I had gone crazy. There was no other explanation. I was laughing like a lunatic in the privacy of my chambers. I was supposed to be spying, learning the court's deepest secrets and investigating those damn tunnels! Instead, I was sitting on my bed without knowing what to do.

It was too early to do any investigating, then the king and the Royal Council were in meetings, Prince Dylan was nowhere to be found... There was so much to do but nothing to be done at the same time.

Apparently, I found this situation hilarious.

After quite some time I got a hold of myself and decided to do something productive with my time. I altered my door, so it would make a loud noise when opening. That way, no one would be able to sneak up on me while I slept. After some consideration, I decided to also tweak the wooden floor in a pattern.

I looked all over my room for some stone, brick or plank somewhat loose until I found one. I found two planks and a stone.

I made a fake stash in one of the planks and left the other one empty. The stone was hidden by the bed, so it was the perfect hiding spot. I was not stupid, I knew someone would go through my room sooner or later, and I wasn't taking any chances.

I strolled towards the library. The halls were now full of guards and servants. I kept a rehearsed smile on my face the entire time.

Word traveled fast in the castle, I wouldn't give them the chance to spread nasty gossip about me. Did they want to talk about me? Fine, but it would be on my terms.

In the library, there were ten librarians. All of them middle-aged men with not very flattering brown robes. They looked at me like I had grown an extra head, apparently, women here must not have been very fond of reading. I acquired some paper and ink.

I wrote two letters. One of them was addressed to the king and queen of Kaerndall, my parents.

Dear Mom and Dad,

I have arrived safely to Ice Peak's castle. Even though it's not our first time apart, it doesn't get any easier, I don't think it ever will. I love both of you with my entire heart.

Mom, there are lilies in the Royal Gardens. I can help but think of you whenever I smell them.

Please, let Vivian know I will send her a letter soon, including the recipes of The Highlands tastiest sweets.

Love,

Your beloved daughter

The other one had the name of Sir Austin Silverhall. Heir of one of the most powerful noble houses in Kaerndall, my best friend and training companion. He was a key handler in my operation.

He was supposed to come with me, but two days before we were supposed to leave, a group of rebels had attacked a village near the capital. Austin was then forced to stay behind to look into the matter.

For the first time in my life, I felt completely lonely. I had gone on missions before, but this was my first time without him. I cleared my throat, getting rid of the knot that had started to form.

I sealed the letters with wax and stamped them with my ring. My house seal took form as the wax started to solidify: A majestic eagle surrounded by thorns. Even though all my correspondence was sealed, every letter I would send and receive would be coded.

I gave the two letters to a maid, instructing her to give them to a messenger and send them immediately. I ordered my lunch to be brought to the royal gardens.

With the help of that distinct smell of roses and lilies, I finally got to grips with my homesickness. I was a trained spy, assassin and warrior, there were many things I could do. Feeling sorry for myself was definitely not one of them.

Rose, interrupted my thoughts. As they made their way towards me, I could hear them chattering avidly.

She bowed, and placed a mouth-watering lamb in front of me. I thanked her with a smile.

"Rose, why don't you sit with me and share any gossip you've come across in hallways."

She bit her lip as she sat in the bench next to mine. "As you wish, Your Highness."

Rose remained quiet for a second, her gaze lost in the roses. "Well, on my way to get the lamb, I saw Lady Alissa Rainwater yelling at her maid. For what I could hear, the lady disliked the modifications made to one of her dresses." Rose' face was tilted down as she talked, her hands gesticulating avidly.

"I stuck around for a bit and talked to the maid. The modifications had been exactly done as requested, now the ought redo the entire dress." Rose talked fast, her speed increasing as she got more and more into the gossip.

I pursed my lips. "I'm surprised the maid talked to you. Due to the glares they received me with, I presumed The Ice Court is not too kin when it comes to foreigners."

"I don't know, Princess. They've been kind to me and the rest of the entourage. They invited us to eat at their table and tried to include us in their conversations."

"I'm glad to hear you are being treated with the respect and kindness that you deserve. If that were to change please, tell me immediately and I will intervene."

Rose calmly stood up. "Thank you, Your Highness. It's an honor to serve you."

"You may retire, thank you for bringing me the food."

As Rose left, my attention shifted to the perfectly cooked lamb in front of me. There were many things wrong with this palace and its inhabitants, but its food was exquisite.

I found myself in a perfect moment: a delightful view, delicious food, a beautiful day...

The unmistakable sound of heels broke the precious and scarce moment of peace.

Although I was annoyed, I contained the grunt that was fighting to come out of my mouth. I didn't even bother to turn around and face the stranger.

"I see that you are also fond of the gardens, Princess Aelyn." I did my best to greet the lady with a smile. I didn't need for her to introduce herself. I'd be a fool if I didn't recognize her immediately.

"And I see that you are fond of talking to people without introducing yourself first, quite rude if you were to ask me."

In front of me was standing one of the most powerful and richest ladies in the court: Lady Alyssa Rainwater. She could be my most powerful ally or my most dangerous enemy.

Her reputation described her as an arrogant, selfish and a self-absorbed girl. Gossip on the other hand, usually distorted reality.

The conversation I had just had with my maid was still fresh in my memory. She'd have to redeem herself to me all on her own, if she intended for me to look past all that was already said about her."

Her smile grew wider. She took a confident step forward.

"Princess, I'm inclined to think that you and I don't need introductions. So, let's skip all those fake pleasantries, shall we?"

She was bold, maybe a little bit reckless. I still loved it. Very few people were honest enough to make their feelings known in the court. She wasn't scared of me or my title and that was extremely rare.

I decided to take a cautious approach. I knew this friendship could have lots of potentials, information wise.

"Why don't you join me, Lady Alyssa."

The Lady sat next to me, she lightly waved her fan as she observed me.

"Princess, you are a woman of good taste, the lamb was an amazing choice. Definitely one of my favorite dishes."

"I must confess, that my maid, Rose, chose for me. She has an impeccable taste and I always enjoy whatever she brings me."

"If you'd like we could meet for breakfast tomorrow, I could order some of my favorite dishes for you to try, Your Highness."

"I would be my pleasure Lady Alyssa, and please, call me Aelyn.

"Likewise, please call me Alyssa. I'm afraid I must go, but I look forward to tomorrow." She stood, up her eyes still carefully fixated on my face.

"I do too, It was a pleasure to meet you Alyssa." 

As she left , I was once again left alone with my thoughts.

It would be wise for me to keep my enemies close. Allowing her to refer to me by my first name was an easy way to quickly gain her trust. She'd see me more easily as an equal instead of the princess from the enemy kingdom.

In life nothing attracted success like success itself did, same thing happened with trust. The fastest way for anyone to trust you, is to convince them that you blindly trust them. Even if you don't, even if you are just pretending, as long as they believe it, that's all that matters. Appearances are everything.

The potential friendship with Alyssa could be a huge milestone for my mission. If I played my cards right, I could be soon manipulating two of the most powerful people in The Highlands.

It would allow me great advantage when to archiving my mission, but it would also increase the danger I exposed myself to. If my true intentions were to be discovered, I would be imprisoned, and most likely executed.

Alyssa hadn't been afraid of me because of my title, I like that. Growing up I had personal tutors, so I was quite isolated. When in training, Austin was the one kid who wasn't intimidated by me.

Our interaction had been surprisingly pleasant,  maybe Alyssa was not as bad as she seemed.

Author's note:

Thank you so much for reading my second chapter!
As always, I'm open to suggestions and I love interacting with you guys!

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