Chapter 235: Chaoter-235
"Used it for what specifically," Mira said, her accountant’s mind going immediately to application and outcome.
Elara looked at her.
"Succession magic at this classification level does one of three things," she said. "It can suppress a bloodline’s magical inheritance — effectively neutralising a royal’s power without visible cause. It can accelerate a transition of power through bloodline interference, making a natural death appear to happen at a convenient time. Or—" She paused. "It can be used to falsify bloodline markers. To make someone appear to carry a bloodline they don’t."
The room was quiet.
"Making a non-royal appear royal," Ken said.
"Or making one royal appear more legitimate than another," Elara said. "Adjusting the magical signature that the Emperor’s — that the previous Emperor’s bloodline left on his children. Strengthening one. Weakening others."
Dimitri looked like he’d swallowed something unpleasant. "How long would that have taken to arrange."
"Months," Caius said, from his chair. Everyone looked at him. "The materials in that shipment — I know what they’re used for, from the trade side. The synthesis process takes four to six months minimum. If this shipment was three months ago and wasn’t the first—"
"It wasn’t the first," Elara said. "I found two prior amendments in the customs archive this morning. Same port. Same manifest structure. Eighteen months ago and eleven months ago." She looked at the room. "The first shipment was approximately two months before the Emperor became ill."
The silence this time had a different quality.
Mira put down her pen.
Dimitri stopped taking notes.