The Dragon Kings' Forbidden Witch

”Something the kings are protecting,” Cedric added, tapping his fingers on the armrest of his seat.

The fire crackled, sending sparks up the chimney. Outside, the palace grounds were settling into darkness, servants finishing their evening duties, the machinery of the kingdom winding down for the night.

But in Aldrich’s study, the real work of governance was beginning.

***

”The families will not accept this lightly,” Cedric said, addressing the immediate practical crisis that would unfold in the coming days.

Aldrich nodded slowly, his mind already calculating.

”How many houses?” the old man asked.

”Seven major ones,” Cedric replied. ”Perhaps more minor ones. All of them invested significant resources based on the expectation that the Selection would continue, that their daughters would have time to win the kings’ favor.”

”And now those daughters are being sent home with nothing to show for their families’ sacrifice,” Aldrich said, his voice carrying the weight of understanding what such betrayal would mean.

”The anger will be significant,” Cedric confirmed.

Aldrich rose slowly from his chair, his movements deliberate, careful. He moved to the window and looked out at the darkening palace grounds.

”Betrayal is a dangerous emotion in powerful people,” he said quietly. ”They will feel cheated. They will feel as though their daughters were paraded before the kings only to be discarded.”

He turned back to face Cedric.

”How will you manage their anger?”

”By framing the Selection’s ending as a strategic decision,” Cedric said. ”Not a failure of the process, but a shift in the kings’ thinking. They have decided to pursue a different approach.”

”And what approach would that be?” Aldrich asked.

”That,” Cedric said carefully, ”the kings did not say.”

Aldrich returned to his chair, settling back into it with the care of age.

”Then we will have to construct a narrative that satisfies the council and keeps the noble houses from absolute fury,” he said. ”The council will need something to work with. Something to occupy their attention while the kings pursue their own investigation.”

”That is what I intended,” Cedric confirmed.

Cedric reached into his robes and withdrew a sealed letter, its edges worn from travel, its seal bearing the mark of Greaves’ official capacity.

”I received this three days ago,” Cedric said, holding it up. ”It arrived encrypted and marked important.”

Aldrich’s attention sharpened immediately. He understood what an encrypted message from Greaves meant. It meant something significant had occurred. Something significant enough to warrant extreme caution.

”He is returning to the capital,” Cedric continued. ”Within days. Perhaps by tomorrow.”

”And the content?” Aldrich asked.

”He says there is a matter of importance requiring direct discussion,” Cedric replied. ”He will not commit it to writing. It concerns the girl and his findings from Ashford.”

The old elder was silent for a long moment, his ancient eyes fixed on the fire.

When he spoke, his voice was measured and careful.

”He discovered something significant enough to warrant face-to-face conversation rather than written report.”

”Yes,” Cedric confirmed.

”Then we must prepare ourselves,” Aldrich said. ”When Greaves arrives, we will hear information that is not yet known even to the full council. And we will need to decide what to do with that information.”

He leaned back in his chair.

”This is becoming complicated very quickly, Cedric. The Selection ends. The girl is revealed to be important. The investigator returns with findings. The noble houses are angry. And...”

”And Lord Carrick Greythorne arrives at the palace today,” Cedric said, finishing the thought.

Aldrich’s expression hardened.

”Isolde’s father,” he said, his voice dropping lower. ”He comes because his daughter’s expulsion has damaged House Greythorne’s position. He comes with leverage, with proposals, with strategies designed to restore what was lost.”

”The kings seemed unsurprised,” Cedric said. ”They seemed prepared for his arrival.”

”As they should be,” Aldrich replied. ”But do not underestimate Carrick. He is no fool. He has resources. He has connections. And he will push hard to recover what his daughter lost.”

The old elder rose again, moving back to the fire. He stood there, his back to Cedric, watching the flames.

”Carrick is cunning,” Aldrich continued, his voice carrying something like warning. ”He will calculate every move. He will arrive expecting to negotiate, expecting to find weakness, expecting to exploit whatever advantage he can identify.”

”The kings seemed confident they could manage him,” Cedric offered.

”The kings are always confident,” Aldrich said. ”But confidence is not the same as correct assessment.”

He turned back to face Cedric, and his ancient eyes held something that might have been foreboding.

”I sense something will go wrong during his visitation,” Aldrich said quietly.

Cedric did not dismiss this out of hand. Aldrich’s intuition had saved the kingdom more than once over the decades. This old man had learned to read situations, to sense when events were about to shift unexpectedly, to recognize the subtle signs that preceded crisis.

”What kind of wrong?” Cedric asked.

”I do not know exactly,” Aldrich admitted. ”But Carrick will push too hard. Or the kings will respond too firmly. There will be conflict. Perhaps more than conflict.”

He returned to his chair and settled into it with the weight of centuries of experience.

”Carrick will come expecting negotiation,” Aldrich continued. ”He will come with proposals for compensation, for restoration, for some way to save face for House Greythorne. But the kings will not negotiate. The kings will make demands.”

”Demands for what?” Cedric asked.

”Debt,” Aldrich said simply. ”House Greythorne’s debt to the throne for the damage Isolde caused during her stay in the palace. The kings will demand payment in full.”

Cedric understood the implications immediately. Such a demand would humiliate Carrick. It would weaken House Greythorne financially and politically. It would establish a precedent that families could not escape accountability for their members’ actions.

”Will Carrick accept such terms?” Cedric asked.

”No,” Aldrich said. ”He will refuse. He will argue. He will attempt to negotiate the amount, the timeline, the method of payment. And in that resistance, conflict will emerge.”