Chapter 35 --35
"No word yet, Your Highness. We’re still one day away from the agreed-upon evaluation period."
"Then we wait." Elara stood and walked to the window. The courtyard below showed normal morning activity—servants moving between buildings, guards on patrol rotation, nothing obviously wrong.
But she could feel the shift. The palace had turned against her overnight. Not all of it—never all of it—but enough that every interaction would now be hostile, every request delayed, every small comfort withheld.
Her sisters had weaponized social isolation, and it was remarkably effective.
A knock interrupted her thoughts. The fox knight opened the door to reveal Dimitri, looking pale and carrying a sealed letter.
"Your Highness. This just arrived. From Guild Master Torven."
Elara’s hand didn’t shake when she took it. "You’re early. The test period isn’t complete until tomorrow."
"I know, Your Highness. But he sent it now."
She broke the seal and read:
’Fourth Princess Elara,’
’We’ve completed preliminary testing of your preservation anchor. Results exceed our projections by significant margin. The anchor maintained full effectiveness for 96 hours as promised, then degraded gracefully without damaging the preserved goods. Spoilage reduction: 97.3% compared to control samples.’
’However, circumstances require us to meet immediately rather than wait for the agreed timeline. There have been... inquiries... from parties interested in disrupting our potential partnership. We need to finalize contracts before external pressure makes negotiation impossible.’