The dawn light crept shyly through the gaps in the velvet curtains of Seraphina's room, illuminating the old journal belonging to her late mother that still lay open on her lap. Rei had not slept all night. Her bloodshot eyes stared at the rows of script written in yellowing ink, trying to absorb every emotion and clue left by the woman who had once held the position of "Mother" to this body.
Sera exhaled, feeling a throbbing sensation behind her eyes. The original Seraphina's memories were beginning to merge with Rei's consciousness, but the process felt like being forced to swallow shards of glass. Sharp and agonizing.
"Argentos blood is not just liquid," Sera murmured, repeating the final sentence in the journal.
She rose from the bed, ignoring the weakness in her legs. Since the incident in her father's study last night and her brief confrontation with Alaric, Sera realized she could no longer remain idle in her room under the guise of "recovery." Alaric knew something, and he was the most dangerous variable in her current equation.
Sera walked toward the full-length mirror in the corner of the room. She shed her fur cloak, leaving only a thin nightgown. In the mirror, she saw the figure of a fifteen-year-old girl who looked utterly fragile. Her skin was as pale as snow, her silver hair disheveled, and her clear blue eyes reflected a deep aura of sadness—an aura belonging to the original Seraphina that had not yet fully vanished.
However, as Rei took full control, the gaze in those eyes transformed. Cold, tactical, and predatory.
"Let us see how much power you are hiding, Seraphina," she whispered.
Sera closed her eyes, attempting to summon the Ghost Aura. She searched for the center of energy within her chest, something that felt both freezing and burning. Suddenly, her heart hammered. Dark shadows began to creep from her toes, crawling up her calves, thighs, until they enveloped her entire body.
The thick black aura was not only visual; it dropped the temperature in the room so drastically that frost formed on the surface of the mirror. Sera felt her strength multiply. Her hearing sharpened; she could hear the heartbeat of a servant walking in a distant corridor, she could feel the airflow behind the walls.
But the price was steep.
Cough!
Sera coughed violently. Fresh blood dripped onto the pristine white marble floor. A sensation like being seared by fire raced along her veins. She immediately severed the flow of the aura before she could lose consciousness. Her body slumped to the floor, trembling uncontrollably.
On her left wrist, the black stain that had been faint yesterday had now thickened and lengthened slightly. It was the hourglass of her life. Every time she summoned the "Ghost," her remaining lifespan burned away as fuel.
"One year... maybe two if I am not careful," Sera wiped the blood from her lips with the back of her hand. "Time enough to destroy an empire."
"My Lady? Are you awake?" Elara's soft voice came from behind the door.
Elara was Sera's personal maid, young—only seventeen years old. She had an innocent face with freckles on her cheeks, but Sera knew the girl had hidden talents. Elara was an orphan picked up by Duke Frederick from the capital's streets. Her loyalty to the Argentos was unquestionable, but more importantly to Sera, Elara had incredibly nimble hands when it came to pickpocketing or picking locks.
"Come in, Elara," Sera answered, quickly hiding her mother's journal under the pillow.
Elara entered carrying a breakfast tray, but her steps halted when she saw Sera sitting on the floor, deathly pale. "My Lady! Did you fall again? Heavens, I'll call Madam Rose—"
"Do not call anyone," Sera interrupted sharply. Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried an authority that froze Elara in place. "Come here."
Elara approached, trembling. Sera reached out and grabbed the maid's hand, pulling her down until Elara was kneeling before her.
"Are you loyal to me, Elara?" Sera asked, her eyes locking onto the girl's.
"O-of course, My Lady! The House of Argentos is everything to me."
"Good. Because from this day on, you are no longer just a maid who brings tea," Sera lowered her voice to a thin whisper. "I need ears outside this castle. You know the slums on the outskirts of the Argentos territory? The places where veteran soldiers often spend their time?"
Elara nodded hesitantly. "That place is dangerous, My Lady. Your father forbids anyone from the castle to go there without an escort."
"That is exactly why you must go," Sera slipped a small leather pouch filled with gold coins into Elara's apron pocket. "Find an informant named Old Man Gus. Tell him the 'Wolf Princess' wants to know about the movements of Marquis Fenris's logistics wagons in the last three days. Do not use your name, do not wear this uniform. Do you understand?"
Elara swallowed hard. She looked at Sera and, for the first time, realized her lady was no longer ill. She saw a commander issuing an operational order. "I understand, My Lady. I will depart during the servant shift change tonight."
Sera smiled thinly. "Good. If you succeed, I will teach you a way to survive that you will never find in any palace."
After Elara left, Sera spent her morning pretending to be a compliant, sickly girl. She sat in the castle garden, letting the pale sunlight touch her face while her mind was busy weaving strategies.
However, her peace was interrupted when a military aide in full uniform approached. It was Sir Kael, her father's loyal former aide who now served as the knight instructor at the estate. Sir Kael walked with a limp—his left leg had been severely injured in a past war—but his military aura remained potent.
"Lady Seraphina," Sir Kael bowed respectfully. "Duke Frederick requested that I inform you he has returned to the main barracks in the North for border inspection preparations. He asks that My Lady does not force herself out of her room if the snow begins to fall."
Sera stared at Sir Kael for a long time. Sir Kael was one of the few who truly cared for her father's safety.
"Sir Kael, did Father seem anxious when he left?" Sera asked suddenly.
Sir Kael was slightly taken aback by the question. Usually, Seraphina only cared for embroidery or poetry books. "He... is always anxious for the safety of the North, My Lady. However, lately, there have indeed been more letters from the Capital that have made his expression tense."
"Letters from the Emperor?"
Sir Kael went silent for a moment, then nodded slowly. "And from the Holy Church. It seems they are pressing the Duke to surrender a portion of the mana crystal reserves for the 'spiritual interests' of the people."
Sera clenched her fists beneath her cloak. Spiritual interests? Nonsense. They wanted to weaken Argentos' defenses before spring arrived. Without enough mana crystals, the mana cannons and the fortress heating systems at the Northern border would be completely paralyzed against outside attacks or internal sabotage.
"Sir Kael, can you help me?"
"Anything for you, My Lady."
"I want you to take me to the family's secret armory tonight. Without anyone's knowledge, including Father."
Sir Kael's face turned pale. "My Lady, that is strictly forbidden! The Duke would dismiss me if—"
"Sir Kael," Sera stood, approaching the veteran knight. Despite being much shorter, Sera's presence was overwhelming. "My father is a man who is too upright. He will walk into an abyss with his head held high for the sake of loyalty to an empire that has already betrayed him. If you truly wish to protect him, you must help me prepare the weapons he does not have."
Sera stared into the knight's eyes with the same gaze she used when leading assassin units in her previous world. A gaze that accepted no refusal.
"I am no longer the girl who only knows how to cry when she falls, Sir Kael. I am the only chance the Argentos have to remain standing when the spring snow turns red with blood."
Sir Kael was stunned. He saw a reflection of Duke Frederick in Sera, but with something sharper and darker. Something that reminded him of the legend of 'The Ghost' that haunted ancient battlefields.
"Two in the morning," Sir Kael whispered finally. "Behind the castle chapel. I will bring the spare keys."
That night, under the dim light of a moon obscured by heavy clouds, Sera slipped out. Her body felt heavy, but her resolve was an engine that kept her moving.
Behind the abandoned castle chapel, Sir Kael was already waiting. Without a word, he opened a moss-covered stone door. They descended a long spiral staircase into the belly of the earth. The air down there was damp and smelled of metal.
When the torches were lit, Sera gasped. Before her lay a vast room filled with the heirloom weapons of the Argentos family. Greatswords, mana bows, and shields plated in pure silver. But that was not what Sera was looking for.
She walked toward a corner of the room, where a long wooden chest made of jet-black wood sat. On it was an engraving of a rose entwined with thorns.
"That is the private collection of the late Duchess, your mother," Sir Kael said softly. "She came from a fallen noble family in the South who were experts in the art of silent killing. The Duke kept this here so My Lady would never have to see it."
Sera opened the chest. Inside was an array of daggers with unique designs, thin iron chains with weighted ends, and poison needles hidden within hand fans.
This was her world. These were the tools she needed.
Sera picked up two short daggers with blackened blades. As her hands touched the hilts, a foreign memory struck her consciousness.
She saw her mother sharpening these very daggers under candlelight.
"Sera, remember this," her mother's voice echoed. "An Argentos is a wolf before the people, but be a ghost before your enemies. Never let them see your blade until their necks are already severed from their bodies."
Suddenly, Sera felt the presence of someone else in the room besides herself and Sir Kael.
"Magnificent," a slow clapping sound echoed from the shadows of a pillar.
Alaric von Xerxes emerged, stepping out of the darkness with a provocative, crooked smile. He looked very much at home in this place that was supposed to be a secret.
"You truly cannot stop surprising me, Lady Seraphina," Alaric said. His eyes flickered toward the daggers in Sera's hands. "The blood-sucking daggers of the Raven family from the South. Weapons very unbecoming of a polite noble lady."
Sir Kael immediately drew his sword, shielding Sera. "Grand Duke! How did you get in here?!"
Alaric ignored Sir Kael. He kept his eyes on Sera. "This castle has more holes than your father realizes, Sir Kael. And I have a talent for finding those holes."
Sera did not lower her daggers. "What do you want, Alaric? To report me to Father? Or to the Emperor?"
Alaric laughed. "Report you? For what? Seeing you hold those daggers is far more satisfying than seeing you hold a book of poetry. It proves my theory that you are no longer the same girl."
Alaric stepped closer, ignoring the tip of Sir Kael's sword pointed at his throat. He leaned down, staring deep into Sera's eyes.
"I have an offer for you, little Ghost," Alaric whispered. "You need power to move your grand plans, and I need a reason not to be bored in this rotting empire. How about we make a deal?"
"What kind of deal?" Sera asked suspiciously.
"I will give you access to my personal spy network and the shadow army I've built in the North. In exchange..." Alaric paused, his eyes gleaming with a strange obsession. "You must let me be at the very front when you bring down Emperor Valdemar's palace. I want to see how a fragile princess destroys a throne with her own hands."
Sera went silent. This offer was incredibly tempting and equally dangerous. Alaric was a double-edged sword. If she held him wrong, she would be the one bleeding. However, without additional military force, she couldn't face ten war generals and a corrupt church at once.
Sera lowered her daggers. She looked at Alaric with a cold smile. "You know, Alaric? Deals with me are usually signed in blood. Are you sure you can pay the price?"
Alaric reached for Sera's hand, kissing the back of it with the air of a false knight, yet his eyes remained sharp. "Blood is my favorite currency, My Lady."
In that dark basement, among ancient weapons and buried secrets, an alliance that would shake the history of Aethelgard was officially formed. An alliance between the Reborn Mind and the Bloodthirsty Blade.
Their first conflict had just begun: stopping the sabotage in the mana crystal mines before winter's end. And Sera knew, this would be her first official assassination in this new world.