The Foolhardies 179 Conspiracy Theory

She strode into the room while the other two followed in her wake, and while she sat on the comfy couch in front of me, Thors closed the doors and locked us in.

"The hashas.h.i.+n is dead," Darah reported. "Someone killed him while he was being held in the dungeons…"

The implications of those words made all silly thoughts of girls vanish from my mind because that only meant one thing.

"There's a traitor in the palace…" I said, giving voice to what we were all thinking.

The uncomfortable silence that followed was all the proof I needed. After all, who else could have gone into the dungeon to silence the a.s.sa.s.sin if not someone from the Trickster Pavilion. But that led to more questions and, honestly, too many people to consider.

Although the Patriarch was beloved by many, there were also a lot of higher-ranking officials in both the court and the army who didn't believe a cripple should be leading us. Never mind that the cripple had lit the fire that began our continued and successful expansion of the central region, or that Auranos himself proved to be a leader whose inner strength surpa.s.sed his mortal body. His weakening figure irked many. It was the biggest reason why Great General Garm had so many supporters in court.

"That's why they went after Aura more than Auranos…" I realized. "The current heir to the patriarch's seat…"

I turned my gaze on Aura for the first time. She was sitting next to Darah and was gazing back at me with a look that was half curious and half anxious.

"Our enemies believe my brother will die soon…" her voice was heavy with annoyance. "They do not know how strong he truly is."

Although the rest of us in the room agreed with her about his strength, we also knew that he was slowly wasting away and the night would come when Aura would have to take his place.

"But who would have the resources to hire so many a.s.sa.s.sins, including a hashas.h.i.+n?" Thors asked.

"Hashas.h.i.+ns do not kill for gold," Darah argued. "They kill because they seek to reshape the Fayne…" she turned her knowing gaze on her niece. "Because the target given to them is one who could alter the shape they seek to create."

"Great… a.s.sa.s.sins with illusions of grandeur," I scowled.

"The question stands… who could afford them and who could benefit from them," Thors proposed.

We all knew who would benefit the most from the death of the Patriarch's family but as he was currently stuck in the Westmarch preparing for the next war, there was a chance he wasn't involved this time. Or if he was, then he had an agent here in court that did his bidding. This conclusion led me and probably everyone else to only one person.  

The dark looks we exchanged told me we were all thinking of the same fairy.

"But even if he previously supported Garm's bid for the seat, and still supports him now, the Chancellor would never openly attack the Patriarch's family," Ashley reasoned.

"Whoever said anything about doing it openly?" Darah asked with a raised eyebrow.

"a.s.sa.s.sins aren't exactly open rebellion," I added.

More silence ensued.

Just thinking that a chancellor, one of the two top officials in court, was responsible for the attempted a.s.sa.s.sination of the princess and the other guests of the Patriarch was a big, big problem.

"We'll need proof," Darah said, breaking the long silence.

"Which is where you come in, Dean," Thors added.

"I can't move in court," I began.

Both of them were looking pointedly back at me.

I sighed. "You don't want me here in court, do you?"

"Why would I need you and your gift here when I've got enough agents watching over the place?" Darah chided. "Use that big brain you like to flaunt around, boy."

Only Darah could turn a compliment into something to ridicule.

I sighed again. "You want me in the west with Garm's army finding proof for this conspiracy theory."

Darah's Grin would have been infectious if she wasn't about to ask me to do something dangerous.

"Thors," she called. "Give him the memo."

A slightly apologetic looking Thors pulled out a scroll from behind him and tossed it toward me.

I unfurled it, read its contents, and then sighed a third time.

"You guys realize the Foolhardies racked enough victories to already part of the next campaign right?" I reminded them. "I don't see a need for this drastic measure."

Ashley's curious face beside me prompted me to pa.s.s her the scroll, and she read its contents out loud.

"Per order of the Patriarch… Five-Hundred Man Commander Dean Dapper is hereby a.s.signed to…" Ashley's eyes widened as she continued to read, "as adjutant for Great General Garm under the capacity of strategic advisor…"

She turned her wide-eyed stare my way just as she tossed me back the scroll.

"Talk about throwing you into the lion's den," Ashley chuckled.

"You realize wherever I go you guys follow, right?" I corrected her.

"Garm's not going to be looking at my mug every night so I'm pretty sure I'm safe," Ashley countered.

I sighed a fourth time, one much heavier than the last. "It puts me right in his line of sight... but it might get me close enough to gather evidence..."

"Garm's not going to like this" Aura added, her face one of contemplation. "His other officers won't like having to listen to the opinion of a lowly five-hundred man commander either."

"That's why he's being temporarily promoted," Darah cut in, "into a one-thousand man commander for this campaign."

My ears perked up suddenly and I faced forward a little too eagerly. "Temporary promotion, you say?"

Darah raised an eyebrow at me. "Aurana is right… you may have achieved a bit of fame since you became a unit leader but you're still just a minnow swimming in an ocean of sharks… this promotion will make it seem like the council, and the Patriarch by extension has shown utmost fate in your ability as a strategist."

"Meaning you'll have to prove your worth if you're going to keep the rank… Otherwise, everyone's going to think this promotion is undeserved," Thors added. "Something like slaying a general like the last war, that should do the trick."

"No, that won't do," Darah said with a shake of her head.

"What? Why not?" I argued.

"You've already done that…" Darah raised two fingers. "I want two generals' heads plus recognition that a tactic you devised for the war helped in securing a victory in a battle… that's the only way I'll allow this promotion to stand."

"That on top of spying on Garm, you mean," I reminded her.

"Seems fair," Thors nodded. "Otherwise, there'd be no point giving you a strategist post in the army."

"There will be other strategists, Dean… it won't all be on you," Aura encouraged.

"Curse your own success, boy," Darah laughed heartily. "I'm expecting great things from you."

"Well," I turned my head toward my little brother, who, despite the noise Darah and Thors were making with their ridiculous laughter, was still sound asleep in his bed. "The faster I rank up the better, I guess."

They left a little while afterward with Ashley going with them. She left the basket of apples for me to eat later with Luca when he woke up.

This meant I was technically alone with Aura as Luca was still out like a light. And the atmosphere had never been more awkward.

Eventually, I found my voice and said, "Listen… about what you saw before you walked in…"

Aura shook her head and then gave me a smile that was so warm I felt like the sun was s.h.i.+ning down on me.

"Congratulations on your promotion," she said happily. "We're one step closer to our goal."

By changing the subject, Aura was telling me we didn't need to talk about something so mundane. And just like that, the awkward atmosphere was gone.

"One more step in a thousand," I chuckled.

"A journey of a thousand steps begins with one," she agreed.

---

It was two nights after the attack when the alliance was finally formalized in the Patriarch's Hall. In front of a crowd of courtiers and military officers, the two patriarchs' signed the parchment between them.

The Inquisitor was there to mediate, and afterward, to proclaim the key points in the agreement.

"The first section details a non-aggression treaty between the Starfall clan and the Trickster Pavilion which is in effect from the beginning of the alliance to a total of two years," Inquisitor Rita read from the parchment in her hand. "The second section details military cooperation between the two clans for a period of two years which includes provisions for the lending of military personal for their respective conflicts in their respective regions."

The crowd applauded her statements as it meant we had one less clan to worry about for the next two years.

"This alliance also states that neither side will conduct military operations within the regions close to the other's territories," Inquisitor Rita continued. "And other than a military pact, trade considerations are also included."

As the Inquisitor continued to read out the section of the alliance that dealt with trade and diplomacy, I began to notice the fiery glares pointed in my direction.

They had been glaring at me for a while now from the other side of Al Sheridan who was standing to my right.

I glanced back at them and said, "What now?"

Neither of them spoke, but both Verania and Dain continued to sneak icy stares at me.

"They're both just a tiny bit miffed that you got promoted before the rest of us," Al chuckled. "And there's also a possibility that we might be taking orders from you seeing as you've been transferred to a strategist post."

"b.l.o.o.d.y nepotism, I tell you," Verania remarked.

Of course, she'd think that. She knew who Aura really was after all. But if she only knew why we were being moved, perhaps then she and Dain might pity me.

"Congratulations by the way," Al said smiling.

He offered me his hand, but when I took it, I felt him tighten his grip on mine. This prompted me to look up at his face, and that's when I noticed the fiery glint in his eyes too.

"I'm not going to lose, Dean," he said while still smiling.

Hearing him declare his intentions, the other two glanced back at me and gave me a similar fiery stare as if to say they were also declaring they wouldn't lose to me.

Man, it was good to have rivals. It really got the blood pumping.

I gazed back at each of them in turn, a grin slowly growing on my lips, and said, "Bring it on."