The next morning, Morena had Marta brought to her study. The woman entered without fuss, her usual calm expression in place as she stepped through the door and closed it behind her.
Morena had already spent the night before writing the formula out on a sheet of paper, the ink still drying; so when she saw the lady enter, she slid it in front of her on the desk.
"This is a formula for something I require. I can’t really get into the details, but I would be very grateful if you could help me make it. It needs to be made precisely as written, and you’re the only one I know that I can trust with that."
Marta greeted her with a short bow as she listened to her words. Moving closer to the table, she reached out and took up the piece of paper to observe. Morena could see her eyes moving along the lines in silence, and as she finished reading all the information, her brows furrowed slightly.
"My Lady, this is a poison?"
Looking up from the paper, her gaze met with Morena’s, her tone more questioning than accusing. She was unsure what Morena would want with a poison; after all, she didn’t believe Morena was the type to use such an underhanded method.
And while that would normally be wrong, it wasn’t in this moment. Morena had no intention of using the poison on another, at least not in this instance.
"It is."
Morena replied with an understanding nod and smiled.
"Don’t worry, it’s not for anything like you would imagine. I only require it in small microdoses, not nearly enough to truly harm a person. It’s for something I’ve been working on, I promise."
Marta hesitated for a moment, seeming to contemplate the girl’s words and her character all at once. Finally, after just a few seconds of silence, it seemed like she came to an understanding and nodded.
"I can make it. It’ll take me a day to get the right herbs and brew them, maybe two if something goes wrong."
"That’s fine, just have Adolf order anything you need. And I’m sure I don’t have to mention it, but don’t let anyone find out, ok?"
"You know I don’t gossip."
Marta said with an offhanded wave, tucking the piece of paper away for later.
"But I do have to warn, my Lady, whatever you plan to use this for. I hope you understand that it’s still dangerous."
"I’m aware."
The conversation ended right there with a reminder from Marta, the lady bowing once more as she left the study.
Morena exhaled slowly and leaned back in her chair. That was one matter done with, now she had to go about her mundane responsibilities once more.
By noon, she had already forced herself into another round of paperwork. Her desk was covered again, statements stacked beside patrol reports, Adolf’s handwriting neat across every page.
The house was running as it should; in fact, it was running better than ever. Thanks to the completion of the agreement, House Brenle had begun to supply them with the resources needed to not only upkeep their current structure, but expand further.
Even with the church’s pressure and presence throughout the city, Morena had already put into motion plans to expand the family’s reach. She had worked out a deal with a few locals, buying their empty lands in order to build housing units.
This way, she could provide housing to people without any, specifically focused on workers for her family and their families.
That was another thing she had begun expanding; with the influx of supplies, she was able to expand the number of recruits this year around and open her doors to more workers.
Of course, she didn’t plan to entirely rely on the coins from House Brenle forever; that was why she was working on setting up and buying out a few shops within the city, allowing them to earn a larger flow of income. The source of this content ɪs n͟o͟v͟e͟l͟f͟i͟r͟e͟.net
She had just set her seal to the page when the knock came at the door.
"Enter."
She spoke aloud as Adolf entered, carrying a folded letter sealed with a heavy wax crest. He set it on the desk without speaking until she looked up at him.
"A letter from the Elder Council, my Lady."
He spoke and paused, before adding one more line to it.
"They are requesting your father’s presence."
Morena looked up at him for a moment as he spoke, her eyes widening slightly at the statement.
’So they finally act.’
The Elder Council had been wanting a meeting with her father for a while, but using various excuses, they had pushed it back over and over. But it seemed like now it was no longer a mere ask.
They were demanding a meeting, and this letter was proof of that.
She reached out and picked up the letter, breaking the wax seal. She carefully went over the information inside.
The Council wanted a meeting in light of the church’s growing reach and their recent agreement with House Brenle without consulting them. The summons was directed to her father by name, completely overlooking the fact that she was the acting head at this moment.
It was not only a means to underplay her power, but it was a direct insult. They were saying that they didn’t see her as the rightful heir, that she didn’t hold any authority.
She folded the letter once and set it down.
"Have you mentioned this to Father?"
"Yes."
He replied with an instant nod.
"I’ve already told the Lord, and he told me to allow you to handle it. He said that he believes you will do what is right."
"He’s saying he has no intention of meeting them, he’s just pushing this onto me."
She rolled her eyes slightly and sighed, but she couldn’t ignore the matter. Or could she?
"What if we just refuse them again?"
"Refusing wouldn’t work any longer, my Lady. With the recent meeting with House Brenle, they have been very vocal about your actions."
Morena tapped her finger against the table, her gaze steady on the parchment.
"Then let’s do this, we’ll host it here. Draft a reply and tell them they are welcome at our estate if they truly wish to meet. And..."
She paused for a moment, then continued.
"Tell them to bring my younger brother as well. It’s been a while since I’ve seen him. I would like to see how he’s doing. Make it clear that if they come without him, they will be refused at the gate."
Adolf raised a brow slightly but did not comment.
"As you wish. I’ll have the messenger ride out within the hour."
"Thank you as always, Adolf. All this would be much harder without your help."
He gave a short nod and left the study, already planning the draft in his head.
Morena tapped her fingers on the table in a rhythmic pattern, letting her eyes close for a moment. Matters involving the Council were like poking a snake; they were always planning something, and as cunning as could be.
A bunch of old men who had spent their entire lives scheming to get where they were, and committing all sorts of ploys to get what they wanted. At least they would be coming to her halls instead of demanding she enter theirs.
This would be an audience with her, not the other way around, and within her halls, she held the power.
’I wonder how that brother of mine is doing?’
She didn’t mention bringing her brother along for no reason; she was genuinely curious about him. While the current Morena had a certain disconnect from her family, that didn’t mean the memories of the previous Morena weren’t there.
She still had all her memories, all her feelings, and while it wasn’t controlling her actions, it still played a role in her thoughts. One such thought was about her younger brother.
It had been almost a year since she had last seen him, maybe longer. The boy was only twelve this year, a time when children should be learning normal things, having fun, and experiencing a good childhood.
Instead, he was forced to follow the Council and stay at a prepared estate, learn what they wanted him to learn, and train how they wanted him to train.
Her father could do very little to ease his burden. In the past, the cause was just; he was the only male heir, Morena was too weak and unworthy to be the heir at that time, so training him was the only choice.
But things were different now. She wished to see how he was doing, and if she could, she wanted to help him as best as possible. At least then she could claim to be a good sister.
’Let’s just try...’
The day stretched long after that. Marta returned in the evening, setting a small vial on the desk.
The liquid inside was dark, almost black, to the point where it didn’t reflect much light.
"As you ask, my Lady. I was able to make ten doses. I hope that’s enough. Please don’t use it for anything dangerous; it might not look like it, but it’s very toxic."
Morena lifted the vial and studied it for a moment before pulling the stopper free. The instant she did, a sharp scent stung her nose; she could feel it burning just from a small whiff.
She quickly closed it, being sure none spilled or allowed the scent to leak further. Looking up at Marta, she smiled and nodded.
"This will do, thank you, Marta. You did a good job as always."
"You overpraise me. I’m just doing my job, my Lady."
With a short bow, she left, leaving Morena alone with the vials.