The capital was unsettled.
It wasn't panic.
Not yet.
But something invisible had changed.
Merchants whispered about audits.Minor nobles sent sealed letters at odd hours.And the southern district — surprisingly — was watching the palace more closely than ever before.
Arthur stood by the eastern balcony of his chambers, overlooking the training grounds below.
Knights sparred under the morning sun.
Steel rang against steel.
Mana flared in bursts.
And yet his thoughts weren't on them.
A knock came.
It wasn't hesitant.
It wasn't formal.
It was impatient.
He didn't turn.
"Enter."
The door swung open without delay.
"Arthur."
He recognized the voice before he saw her.
Emily von Aerendyl stepped in like she owned the place.
Auburn hair tied loosely today, a few strands escaping. She wore a riding outfit instead of formal noble attire, boots slightly dusty.
She had likely come straight from the northern estate.
"You've been busy terrifying half the nobility," she said casually, walking past the servants without acknowledging them. "Father hasn't stopped complaining."
Arthur turned slowly.
"And what does the Grand Duke complain about?"
Emily crossed her arms.
"That you're destabilizing established order."
Arthur tilted his head slightly.
"Is that his personal opinion?"
She smirked.
"It's the official one."
"And the unofficial?"
She stepped closer, lowering her voice slightly.
"He's impressed."
Arthur's expression didn't change — but internally, he noted it.
Grand Duke Aerendyl was not a minor figure.
He controlled the northern territories — the empire's strongest military province.
If he was impressed, that meant:
He wasn't threatened.
Yet.
Emily studied him carefully.
"You're different."
He didn't respond.
She narrowed her eyes slightly.
"You're… sharper."
"Was I dull before?" he asked evenly.
She snorted.
"No. You were intense."
She gestured vaguely.
"Focused. Like a blade constantly being sharpened. Now you feel like… someone holding the blade."
That made him pause.
Interesting perception.
Emily stepped closer until she stood directly in front of him.
"And you laugh more."
He raised an eyebrow slightly.
"Is that problematic?"
"It's suspicious."
Silence lingered.
But unlike court silence — this one wasn't heavy.
It was comfortable.
She leaned against the balcony railing beside him.
"Father says some nobles are forming quiet alliances."
Arthur's gaze shifted slightly.
"Against reform?"
"Against unpredictability."
She turned toward him.
"You're moving fast."
Arthur watched the knights below.
"Speed prevents counterstructure."
Emily blinked.
"…I have no idea what that means."
He almost smiled.
"It means hesitation invites resistance."
She studied his profile.
"You think someone bigger is involved."
Not a question.
An observation.
Arthur finally looked at her fully.
"Yes."
She didn't seem surprised.
"Father mentioned something else."
He waited.
"There's been unusual mana crystal procurement in eastern trade routes."
Arthur's eyes sharpened subtly.
Mana crystals.
Core components for large-scale arrays.
"Legal purchases?"
"Technically."
"How large?"
"Enough to build something unpleasant."
Silence fell between them.
Emily tilted her head slightly.
"You're not surprised."
Arthur's expression was calm.
"I was expecting escalation."
She stared at him.
"You're calm about that."
"I prefer when enemies move."
She laughed suddenly.
Sharp. Bright.
"You're terrifying."
He looked at her.
"Does that bother you?"
She met his gaze directly.
"No."
A pause.
"But it makes me curious."
She stepped closer.
Lowered her voice slightly.
"When you collapsed three days ago… I thought you were dying."
That wasn't teasing.
That was real.
Arthur watched her carefully.
"I was not."
"You didn't wake for six hours."
He noticed the way her fingers tightened slightly against the railing.
"You never hesitate in battle. You never miscalculate."
Her voice softened.
"And then you did."
Arthur remained silent.
Because she was right.
The detonation had worked.
Not to kill him.
But to shake perception.
Emily exhaled slowly.
"When I walked into your chamber and you looked at me like you didn't know who I was…"
She forced a half-smile.
"That wasn't funny."
He held her gaze.
"I apologize."
That surprised her.
He rarely apologized before.
She studied him again.
"You really are different."
He didn't deny it this time.
Instead, he asked quietly:
"Does that concern you?"
She smiled.
"No."
Then she added softly:
"It just means I need to relearn you."
The air shifted slightly.
Less political.
More personal.
Arthur looked away first.
Because something in his chest tightened slightly.
Not pain.
Something else.
—
Later that evening.
Seraphina entered Arthur's strategy chamber.
He was reviewing eastern trade manifests.
"Emily visited," she said.
"Yes."
"She speaks freely."
"She always has."
Seraphina's gaze was sharp.
"Be careful."
"With?"
"Trust."
Arthur met her eyes.
"You do not trust her."
Seraphina shook her head.
"I do."
Pause.
"But the north is powerful. And power never exists without ambition."
Arthur nodded slowly.
"I am aware."
Seraphina stepped closer.
"Count Roderic's estate audit revealed nothing substantial."
Arthur wasn't surprised.
"Too clean?"
"Yes."
"Then the money never stayed with him."
Seraphina's eyes darkened.
"You were right."
"About?"
"He reports upward."
Arthur turned back to the map.
"Track mana crystal purchases in the eastern corridor."
She blinked slightly.
"You know?"
"I suspected."
She studied him.
"You've already connected the threads."
"Yes."
She hesitated.
"Who do you think it is?"
Arthur didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he placed a single black pin into the map.
Right over a region controlled by—
Duke Valmont.
One of the oldest noble houses.
Untouched.
Untested.
Powerful.
Seraphina inhaled slightly.
"You're certain?"
"No."
He looked at the pin calmly.
"But I am interested."
—
Elsewhere.
Deep beneath a manor estate far from the capital.
A large circular array was being constructed.
Mana crystals embedded at cardinal points.
Runes etched into stone.
A cloaked figure observed silently.
"Phase two nearing completion," a subordinate reported.
"And the Crown Prince?"
"He watches."
The cloaked figure chuckled faintly.
"Good."
A pause.
"Let him."
Because this was not meant to defeat him directly.
It was meant to expose something else.
—
Back in his chambers.
Arthur stood before the mirror again.
He extended his senses inward.
The crack in his mana core pulsed faintly.
Still controlled.
Still manageable.
But beneath that—
He felt something stranger.
A hollow.
Like an absence.
The original Arthur's soul had not merged.
It had vanished.
Completely.
That was not normal transmigration.
And someone out there might know why.
Arthur touched his chest lightly.
"You left nothing behind."
No memories.
No resistance.
Just a throne and expectations.
He looked up slowly.
Golden eyes reflecting candlelight.
"If you are connected to this…"
His gaze hardened.
"I will find you."
Outside, the capital lights flickered like distant stars.
The game was expanding.
And now—
The board had more players than he first thought.