Chương 126: Chapter 119

Talena It had been a week since the gala, and my mood had not improved. Tonight I actually went to bed with a swollen foot and a bad temper. In a fit of rage I had kicked a dresser without Aura reinforcement. Mira also refused to fix my foot with Sanatio because I had been so stupid about it. I called for a healer and she rolled her eyes. I could not help myself. No matter how I thought about it, considered it, and turned it over in my mind, I still could not make sense of what had actually happened.

Cipher, MY Cipher, whose secret identity I had imagined to be a handsome, strapping young man of appropriate age and availability and properly obsessed with me, was the Bloody Ghost of the Wastes. The GHOST of the SHUCKING WASTES. What in the hell was that. Why in the hell was Cipher actually the Ghost. Was this a joke?? Was someone playing a trick on me?? When in the actual hell did that happen? Was he replaced?? No that was dumb.

So Cipher IS the Ghost of the Wastes, a legendary freaking mercenary who had been around for over a hundred years. That meant he was an old man. That meant my destined husband was at least eighty years older than I was, if not more; probably more. That was not even the most pressing issue. Thessaly the Scion inserted herself into the mix. Who in the hell did that purple-headed twit think she was, kissing my man in front of me?? She kissed him at my gala. Without my permission. She must have lost her damn mind!!

I had never been this angry in my entire life. I needed to find the intelligence wing and figure out where the Dusk Assembly was actually located within the Nexus. Once I did, I bet I could convince the Storm Weaver to drop a monsoon on their headquarters. That was an appropriate punishment. This mercenary had the audacity to kiss my future husband in front of the entire Western Bloc and probably most of the known strata of the Nexus.

Now that it had been uploaded to the World Tree Lattice, it would be out there forever. If she were part of my court, I would have her executed. She thought she could do whatever she wanted just because she was a little bit pretty. I was way prettier than her. I was younger too. Who wanted a twenty-five-year-old when they could have an eighteen-year-old.

That olive-skinned, purple-clad woman, wearing what amounted to lingerie, had the nerve to wrap her legs around him and cling to him like some sort of demented koala. I should have stabbed her. I glared at the ceiling and took deep breaths. Sleep did not come easily to me that night. All of a sudden it was morning and Mira was drawing the curtains. She brought tea and arranged herself in the chair across from me with an expression that was determinedly professional despite failing miserably at it.

She was looking at me like you look at an advanced Expression unit about to drop a Dominion spell on an unsuspecting town. Like I was some sort of weapon of mass destruction waiting for a trigger.

"Thessaly the Scion," I said, "kissed my future husband."

"Oh wonderful, this subject again," Mira said with resignation.

"I need you to get me Commander Sloan. I need to find out where the Dusk Assembly Nexus is located. Tell my father he should start drawing up battle plans. This sort of insult cannot go unanswered. It has to do with the honor of Vera and the honor of the First Princess, Crown Princess of the Dominion of Vera. I shall be—" Mira put a hand up. I looked at her like she had lost her mind.

"Did you just put your hand up at me."

"Magnificent Princess. Yes, I just put my hand up at you." She looked at me.

"We are not having this conversation again. There is no way you actually think your father is going to let you attack the Dusk Assembly. Are you insane?" She smiled a forced sweet smile.

"I say that with all due respect, Your Highness." I glared at her through gritted teeth.

"Just saying 'all due respect,' Mira, does not make something disrespectful suddenly respectful. Respect is something you do not say."

"You said 'respect' in that sentence like five times." My face was deadpan.

"So I can't attack the Dusk Assembly. Then what, pray tell, do you expect me to do after a showing like that." She looked at me like I had lost my mind.

"I do not know. Act like a normal person. Grieve the situation and move on. You are a princess after all. There's plenty of men out there." This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Absolutely not. Cipher, the Ghost of the Wastes, whatever the bloody hell his name is, is mine. There's no way I'm letting Thessaly the Scion have him."

"You do realize he is like a thousand years old, right."

"He is only about a hundred and fifty."

"Oh, right. Because that is loads better."

"Mira, can you be helpful for once in your life." She sighed.

"Princess, you cannot attack the Dusk Assembly. Get that thought out of your head. Besides, it wouldn't actually do anything." She took a sip of her tea.

"I would have you think about this logically for just a moment, Princess. First of all, you do not even know the Ghost of the Wastes' real identity. Destroying the Dusk Assembly does not get you any closer to him. And while we're on the subject, if he is as old as you think he is, why would he be interested in an eighteen-year-old girl?" I glared at my handmaiden and best friend, stood up, and gestured. My legs. My hips. My chest. My face.

"Are you trying to tell me that a man, even an old one, would not want this. Men are still men, right? They like pretty girls." She looked at me with pure incredulity then sighed again.

"I think it is time for my quarterly bonus and to cash out my pension. I am going to retire to the countryside. And raise sheep. Yes, I'm definitely going to raise sheep." I raised an eyebrow.

"Absolutely not. You're here forever. So figure this out with me. What are we going to do about the situation."

"Can I assume you are not going to let this go."

"Absolutely not."

"Then what do you usually do when a political rival gets in your way." I considered this.

"I study them. I find their weaknesses. I press on those weaknesses, and I overcome."

"So what do you think you should do here." I snapped my fingers.

"I should wait until Thessaly leaves the Dusk Assembly, study her, find her weaknesses, and then poison her in her sleep. No, no, no, I know what I can do. This is genius. I am a genius. No wonder I am a princess. Ok picture this. I can turn her into a llama and then a flea and then put her in a box, mail her to myself, and then smash her with a hammer." There was a moment of silence. Mira stared at me.

"Are you high??? Have you been sniffing the cocainay flower again. You know what that stuff does to you, right." I shrugged. I thought it was genius. Before I could answer, she continued.

"No, Princess. You have to get to know the Ghost of the Wastes. You figure out where he is. You go to him. You study him, and then you make yourself appeal to him. You are beautiful. You are a princess. Contrary to the lunacy you were just spouting, you are also quite elegant and charming when you are not acting like a crazy person." I glared at her.

"I should really throw you in the dungeon."

"Please do. It would get me out of this madness." I sighed.

"How do I study the Ghost of the Wastes if I do not know who he is. Or even where to find him." She looked at me like I was stupid.

"Princess. What happened at the gala."

"That gauzy, purple-headed Cyber skank kissed my man in front of everyone, embarrassing me. And then my father and brother took him away and spoke to him privately, and he did not even acknowledge me afterward. I tried to speak to him about it and he completely ignored my feelings. I would even kiss him if he had just asked, but noooooo, he had to walk away looking all handsome and cool." Mira's face went blank again.

"Princess, you don't actually know if he's handsome. He's old, remember. Weren't you supposed to be the smart one in the family."

"He's handsome. I can already tell you that even if he's a bit older. Men age like fine wine, didn't you know that? And what do you mean?"

"Princess, think about it for just a moment." I grumbled and considered everything that had happened. It took me only a moment before I caught on to what Mira was saying.

"You're alluding to the fact that my husband knew her name," I said.

"There you go. Dig into that." I started to get excited.

"Thessaly obviously knew him. I cannot believe I did not think of that. He invoked the Assured Destruction Clause knowing that once he revealed his identity to her, she would back down. It seems so obvious now. There was something in how he caught her, how he put his sword away first, like he knew exactly what she was going to do. He did not look surprised when she kissed him." I said the last part through my teeth.

"There. Now you are thinking," Mira said.

"Thessaly clearly already knows something about who the Ghost of the Wastes actually is. She was surprised to see him and did not know that Cipher was the Ghost of the Wastes, but once she figured it out she was way too familiar with him to be a casual acquaintance. Consider this: we also know he was on Valecis Isle during the madness at the Northern Preserve and that business with the psycho who tried to cause the mass casualty event. Cipher was at Virex Caelum and was brought there by Aiden Vanta.

So he clearly has some connection to Aiden Vanta as Cipher. I am willing to bet he was the one who saved Aiden's regiment from the Raiders of Ikana. So what does all of that tell you."

"That I should wear white at my wedding and make sure I am with child within the first year," I said.

"He is older, so his stamina might not be great, but I bet his technique is wonderful."

"I swear you are going to give me an aneurysm." Mira pinched the bridge of her nose.

"No, Princess. It means that Aiden Vanta most likely knows who the Ghost of the Wastes actually is. All that business of having to track down Cipher was most likely a cover for the Ghost of the Wastes trying to settle into a new life away from his old one. I do not know if we can logic our way into all the details, but it makes sense in that context. Aiden Vanta knows the Ghost of the Wastes and guess who just bought a house on Valecis Isle? Thessaly clearly knows as well.

Knowledge of that kind, right there, is a firebomb spell. The key is how you use it. Aiden is going to be too careful. You could watch him for a time and eventually he might lead you to the Ghost of the Wastes. But if you watch Thessaly, she will get you there faster." I gaped at that.

"What makes you say that? Wouldn't she want to keep it a secret?" Mira shook her head.

"She offered to marry the Ghost of the Wastes and basically announced it for everyone in the Western Bloc. She wants him to take over the Dusk Assembly, marry her, and she full-on says she wants to have his babies. Trust me, she's not a patient woman when it comes to this. She wants him, and she wants him now." I considered this. All of it made sense given what we saw at the gala.

"Well, damn. I am doubling your bonus for this month." Mira grinned with visible relief. I got up and went to my main World Tree Lattice interface. I pulled up the search bar.

"What are you doing now," Mira said.

"Buying intimate wear, obviously. I have to be looking my best when I bag my husband." Mira face-palmed.