Chapter 159: Stalking Shadow

"He needs to understand that he can’t just put me in a box whenever he gets scared."

Seraphina slowly pulled her hand back from beneath Lysandra’s.

She reached out, carefully picking up a clean linen napkin, and dabbed the corners of her mouth with aristocratic precision.

She wasn’t just throwing a tantrum.

She was executing a necessary strike to correct a fatal flaw in Kaelus’s parenting methodology.

She was establishing a boundary.

But establishing boundaries was exhausting, and the smell of the breakfast food was now actively making her nauseous.

Seraphina hopped off the tall chair, her white, sun-embroidered dress swishing around her knees. The pink ember-puppy, Ignis, immediately jumped down after her, letting out a confused little yip.

"I am no longer hungry," Seraphina announced formally, offering a polite, miniature curtsy to the Archduke and Duchess. "Thank you for the meal, Auntie Lysa, Uncle Leo. If you will excuse me, I am going to the library."

Without waiting for a dismissal, Seraphina turned on her heel and marched out of the dining hall, the tiny fire-spirit trotting loyally at her heels. Her plate of exquisite food was left completely untouched.

As the heavy doors closed behind the tiny Sovereign, Archduke Leonidas Valen stared at the empty chair, then at the untouched plate of sausage.

Leonidas’s thick, red eyebrows knitted together in a frown.

"By the blazing hells," Leonidas muttered, shaking his head in absolute bewilderment. "Like father, like daughter. They both just dramatically storm out and leave perfectly good meat on the table. It is a crime against butchery! That is a premium spiced boar link!"

PINCH.

"OW, OW OW! LIGHT PRESERVE ME, LYSA!" Leonidas roared, violently flinching as Duchess Lysandra reached over and ruthlessly pinched the sensitive cartilage of his left ear, twisting it with surprising, lethal force.

"You have two ears, Leonidas," Lysandra hissed, her beautiful face transformed into a mask of terrifying, wifely menace. "I strongly suggest you begin using them to listen to the emotional undercurrents of the room, rather than the sound of your own chewing! A family is fracturing under our roof, and you are mourning for a sausage!"

"I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I am emotionally invested! Release the poor ear, Lysa!" Leonidas wailed, tapping the mahogany table in frantic submission.

***

Outside the dining hall, the situation was rapidly deteriorating into a state of full-blown, military-grade panic.

The Vanguard of the North, the most elite, terrifying, blood-soaked strike force in the Empire, was currently huddled together in an adjacent stone alcove, sweating profusely, completely unable to handle the psychological warfare radiating from their Liege Lord.

"What do we do?" Sir Gallahan whispered frantically, pacing back and forth, biting the thumbnail of his pristine white glove. "The Little Sovereign has initiated a total communications blackout! The Archduke is currently standing in the courtyard, staring at a wall! He has been staring at the same brick for twenty minutes! The structural integrity of his soul is collapsing!"

"We must intervene," Sir Lucas grunted, crossing his arms, his scarred face twisted in deep anxiety. "If this cold war continues, His Grace’s ambient mana will freeze the entire fortress. The local servants are already wearing winter coats indoors. We must distract the Lady. We must procure a peace offering."

"I will go find a bear," Sir Boris declared immediately, his single eye wide with desperate resolve. "I will go into the mountains, I will wrestle a dire-bear, and I will bring her the cub. Children love fuzzy things. The pink dog is insufficient."

"Boris, no!" Lucas snapped, grabbing the giant by the shoulder. "No more wildlife! The Duke will kill you! We must use logic!"

For the next three hours, the knights attempted to break the ice.

When Seraphina settled into the Obsidian Gate’s ancient library, sitting on a plush rug with a picture book about volcanic geology, the Vanguard launched their offensive.

Sir Gallahan literally cartwheeled into the room, juggling four flaming daggers provided by a local mage, offering a bright, dazzling smile. "Behold, My Lady! A display of southern dexterity!"

Seraphina didn’t even look up from the page. She slowly, deliberately turned the page of her book with a loud, crisp crinkle, her face an impenetrable mask of boredom.

Gallahan’s smile shattered. He dropped the daggers, which clattered pathetically to the stone floor, and crawled out of the library on his hands and knees, weeping silently into his cape.

Sir Boris tried next. He brought in a tray of the most sugary, vibrant, artificially colored treats he could find in the city, offering them with a hopeful, pleading grunt.

Seraphina simply picked up the pink ember-puppy, held it in front of her face as a shield, and said, "Ignis is allergic to food dyes." Boris retreated, his massive shoulders slumped in defeat.

But the true tragedy of the day was not the failure of the knights.

It was the pathetic, agonizing degradation of Duke Kaelus von Nacht.

The terrifying Reaper of the North, the warlord who made Emperors sweat, had been reduced to a silent, stalking shadow.

For the entire day, Kaelus followed Seraphina.

He didn’t approach her.

He didn’t speak to her.

He was terrified that if he opened his mouth, she would explicitly, verbally banish him from her presence, and that would be a killing blow he could not survive.

So, he maintained a strict distance of exactly fifteen feet.

When Seraphina walked through the indoor gardens to look at the fire-lilies, Kaelus stalked behind her, hiding his body behind a relatively thin, decorative trellis. Whenever she stopped, he stopped, instantly freezing in place like a gargoyle.

If she happened to turn her head slightly in his direction, Kaelus would avert his gaze, suddenly acting as if the ceiling architecture was the most fascinating thing he had ever witnessed in his entire life.

His violet eyes were wide, round, and swimming with a deep, bottomless pool of guilt. He looked exactly like a puppy that had just been yelled at for chewing up a favorite rug.