“You can’t be serious,” Ophelia said after Irinda had relayed the information.
Myself, Yen, Ophelia, and Sil were all seated in the master suite, going over some of our plans for the coming days, when she’d entered and provided us the details.
“Some people are preparing to go into the worst part of winter without any food to live off of, and the nobles are throwing expensive parties?”
“That’s usually how it tends to go,” I told her. “The nobles ignore things until they absolutely can’t. I’ve tried to make them see reason in the past, but most of them tend to live by one motto, I think, and that is if there is a problem, simply throw your money at it, drink some wine, and have as good of a time as you can until it goes away. It doesn’t matter how silly it is, I think we can use this.”
The fact that Ovali had pushed me toward a noble’s manor was surprising, if I was honest. It wasn’t the kind of connection that I’d expect a man like him and his little shop to have. Perhaps I’d have to ask him about it. I also didn’t think that his idea of me coming her had been intending for me to go into the ball itself. That was more of a coincidence than anything. But since one of the themes was a masquerade it would be potentially easier to sneak in. It was like the Seven had finally smiled upon me and given me an easy way forward.
As if it agreed, the System had even updated my latest quest, [The “Nice” Part of Town] with additional details. It now read:
A ball? Oh what a fun time that must be! How lucky you are that the very manor you’re wanting to infiltrate is swinging wide its doors with open arms. Why not see if you can infiltrate the masses of the nobility without giving yourself away? Just be careful, there’s no telling what kind of swindlers might be attending the Harrendale’s ball.
The System had been taking on a bit of a different tone since it had removed my restrictions, and I wasn’t quite sure what to make of it. The Quests it provided were good, yes, but the way that it described each one seemed borderline comedic at times. I couldn’t help but wonder what might be driving the words that appeared before me.
Was it an intelligence of its own? Some kind of deity? It had always been mysterious, but now it was even more baffling, especially when I thought about the fact it had “upgraded” my access with so many useful additions. The spatial inventory it had given me alone was a worthwhile add-on, given it allowed me to keep my tonics, lock picks, and other physical items stashed away in something that shouldn’t have existed.
I thought about the inventory then as the others talked among themselves it appeared in front of me in a window. It was broken down into a wall of several shelves, with each item situated on a space on a shelf, allowing me to look at everything I had on me in one quick glance.
That wasn’t the only way to access it, either. I could also just think about what I wanted, and the item would appear in my hand. After some tinkering, I’d learned how to make the items appear as if they were coming out of my satchel.
It was a good way to cut down on the strange looks people might have given me otherwise. Of course, pulling large items like swords out of the satchel would still probably draw some attention. But, at least it would be easy to sneak my weapons into the ball, seeing as I could just shove them into the “inter-dimensional” space the System had given me.
I turned my attention back to the others, who were talking about the different balls that were planned.
“I think the fourth night is our best bet,” Yen was saying. “It’s the last night, which means it will likely be the least attended. Should make it easy to move around without drawing much attention.”
I shook my head slowly. “The less people there are, the more the nobles will be paying attention. Either way, they’re going to pay attention to who is there.”
Sil agreed. “The third night is probably the safest. The masquerade will allow us to hide our faces and sneak through the masses more easily.”
“Yes, I think you’re right. It also means we’ll have a few days to observe and see how security is. We’ll need to either prove that we’re noble to the guards—assuming they have them set up outside—or find another way inside. Sil and I will observe tonight’s event. You two should spend some time figuring out costume ideas.”
The conversation had broken down into speculation about what the best costumes were to wear to such an event at that point, and I’d tuned out most of it, instead letting my mind wander to some of the other plans I already had in motion.
We spent the better part of the evening watching the front of the manor from a rooftop across the street.
Dozens of nobles arrived wearing elegant outfits, and the guards outside checked every single one of them.
“That could be problematic,” I told Sil as I watched a noble withdraw a parchment from their coat and hand it to the guard. “We’ll need to get one of those invites if we want to go in the front door.”
The white-haired man crouched beside me, watching the interaction between the two below without a word.
We watched for several more hours as people came and went. Each time someone left and then went to return to the manor, they had to show one of those parchments to the guards. Someone inside was very paranoid.
*** *** ***
The party ran well into the night. Sil and I returned to the inn to rest ourselves just a few hours before the first rays of daylight kissed the horizon. Despite not going into the ball, we’d learned quite a bit about the entire ordeal from our little vantage point. We relayed all of this to Ophelia and Yen the next morning.
“Invites then?” Yen was asking as I took a sip from the tea that Irinda had brought me with my breakfast.
“It looks like it, yes. The guards were very diligent, too. There wasn’t a side of that manor that wasn’t under someone’s watchful eye.”
That was one of the biggest issues we’d noted if we had to sneak in. The guards were stationed strategically along the front of the manor, as well as the sides. Every entrance into the place was well guarded by at least three guards. I’d already spoken with Irinda about trying to get us an invite, but I knew it would take time. If none of the Network would make a connection for us, then we’d need to sneak in. I had an idea of how we might do that, but it would limit how many of us could get in. I hadn’t attended many balls in my last few years ruling the empire, but before that—when I’d been masquerading in my human form in the early years of my reign—I’d attended more than my fair share. Many of those memories came rushing to me now as I sat behind the desk in the inn, watching Yen and Ophelia as they talked amongst themselves about what they might wear if they got to go.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
Their excitement was almost contagious.
One memory of my mother appeared at the edges of my mind. It had been one of her last public appearances, before my father’s death had left her completely numb to everything.
“An empress does not bow before any man. Once your father passes the empire to you, you will need to be the tallest person in every room, even if you aren’t physically. I want you to practice being that tonight.”
She’d been straightening the tiara I wore atop my head as we rode in a carriage to one of the manors in the Western Quarter. I couldn’t remember what manor, and I wasn’t sure why the memory came to me then. But there had to be something important there. Something I needed to remember as I walked into the pit of vipers that was the nobility.
Yen’s voice pulled me from my thoughts. “Have you thought about what you’re going to wear, Aria?”
*** *** ***
The night of the second ball, myself and Ophelia scaled the buildings across from the manor and watched as nobles came and went. Security was much the same as it had been the night before, though it did look like they’d added more guards to the perimeter.
I couldn’t help but wonder why. Perhaps someone higher up from the imperial court was attending that night. The theme of the second night was history. Many of the nobles that arrived were dressed in extravagant gowns and suits that I assumed were meant to mimic historical figures in some way.
Our chance to potentially steal an invitation and get a look at it came when one of the nobles—a man who had arrived with two women—left the manor alone and started to stumble down the road away from it. Two guards immediately flanked the man, and we followed along the rooftops.
The guards walked with the man until they reached the end of the block, where the drunken noble turned off the main street onto another, and the guards turned back to the manor.
It was strange to see so many people walking around after the moons had ascended, especially given all the threats the false empress had made with her lock down announcements—as well as all the violence they had inflicted upon the city so far. I’d expected at least a few guard posts setup through the quarter, but it didn’t seem the city guard cared about the nobility wandering around.
I left Ophelia on the rooftops and scaled one of the walls of an alley down to the ground. Then, watching for any signs of guards wandering the streets on patrol, I slinked up to the drunken man who stopped to admire the front of a building as he vomited onto its stairs.
I shook my head as I approached. If we didn’t want it to get back to the manor that someone was interested in their ball, then I needed to be careful about how I handled this situation. I’d have to take anything else he had, so it didn’t look like we’d only targeted the invitation.
I rushed up as he was releasing another stream of alcohol-scented bile and then waited. When he finally straightened, I struck like a coiled snake, wrapping an arm around his neck and holding it tight. The noble was far too drunk to put up a fight, and he was unconscious laying in his own vomit within moments.
A new window appeared in the corner of my vision, alerting me to the experience that I’d earned for knocking the man out.
I went through his pockets, finding the folded up piece of parchment and a hefty coin purse which jingled as I stuffed it into my inventory. I waited until I’d returned to the rooftops with Ophelia to open the invitation.
It was a standard affair, with the noble’s name—Dinnington—written in bold, flowing lettering along with some other text about when the event was taken place and how many guests he was allowed to bring.
It was, unfortunately, unlikely we’d be able to steal an invitation off someone, as they all appeared to be tied to the individual ball that was being attended. We held onto it anyway and continued to watch the ball from our vantage point.
*** *** ***
The day of the third ball arrived and I awoke around midday. The event wasn’t scheduled to begin for another several hours, which meant I needed to finalize my disguise. Ophelia and Yen had both decided to go dressed as twins goddesses from a popular series of stories that were popular in the theaters, and they’d purchased their dresses from the already made stock that one of the tailors in Merchant’s Row offered.
They wouldn’t be the most unique outfits at the ball, but that was fine. They didn’t need to be. I’d also gone dress shopping the day before, and had picked out a dark purple—almost black—affair. It was a simple gown overall, but I’d then brought it back to the inn and had one of the girls that worked under Irinda adjust it so that I could wear some of my pants under it. I wanted to be sure I could easily dump the thing if I needed to fight.
Apparently, doing that was a much harder of an ask than I’d expected it to be, so it had taken the girl most of the day and well into the morning to complete the changes.
Now, standing in the master suite, I looked over the way the dress fit me. While it clung to my upper body, the bottom flowed outward away from my legs, leaving plenty of room for me to move around beneath it without my pants showing through. If anyone managed to see up the bottom of the dress, they’d be able to see the pants, but I wasn’t too worried about that.
We had managed to secure an invitation, but it was for a young noble named Daliah Vatrante. While I looked young in my current form, I did not have the same features as the woman, whose name I recognized, so Ophelia and Yen were going to go in using the invitation instead, as Ophelia resembled her somewhat.
I would then use the [Fragile Ring of the Intrepid Traveler] to teleport onto one of the second-story balconies. We hadn’t spotted any guards on the higher levels, so it should hopefully be easy to sneak into the rest of the ball from there. Sil would be sitting out this one, we had decided, though he’d be nearby in case anything went wrong.
*** *** ***
The start of the ball came quickly. I let Yen and Ophelia go in first, waiting to see if their invitation would actually work. Sil and I watched the two approach the front of the manor along with the rest of the crowd. The guards inspected the parchment when Ophelia handed it over, and then they handed it back, motioning her inside.
“Alright, at least two of us are inside,” I said, looking over my outfit. The dark purple dress made it easy to blend into the night, which was another reason I’d chosen it. I checked my inventory, making sure I had everything I might need tonight.
There were several lock picks, some new tonics I’d picked up earlier in the day from Henrietta, as well as my daggers and two of the black steel swords that I’d taken from Aurelion’s stash. I closed the window and focused on the manor across the building.
The last time I’d used the ring, it had created quite the display. I hoped that wouldn’t be the case this time. We didn’t want to risk a distraction that might draw more guards to the manor, so I’d decided to just go with whatever happened.
I waited, watching the guards until they were busy with one of the nobles trying to enter the ball, and then I focused on one of the balconies that jutted out from the second story.
I activated the ring with a thought and felt the power begin to surge around me as golden wisps of smoke curled tight against my body. The world lurched, and I stood before a doorway that led into a large bedroom. The golden smoke trailed off, blown away by the wind, and I took a step inside the room, closing the door behind me.
It was an ornate room, with a large bed in the center. I was halfway to the door that I assumed would lead out into the hallway when I heard the voices outside. They grew louder as the people they belonged to stopped on the opposite side.
“Are you sure we should expect the rebel’s presence here?” Meredith’s voice asked from beyond the door.
What was she doing here? Did that mean—
Kael’s voice was sharp as he responded. “I don’t question the Empress’s orders.”
“Come on, not even a little?”
Silence enveloped the conversation on the other side of the door followed by a heavy sigh.
“You’re right. It’s just strange to me, that’s all. It’s so unlike her.”
“People change. Just do your job tonight. We can talk about this more tomorrow. I’m going back downstairs.”
I waited as footsteps moved away from the door. These were two people I had hoped never to run into again. Not until I could show my true form. The memory of the last time I'd seen them flashed before me.
That night at the gate. It was the first night in this body, when I'd tried to enter the palace. They'd laughed and pushed me away. Kael's taunts to show me what a real dragon was capable of echoed through. Their laughter stabbed at the pride I'd once felt for both of them.
I had once trusted them with everything and they had simply turned their backs on me when I needed them the most. And yet, hearing their voices sparked something within me. I was more of myself now, wasn't I? Would that be enough to convince them?
If I could sway them to join me, they could both be valuable to the cause. And it would be great to have someone I knew so well by my side once more. Meredith, at least, had questions. Perhaps ones I could provide answers to.
I was about to reach for the door handle and step outside when I heard something else. The sound of someone’s hand on the other side of the latch.
Panic surged through my body. She was coming into the room.