In a luxurious chamber adorned with crimson drapes and golden embroidery, the air was heavy with the scent of incense and antiseptics. On the large canopied bed lay a young woman, pale and bandaged, surrounded by silent nurses tending to her wounds. Their movements were deft and mechanical, a practiced routine devoid of comfort.
The bedridden girl was Elizabeth Starfall.
Just as one of the nurses adjusted the salve on her shoulder, the room's locked door creaked open. The nurses instinctively lowered their heads as a middle-aged man entered with quiet authority. His robe, dark and regal, bore the sigil of the Rosewood Church.
Elizabeth's expression stiffened.
Without needing a second glance, she ordered in a low voice, "Leave us."
The attendants bowed and slipped out of the room, their footsteps fading behind the closing door.
The man who stood before her was not someone she could dismiss so easily.
He was the Pope of the Church of the Everlasting Light in Rosewood County,Sir Edward, the hidden blade behind doctrine, the true master of shadows.
Despite her noble blood, Elizabeth rose to a seated posture and bowed respectfully.
She was, after all, only the illegitimate daughter of a duke. Her name carried prestige, but not the weight of legitimacy. Before barons and counts, she could posture and intimidate but before the Church, and especially this man, she knew well the limits of her power.
And she understood his presence here.
It was not a visit.
It was judgment.
The Pope's sharp eyes swept over her, and he spoke with a voice that felt colder than the winter winds beyond the castle walls.
"You let him go, hmm? It was your mistake three years ago that allowed him to survive and now, coincidentally, it's your mistake again."
His tone bore no accusation. It was a sentence already delivered.
Elizabeth lowered her head, biting her lip. She had no words with which to refute him.
Three years ago, he had been a mere commoner, one among thousands. Who could have imagined that the boy she once spared would now bear the authority of darkness and become a thorn buried deep within the Church's side?
Regret swelled within her, bitter and sharp. She clenched her fists under the silken sheets.
Then, lifting her eyes with forced composure, she spoke with quiet determination.
"I will definitely kill him, Sir Edward. Please believe me, this time, I won't let that heretic run away."
For the first time, the Pope's thin lips curved into a faint smile.
"I hope you keep your word," he said with deliberate calm. "You know your position in your family. You may display arrogance before the ignorant, but in front of someone like me,who knows the truth of your bloodline—you should remain within your bounds."
His eyes gleamed with subtle menace.
"Your half-brothers have long been circling the Rosewood County like vultures. And you know as well as I do how vital our project is to the Church. Do not let a single heretic especially one who stains your own career compromise our work."
Elizabeth simply nodded, suppressing the fury in her chest.
The Pope studied her for a moment, then turned to leave.
"Very well. Then I will be leaving for now. I expect to hear news of that heretic's death within the month. Otherwise… you know the consequences quite well, Ms. Starfall."
Without awaiting a reply, he disappeared through the door, leaving behind a silence that seemed heavier than before.
Elizabeth sat still for a moment, then slowly ground her teeth.
"Grey..."
She spat the name under her breath like a curse.
Moments later, she rose from bed, her injuries seemingly forgotten. Wrapping herself in a cloak, she stepped out of the chamber and called for her personal guard.
Her voice was sharp, commanding:
"Go and order Viscount Schwizer and the other nobles of this county to report to me soon. I want to have an important meeting. Now go."
The guard saluted and hurried away.
Elizabeth remained still for a long moment, staring into the distance as the wind whistled past the windows.
Then she clenched her fist again and turned away