Prime Minister Choi's manor, located in the wealthiest district of the capital, was a fortress of conservative power, its exterior displaying the utmost loyalty and tradition. But its depths concealed the rot of treason. While the city guards wrestled with the sudden, popular unrest fueled by the xenophobic propaganda posters, Choi was finalizing the deal that would shatter the kingdom.
Deep beneath the manor, in a cold, meticulously organized cellar designed to look like a wine storage, was the true war room. The cellar was furnished with only a single, large table dominated by an intricate, hand-drawn map of the Joseon kingdom.
Choi was not alone. Standing across the map from him was the principal foreign envoy, Baron Alistair Vance—a tall, arrogant man from a powerful Western-Seu trading company, a man whose ambition vastly outstripped his diplomacy. Vance was not interested in silks or tea; he was interested in Joseon's rich coastal mines and naval access points.
The room was quiet, tense, and thick with the heavy scent of cigars and expensive foreign brandy.
"The unrest is managed, Baron Vance," Choi said, his voice stripped of its courtly charm, now hard and transactional. He tapped a manicured finger on the map, indicating the fertile eastern coastal plains. "The populace is focused entirely on the foreign girl. They believe the danger is within the palace, not at the borders."
Vance smiled—a thin, greedy curve of the lips. "We rely on your efficiency, Prime Minister. Our fleet is anchored just beyond the treaty limits. General Kang and General Shin have sent coded assurances—their loyalty is secured by the funds detailed in the ledger."
Choi leaned over the map, the gesture a literal bow to a greedy foreign envoy. "The Generals are simple men. They value gold over honor. Once the coastal territories are ceded under the guise of an 'exclusive resource contract'—a contract which, of course, excludes the interference of the Crown Prince—the resources are yours. You gain the land, I gain the throne. A simple, mutually beneficial exchange."
He moved his finger across the map, tracing the lines of the territory he planned to give away. It represented nearly a third of Joseon's arable land and almost all of its mineral wealth. His actions were a complete, devastating betrayal of his King and his nation.
Vance, however, was a sharp negotiator. "And the girl, Anansi? The one your posters call the 'Serpent'? My contacts confirm she is the surviving child of the West-Seu royal line. The people you deposed. If she has proof of your past actions, she is a risk."
Choi chuckled, a dry, grating sound. "A child with a trinket and no voice. The Crown Prince protects her only out of misplaced affection, which only confirms his weakness to my court. Once the decree is signed and the generals are paid, the girl will simply disappear. A tragic accident of her 'foreign' nature. Her lineage means nothing when I control the entire Joseon military."
The conversation continued for an hour, a chilling blueprint for treason. Choi detailed how the signed decree would be ratified by a swift, engineered vote in the Council, scheduled for the night of the full moon—three days away. Once ratified, the coastal generals, already bought, would ensure no local troops intervened when Vance's company began establishing its fortified bases.
Choi's betrayal was complete. It wasn't about power within the current system; it was about tearing the entire system down for personal gain and foreign leverage. He was turning Joseon into a colonial asset.
Meanwhile, in the hidden Lioness training cell, Ji-su was relaying the critical intelligence from Afiya, who had been tasked with observing the comings and goings at the manor. Afiya couldn't hear the words, but she confirmed the presence of the foreign envoy and the extensive, late-night meetings.
"Choi is accelerating his timetable," Ji-su said, her face grim. "The decree vote is set for three nights from now. That is the deadline. We must move before the full moon."
Maya, listening intently, clutched the cuff of her training uniform. The gravity of the situation was crushing. She had the cipher scroll and the coded ledger, but she lacked the public stage to expose him. To accuse a Prime Minister of treason based on a secret ledger required the support of the Crown Prince and undeniable physical proof.
"We have to get the original signed decree, Ji-su," Maya stated, her voice quiet but firm. "The ledger proves his intent, but the signed decree of cession is the final, treasonous act. We must expose him with the treaty in his hand."
Ji-su nodded, a rare sign of approval. "A magnificent objective, Anansi. But retrieving the decree from the official sealing chamber will be nearly impossible. It is the most guarded chamber in the palace."
Maya paused, her mind racing, running through the floor plans she had memorized during her spatial training. She thought of Dong-jin's unwavering trust, the propaganda posters, and the innocent lives she had seen on the eastern coast.
"Then we will bring the chamber to the Prime Minister," Maya declared, her eyes blazing with the fierce light of the Lioness. "We need to create a massive diversion—a crisis so significant that it forces the entire Council to meet and ratify the decree at an unscheduled time, in a location of our choosing."
The discussion shifted immediately from defense to offense. The Lionesses had to stop a civil war and a foreign takeover in under three days. The plan had to be audacious, risky, and executed flawlessly in the darkness of the palace. The betrayal was complete, and now, the reckoning was imminent.