Chapter 7 The Hidden Ledger

The night was deep, and the entire mansion was quiet. Outside, a light rain began to fall, tapping softly against the window glass. Inside the small study on the ground floor, a single candle burned on the edge of the desk, casting long shadows across the walls.

Kaelen sat in his wheelchair, staring into the small flame. The room was cold, but he did not seem to mind. His face was perfectly calm, his hands resting flat on his knees.

A light knock came from the door, so quiet it could barely be heard over the rain.

"Come in," Kaelen said smoothly.

The door pushed open, and Captain Boros stepped into the room. He had taken off his noisy armor and wore only a plain tunic to avoid making sound. His big shoulders were hunched over, and his head was bowed low. He closed the door behind him with extreme care, making sure the lock did not click too loudly.

In his large hands, Boros held a thick book bound in dark leather. He walked over to the desk and placed it gently in front of Kaelen, as if he were presenting a sacred object.

"Master," Boros whispered, his voice flat and completely obedient. "This is what you asked for. It is the real ledger of the town. No one else knows it exists."

Kaelen looked down at the book. He opened the first page, his thin fingers turning the paper slowly. The candle light revealed rows of names, numbers, and dates written in messy ink.

"Tell me what I am looking at, Boros," Kaelen said, his eyes scanning the numbers

.

"It holds the records of all the money we take from the villagers, Master," Boros explained, stepping back slightly but keeping his eyes on the floor. "The official reports we send to the Capital say this town is completely broke. But this book shows the truth. We tax the local farmers and merchants double what the law allows. Every month, a large chest of gold is collected."

Kaelen turned another page. "And where does this gold go?"

"To Crown Prince Cedric, Master," Boros said immediately. "Every three months, my men take a wagon and deliver the gold straight to his private estate outside the Capital. In return, Cedric ensures the royal guards never inspect this region, and he keeps my position safe. The next shipment is supposed to leave in two weeks."

Kaelen kept reading, his face completely blank. The numbers were large. The townspeople were starving, living on scraps, while his older brother was growing richer by the day using the stolen wealth of the border.

"This is a lot of gold," Kaelen murmured, a small smile appearing on his lips. "Cedric must love getting these boxes."

"He expects them on time, Master," Boros said, a slight touch of worry in his blank voice. "If the next shipment does not arrive, he will send his own men down here to find out why. He will realize something is wrong."

Kaelen closed the book with a soft thud. He leaned back in his chair and looked up at the large captain.

"Then we will not stop the shipment, Boros," Kaelen said regular and smooth. "We will just change where the gold goes."

Boros blinked, looking confused. "Change it, Master?"

"Yes," Kaelen said, pointing a finger at the closed ledger. "From tonight, you will change the numbers in this book. You will write down that the taxes collected this month were small, barely enough to pay your soldiers. You will create a fake record."

"And the actual gold?" Boros asked.

"You will take the real gold and hide it inside the old mansion vault beneath this building," Kaelen commanded. "No one enters that vault but you. We will keep every single coin here. That wealth belongs to this town, which means it belongs to me now. We will use it for our own future plans."

Boros nodded his head without hesitation. "I understand, Master. I will rewrite the ledger tonight and move the coins into the vault before the sun rises."

"Good," Kaelen said. "But we still have a problem with my brother. If we send him nothing, he will get suspicious. So, you will write a letter to Cedric instead of sending the gold."

Boros looked up, waiting for the words. "What should the letter say, Master?"

"Tell him that the winter has been too harsh," Kaelen said, his voice full of a dark amusement. "Tell him the crops failed, the villagers are dying, and there is no gold to collect. And most importantly, tell him about me."

Kaelen leaned forward, the candle light catching the faint silver tips of his dark hair.

"Tell Cedric that I am living in absolute filth," Kaelen continued, his words slow and clear. "Tell him that I cry every single day because the room is too cold, and that my health is failing rapidly. Tell him that my weak legs are causing me immense pain, and that I am so broken by the exile that I will likely not survive the year. Give him exactly what he wants to hear."

Boros listened carefully, memorizing every word. "I will write it exactly like that, Master. Cedric will believe it. He always thinks you are nothing but a piece of trash."

Suddenly, the candle flame flickered violently, turning a strange, deep shade of red for a brief second. The temperature in the small study dropped, and the air became freezing cold.

In the darkest corner of the room, behind Boros, the shadows began to twist and turn. Two glowing red eyes appeared in the darkness, wide and full of malice. A low, eerie sound echoed through the room, like a quiet laugh echoing from a deep cave.

Boros did not turn around. He could not see or hear it, but his large body shivered from the sudden chill in the air.

Kaelen looked straight at the red eyes in the corner. Inside his chest, his heart felt a little heavier, a little more frozen, as the system took another piece of his warmth. But his smile did not fade. He did not show fear to the shadow, nor did he show regret. The power was working, and that was all that mattered.

With a wave of Kaelen's hand, the red eyes vanished back into the ordinary darkness, and the candle flame turned yellow again.

"Is there anything else, Master?" Boros asked, unaware of the entity that had just been behind him.

"No, Boros," Kaelen said, his voice returning to its gentle, ordinary tone. "Go do your work. And remember, if my wife asks you about the town's money, you tell her we are totally broke."

"Yes, Master," Boros said. He picked up the heavy ledger, bowed deeply, and walked out of the room as quietly as he had entered.

Kaelen sat alone again, listening to the rain fall against the glass. He reached up, touching the silver-white tips of his hair, his mind entirely relaxed as he planned his next move.