I've been in my new quarters—actual quarters, not a servant's cot—for exactly four hours since the Emperor declared me innocent. Four hours to process that I'm alive, that I have a position in the Department of Imperial Records, that somehow I survived.
Now he's summoning me. Alone. At midnight.
This is either my greatest opportunity or a very private execution.
I splash water on my face, trying to calm my racing heart. The girl in the mirror looks terrified. I force her expression to neutral. Can't show fear. Not to the Winter Dragon.
The walk to the Emperor's private study feels endless. Palace corridors are empty at this hour, just flickering lanterns and my footsteps echoing off stone. Every shadow could hide an assassin. Lady Seol's face flashes through my mind—the rage in her eyes when Kael declared me innocent.
She wanted me dead. She still does.
I reach the Emperor's wing. Two guards stand outside his study door. They search me for weapons, then knock twice.
Enter, Kael's voice commands.
The door opens. I step inside.
The Emperor's private study is nothing like I expected. No throne, no grandeur. Just a room filled with books, maps, and papers scattered across a large desk. A fire burns in the hearth. Wine sits on a side table.
And Emperor Kael stands by the window, looking out at the dark palace grounds.
He's not wearing his formal robes. Just simple black clothing that makes him look less like an untouchable ruler and more like... a man. A dangerously intelligent, devastatingly handsome man who holds my life in his hands.
Close the door, he says without turning.
I obey, my pulse thundering.
Lock it.
My hands fumble with the lock. We're alone now. Truly alone. No guards. No witnesses.
If he wanted to kill me quietly, this would be the perfect moment.
Wine? He finally turns, and those sharp eyes pin me in place.
I... Your Majesty, I don't
You just survived three days in the dungeons and a rigged trial, he interrupts, moving to pour two cups. You need wine. Sit.
It's not a request. I sit in the chair across from his desk, trying not to look as terrified as I feel.
He hands me a cup, then settles into his own chair. For a moment, we just study each other.
Up close, he's even more intimidating. Sharp features like a blade. Eyes that see everything. A mouth that looks like it forgot how to smile years ago. But there's something else too—exhaustion. Dark circles under his eyes. Tension in his shoulders.
The Emperor is tired. Bone-deep tired.
We're alone now, he says, sipping his wine. You can drop the humble servant act. I know what you are.
My stomach drops. What am I, Your Majesty?
Intelligent. Calculating. Playing a game far more complex than anyone suspects. He leans forward. The question is: are you playing against me, or for yourself?
This is a test. Everything he says, everything he does—it's all testing me.
Truth or lies? Which keeps me alive?
May I speak freely, Your Majesty? I ask carefully.
Please. I'm exhausted by people telling me what they think I want to hear.
Something in his voice—raw honesty, makes me decide. Truth then. All of it.
I'm Lady Seol's half-sister.
His eyes widen slightly. The first crack in his perfect control.
I continue before I lose my nerve. My mother was a seamstress who bore Duke Velashen's bastard child. Me. She hid me in the servant quarters, educated me in secret, loved me fiercely. When I was twelve, she discovered evidence that the Duke's legitimate family was embezzling imperial funds—your funds, Your Majesty. Before she could report it, she was murdered. Made to look like suicide.
Kael sets down his wine cup, completely focused on me now.
Lady Seol, my half-sister, took ownership of me. Forced me into servitude while erasing all proof I was family. For twelve years, I've served the woman who ordered my mother's death. Bowing. Scraping. Playing the perfect invisible maid.
While secretly planning revenge, he finishes.
While gathering evidence, I correct. Revenge is pointless without proof. So I built a network. Kitchen maids who hear nobles' private conversations. Guards who see midnight meetings. Seamstresses who find documents in pockets. Stable boys who know which nobles meet in secret. For twelve years, I've been collecting every whisper, every secret, every crime that passes through this palace.
The silence stretches. Kael stares at me like he's never seen anything quite like me before.
Then he laughs.
Actually laughs—a genuine sound of surprised admiration that transforms his entire face. For one moment, he doesn't look like the cold Winter Dragon. He looks young. Almost happy.
You've been conducting your own investigation for twelve years? He shakes his head, still smiling. While working as a maid? That's either brilliant or completely insane.
Probably both, I admit.
He studies me with new interest. Lady Min discovered Lady Seol's affair with Minister Han's son, didn't she? That's why they poisoned her.
My heart jumps. He's already figured it out.
Yes, Your Majesty. But the affair is just the surface. I believe Minister Han is building something bigger, a conspiracy against you. Lady Seol's engagement to his son isn't about love. It's political alliance. They're positioning themselves for power.
Can you prove it?
Not yet. But I can. Give me time and resources.
Kael leans back, reassessing everything he thought he knew about me. What do you want, Yuna? Really want?
Justice for my mother. Proof of Lady Seol's crimes. To destroy the family that murdered an innocent woman and stole twelve years of my life. I meet his eyes. And to make sure they never hurt anyone else again.
Revenge disguised as justice, he observes.
Is there a difference when the crimes are real?
He considers this, then makes a decision that will change everything. I'll give you something better than time and resources. I'll give you power.
My breath catches.
You'll become my personal agent, he continues. My eyes and ears throughout the palace. You'll investigate this conspiracy, report only to me, and have my full authority to question anyone below noble rank. You'll have access to restricted areas, protection from Commander Chen, and quarters near my chambers.
And in exchange?
You bring me proof of Minister Han's treason. The conspiracy comes first, Yuna. If he's planning to move against me, that threatens the entire empire. Personal revenge is secondary.
I understand what he's really saying: Serve the empire first. Your vendetta second.
Can I accept that? Can I put justice for my mother behind political necessity?
I think of Mother's voice: Knowledge is power, my darling. Use it wisely.
She'd want me to be smart. To take this opportunity.
I accept, Your Majesty.
Good. He pours more wine for both of us. One more condition. You'll take your meals in my study every evening. We'll discuss your findings, but also... He pauses, something vulnerable flickering in his expression. I want your honest counsel on palace matters. You see angles I never could. Hear things I'll never hear. I need that perspective.
What he's really saying: I'm lonely. I need someone I can trust.
The most powerful man in the empire is asking me—a former maid—to be his ally. His confidant.
It's insane. It's dangerous. It's everything I've been working toward.
As Your Majesty commands, I say softly.
He raises his cup. To unlikely alliances.
I match the gesture. To justice and empire.
We drink, and something shifts between us. We're not Emperor and servant anymore. We're two people who've survived hell, recognizing each other across a chessboard of vipers.
Now then, Kael says, all business again. Tell me everything you know about Minister Han's finances. Start with the embezzlement and work forward.
I do. For the next hour, I share details I've memorized over years. Names. Dates. Amounts. Patterns of corruption so deep they'd shock most nobles.
Kael listens, occasionally asking sharp questions that prove his brilliance. He connects dots I hadn't seen. Points out implications I missed.
We're building something together. A case. A strategy. A partnership.
Finally, exhaustion catches up with both of us. Kael rubs his eyes.
It's late. Get some rest. Tomorrow, Commander Chen will brief you on your new duties.
I stand to leave, then hesitate. Your Majesty... may I ask one question?
Yes.
Why? Why save me? Why trust me? You could have let them execute me and avoided all this political mess.
He meets my eyes, and for just a moment, his mask drops completely.
Because when they dragged you before my throne, you didn't beg. You didn't cry. You looked me in the eye and challenged me to see the truth. No one has done that in nine years. His voice softens. And because I know what it's like to lose family to court conspiracies. To spend years planning revenge while smiling at your enemies. We're the same, you and I. Survivors playing the long game.
My throat tightens with unexpected emotion.
Get some rest, Yuna, he says gently. Tomorrow, we start hunting wolves.
I bow and turn toward the door.
One more thing.
I look back.
Kael's expression is serious now. Deadly serious. Lady Seol will try to kill you again. Soon. She's too smart to let you live now that you have my protection. Watch your back. Trust no one except Commander Chen and me.
I understand, Your Majesty.
I unlock the door and step into the corridor. The guards are back at their posts, faces neutral.
As I walk back to my quarters, my mind spins with possibilities. I have power now. Resources. The Emperor's backing.
But I also have a target on my back bigger than ever before.
I'm halfway to my room when I see her.
Lady Seol stands in the shadows of a corridor intersection, watching me. Our eyes meet across the distance.
She smiles—cold and promising violence.
Then she's gone, disappearing like smoke.
I reach my quarters and lock the door, heart pounding.
A note lies on my bed. I didn't leave a note there.
With shaking hands, I unfold it.
Enjoy your victory, little sister. It won't last. You can't hide behind the Emperor forever. When you're alone—and you will be alone eventually—I'll be waiting. Sweet dreams.
The paper falls from my fingers.
She got into my room. Past guards. Past locks. She can reach me whenever she wants.
I sink onto the bed, finally allowing myself to shake.
I just became the Emperor's agent. I have more power than ever before.
But I've also declared war on people who've been killing their enemies for decades.
And somewhere in this palace, my sister is sharpening her knives.