Chapter 8 The Princess of Ice

The afternoon sun was bright, but it did not bring any warmth to the main hall of the mansion. Aurelia stood near the large fireplace, her arms crossed tightly over her chest. Her violet eyes were fixed on the five royal guards standing in a straight line before her. These were the elite men her father had selected to accompany her from the Capital, men who were supposed to ensure her safety and dominance in this distant place.

"The situation in this town is unstable," Aurelia said, her voice clear and direct. "Captain Boros and his local soldiers are untrustworthy. Their sudden kindness this morning is a trap, and I will not sit around waiting for them to move against us."

The leader of her guards, a tall man named Captain Vance, bowed his head slightly. "What are your orders, Lady Aurelia?"

"From this moment on, we take full control of this estate," Aurelia commanded, stepping forward. "I want you to lock the main mansion gates immediately. No local soldiers are allowed inside the main building without my permission. Furthermore, you and your men will report directly to me. Every piece of news, every movement in this house, comes to my ears first. Do you understand?"

She waited for the guards to salute and move out to execute her orders. She expected absolute obedience. After all, Kaelen was a useless puppet who could barely manage his own wheelchair, let alone a squad of soldiers.

But the guards did not move.

They stood perfectly still, their faces strangely blank. Captain Vance kept his eyes lowered, his hands resting loosely at his sides.

Aurelia frowned, her eyebrows coming together. "Captain Vance? Did you not hear me? Go lock the gates."

Captain Vance slowly raised his head. His eyes looked a bit dull, like a man who had not slept in days, but his posture was firm. He bowed again, but this time, his movement felt distant.

"I am sorry, Lady Aurelia," Captain Vance said, his voice flat and steady. "But I cannot fulfill that order."

Aurelia froze. She stared at him, wondering if she had misheard his words. "What did you say?"

"We cannot lock the gates, nor can we bypass the prince," Captain Vance explained calmly. "By the official decree of the Emperor, Prince Kaelen Morvath is the absolute master of this fief and this house. All administrative decisions, security changes, and guard movements must be approved by his hand first. We are imperial guards, and we must follow the royal law.”

"The royal law?" Aurelia’s voice rose, a rare spark of pure anger breaking through her icy face. She stepped closer to the captain, her eyes flashing. "My father chose you specifically to protect my interests here! Kaelen is a cripple who cannot even stand. He does not care about these gates, and he does not know how to run a household. I am the one making the decisions here."

"With all respect, milady, the law does not care about physical strength," Captain Vance replied, his tone remaining completely level and unbothered. "Prince Kaelen is the husband and the royal lord. If you wish to change the security of the mansion, you must ask the prince to give us the order. Until he speaks, we stay where we are."

The other four guards behind him nodded in unison, their expressions completely uniform. They looked like loyal servants following a rigid script, totally unmoved by her authority.

Aurelia’s breath hitched in her throat. A strange, cold feeling settled in her stomach. It was not just that they were refusing her; it was the way they were doing it. These men had served her family for years, yet suddenly they were hiding behind imperial laws to protect a prince they had mocked just two days ago.

"Dismissed," Aurelia spat out, her fists clenching at her sides.

The five guards bowed smoothly and walked out of the hall without making a single sound.

Aurelia stood alone, her mind racing. Someone has woven an invisible net around this entire mansion, she thought. Her mind went to Kaelen, then she shook her head. Could the weak prince have ordered this?

Furious, Aurelia marched down the long corridor and pushed the door to Kaelen’s bedroom open with a loud bang.

"Kaelen!" she called out sharply.

Kaelen was sitting in his wheelchair near the window. In his thin hands, he held a cheap toy bird made of plain, painted wood.

When the door slammed open, Kaelen flinched violently, dropping the toy onto his lap. He looked over at her with wide, startled eyes.

"Lady... Lady Aurelia?" Kaelen whispered, his voice shaking with fear. "Is something wrong?"

Aurelia stopped in the middle of the room. He looked so helpless, so thoroughly pathetic, that the idea of him controlling the elite guards felt completely ridiculous.

"Did you talk to Captain Vance today?" Aurelia asked sharply.

Kaelen blinked, looking genuinely confused. "Captain Vance? No... I have not spoken to him since we arrived. I am too scared to disturb him. Why do you ask? Did he do something wrong?"

Aurelia searched his face, looking into his clear, dark eyes for any hidden smile. But there was nothing. He just looked like a scared boy.

She let out a long sigh, her anger replaced by a deep sense of disappointment.

"No," Aurelia said coldly, turning her back to him. "It is nothing. Go back to your toy."

She walked out and shut the door behind her. She needed to find the hidden boss of this town before she became a victim

.

The moment the door closed completely, Kaelen’s trembling hands stopped instantly. He laid the cheap wooden bird down on the table, his movements suddenly becoming smooth and deliberate.

The scared, childish look on his face melted away. His eyes grew incredibly deep and dark. He leaned back in his wheelchair, a cold, slow smile spreading across his face.

He had spent the early hours of the morning ensuring Captain Vance met his eyes for three seconds. Now, the main defense of the mansion was completely under his thumb, and his clever wife was running around in circles, chasing a ghost.

"Keep looking, Aurelia," Kaelen whispered to the empty room, his voice regular and freezing cold. "The deeper you step into my cage."