On the outside, Sandstrike Castle appeared intimidating and imposing. However, after going through the front gate, the castle gave me a different impression. I mean, it was still intimidating and imposing. However, the thick walls and powerful defensive enchantments also gave me a sense of safety and security. It felt as if nothing could break through them, though I knew this wasn't the case.

Lord Sandstrike, Lord César, and the House Sandstrike retainers guided Anna and I into the main keep, the heart of the Sandstrike Castle. Along the way, Lord César regaled us with tales of his House's history. Compared to what I knew, his stories sounded exaggerated, but not by much.

To my surprise, Lord Sandstrike didn't have his retainers search us for weapons. Maybe he wanted to avoid offending House Thorne. Regardless, this worked out for us. More weapons meant more options.

After we entered the main keep, Lord Sandstrike split off, saying he had some business to attend to. Before he left, he gave Lord César a meaningful look. Most of the retainers who accompanied us left as well, though a group of three remained behind. Afterwards, Lord César led Anna and I to a drawing room two stories up while the three retainers followed us.

The interior of the main keep was solid white stone. However, a multitude of tapestries, carpets, and tasteful decorations softened it. Some of the tapestries depicted intricate designs and patterns. Others showed historical and mythological scenes. Though, in a world of magic and gods, there was a lot of overlap between the two.

It wasn't as obvious before, but I could feel the weight of centuries as we walked through the main keep's halls. Impressive, but nothing compared to Sturm Manor. While House Sandstrike might seem old to others, its history was shallow when compared to House Sturm. However, for the sake of my disguise, I acted more awed than I felt.

This pleased Lord César, though he tried not to show it. Anna seemed displeased by this for some reason. She wasn't jealous of Lord César, was she? An amusing thought, but not one I wanted to test. I grabbed her hand and gave her a besotted look, the kind a newly engaged young lady would give her fiancé. Anna's displeasure eased, though Lord César seemed a little annoyed. The three retainers watched all this unfold with indifferent expressions on their faces.

Lord César brought us to a small but lavish drawing room. It was decorated with expensive furniture. Beautiful art pieces, paintings and small statues for the most part, dotted the room. Ornate glowstone lamps protruded from the walls. A large glass door led to a balcony that oversaw a small garden within the Sandstrike Castle.

It was still afternoon, so we decided to sit on the balcony and enjoy ourselves. However, it wasn't furnished, so we had to wait until servants brought out a wooden table and a set of chairs. The servants also brought some tea and small finger foods for us. After setting everything up, the servants left.

Lord César, Anna, and I chatted while we enjoyed the refreshments. Meanwhile, the three retainers stood nearby and kept watch.

After half an hour of this, I decided it was time to start snooping.

"Lord César," I said during a break in the conversation. "Sandstrike Castle is so majestic and beautiful. Do you mind if I go exploring for a bit?"

Lord César's expression lit up.

"That sounds like an excellent idea," he said. "Why don't I show you around?"

He started to stand up, but paused as I spoke up.

"Oh no," I said. "I don't want to trouble you. I can explore on my own." I put my hand on Anna's shoulder. "Why don't you stay with Andrew? I'm sure you two can find plenty to discuss." I leaned forward and gave Lord César a conspiratorial smile. "My sweetie is looking to branch out and start his own ventures. Perhaps the two of you can work something out."

"An excellent idea, Dear," Anna said.

Lord César sat back down with a conflicted expression on his face. On the one hand, he wanted to play the gracious host and show me around. On the other hand, this was an opportunity to make a connection with House Thorne. After a few seconds of this, Lord César made his decision.

"Very well," he said, sounding reluctant. "Feel free to explore the castle." He gave me an apologetic look. "However, I can't leave you to your own devices."

I nodded.

"I understand," I said, giving him a warm smile. "I am an outsider after all."

Lord César nodded, before he gestured to one of the House Sandstrike retainers.

"You there. Accompany Lady Gabrielle."

The retainer, a man with little presence, stepped forward and nodded.

"Yes, Lord César," he said.

With that, I stood up. At the same time, Anna slipped something round and metallic into my hand. I pocketed it in one smooth motion. From the lack of reaction, it appeared that no one else noticed this exchange.

After that, I left the drawing room. The retainer followed right behind me. To avoid arousing suspicion, I explored the main keep instead of snooping right away. This wasn't difficult, since the interior was beautiful. I walked around and studied the various pieces of art on display. However, I also took this as an opportunity to study the retainer.

As I noted earlier, he had little presence. He seemed to just blend into the background. This was a common skill among retainers and servants, but this man took it a step further. Combined with his plain appearance, it was easy to overlook him. It would be difficult to pick him out in a crowd. I asked him a few questions.

The ability to remain unobtrusive to this degree was a valuable trait for a spy.

Was this retainer Mireya's husband? If so, I could work with him. If not, I needed to ditch him somehow so I could investigate Sandstrike Castle. I didn't have much time, so I needed to make the most of it. Thankfully, I could use one of the phrases that Crawford taught us.

I stopped in front of a tapestry that depicted the end of the Long Night. This was the era that preceded the current one, the era before the founding of the Solarian Empire and the Lunarian Kingdom. During those days, the world was engulfed in chaos. Humanity was divided into several warring kingdoms and states. Demons ran rampant across the land, causing chaos and destruction. It was a time of darkness and misery.

And then the Sun Emperor and the Moon Queen arrived.

No one knows their origins for sure. Some speculate that they were divine servants of Sol and Luna, the chief gods of Lumina, sent down to save the world. Others believe that they were mortals who proved themselves worthy of the gods' blessing and became demigods. The only ones who know the truth are the Sun Emperor and the Moon Queen themselves, and they've remained silent on the matter.

The two of them fought to unite humanity and drive back the demons. They brought back hope to a world consumed by despair, order to a land embroiled in chaos. Along the way, they gathered a group of companions to aid them in their quest. One of those companions was my ancestor, Sturm.

After years of grueling effort, the Sun Emperor and the Moon Queen succeeded in ending the Long Night. They banished the demons from Lumina, before founding the Solarian Empire and the Moon Kingdom. While things weren't perfect now, and outright sucked sometimes, they were worse during the Long Night by far.

The tapestry before me depicted the final battle. Two shining figures, one golden and one silver, fought against a powerful demon. Fighting alongside them were other figures, including one clad in silvery-blue lightning.

Seeing this made me think of a question that I had avoided thus far. What happened to the Sun Emperor and the Moon Queen in the First Timeline? The two of them were among the most powerful beings on Lumina, if not the most powerful. How were the demons able to destroy the world with those two around?

Unless something happened to them.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

A part of me realized this a long time ago. However, I avoided thinking about it. Anna, Kaylee, and Cally knew the answer. They lived through it, after all. If I wanted to know, all I needed to do was ask them. Except, I couldn't.

The idea that the Sun Emperor and the Moon Queen died, or worse, in the First Timeline chilled me to the bone. They were legendary figures, powerful beings with god-like power. It was akin to the sun rising from the west or the sky falling. If even they failed, what chance did the rest of us have?

"My lady?" the retainer called out, bringing me back to the present.

I shook my head. Now wasn't the time for idle thoughts. I had a job to do, and little time to do it in.

"Sorry," I said. "I was just lost in thought." I reached towards the tapestry, but stopped my fingers less than an inch away from touching it. "Gazing upon this makes me think of the secrets that shadows hold."

This was another one of the phrases that Crawford told us. The retainer didn't reply right away. A few seconds later, just as I started to think that this retainer wasn't Mireya's husband, he responded.

"That's something only those who can see in the dark would know, my lady," the retainer said.

I resisted the urge to sigh with relief. This was Mireya's husband after all. Good. This would make things much easier for me.

"This isn't a good place to talk," Mireya's husband said. "Please come with me."

I nodded and followed him as he led me through the halls of Sandstrike Castle. I made sure to remain vigilant. There was a chance that this retainer wasn't Mireya's husband and he was leading me into a trap. In fact, the latter might be true even if he was Mireya's husband. The moment I sensed that something was off, I was going to turn around and bolt.

To my relief, less than a minute later, Mireya's husband led me to a small storage room located in an out of the way corner of the castle. It was dim and dusty, and filled with wooden crates. The dust made my nose itch and I resisted the urge to sneeze.

"We can talk freely now," Mireya's husband said. "Almost no one comes here."

I nodded, before I gestured to him.

"A pleasure to meet you," I said, speaking in my normal voice. "I've heard a lot from your wife. It's nice to put a face to the… You know, I never learned your name."

Mireya's husband's eyes widened in surprise, before he gave me a wry smile.

"Amando," he said. "And you must be Ernest Rowe." He looked me up and down. "That's one hell of a disguise. If you hadn't said anything just now, I wouldn't have guessed that you were a man."

When he said Ernest Rowe, his expression made it clear that he didn't believe that this was my real name. Not that it mattered. Hell, even if I told him my real name, I doubted he would believe it. I mean, why would a scion from House Sturm investigate disappearances in some random corner of the Solarian Empire? Oh, if only he knew.

"We don't have much time before dinner," I said. "So let's cut to the chase. Have you managed to find anything new?"

Amando shook his head.

"I've already shared everything I learned with Mireya," he said. "Even finding out that much aroused my superiors' suspicion." He grimaced. "I need to lay low for now. Otherwise, I'll lose my position. Or worse."

I nodded. I figured as much. It was already a minor miracle that Amando found out as much as he had.

"In that case, tell me where I can find Lady Isabel's rooms?" I asked. "If she's involved with whatever's going on, and it's likely that she is, then maybe I'll find something if I search her quarters."

Amando shook his head.

"That's a terrible idea," he said. "Lady Isabel's rooms are located in a heavily restricted area of the castle. Few people are allowed access. You'll be caught long before you even get close."

I smirked.

"Worry not," I said. "I came prepared."

I pulled out the metallic object that Anna gave me earlier. It was one of the invisibility bracelets that we procured. I put it on and activated it using the method that Lord Dominic Ironward taught me. The moment I disappeared from sight, Amando started.

"You have an invisibility enchanted item?" he asked, his envy obvious.

"There's a reason why your boss sent us," I said, deactivating the invisibility bracelet.

Amando nodded with a thoughtful expression on his face.

"In that case, you might just make it," he said. "To get to Lady Isabel's rooms, you need to…"

Amando proceeded to give me directions to one of Sandstrike Castle's spires. Lady Isabel had appropriated it for her own use, with Lord Sandstrike's blessing. Even if the two had mended bridges, that was still unusual.

If I were Lord Sandstrike, I'd be wary of Lady Isabel building up her power and influence. I'd suppress and limit her as much as I could. Ruthless, yes, but the man forced his own mother to step down. If that wasn't ruthless, I didn't know what was.

It was looking more and more likely that Lady Isabel somehow put Lord Sandstrike under her thumb. The question was how? Coercion? Or something more sinister?

Regardless, it didn't matter. All I needed to worry about was finding Lady Isabel's rooms and looking for clues. Everything else was secondary.

Afterwards, Amando led me to a nearby restroom. While I was gone, he would pretend I was in there, to avoid arousing suspicion. Of course, there was a limit to this, so the sooner I made it back the better. Maybe this was unnecessary, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

I put the invisibility bracelet on, activated it, and made my way towards Lady Isabel's spire. According to Amando, no one else in House Sandstrike knew what went on in there. The only ones allowed entry were Lady Isabel and those she allowed in.

As I made my way to the spire, I passed by a few of House Sandstrike's servants and retainers. To avoid bumping into anyone, I walked along the sides of the hallway. While the invisibility bracelet hid me from most forms of perception, that didn't include touch.

Security grew tighter and tighter the closer I made it to the spire. More retainers patrolled the area, and I even had to pass through a number of checkpoints. Thankfully, the invisibility bracelet made this part a breeze. I waited until someone else passed through the checkpoints, before slipping through myself.

Soon, I arrived at the entrance to the spire. It was guarded by two retainers. However, there was something off about them. They were too stiff, for lack of a better word. They made none of the little movements that people made when standing still. Perhaps I could chalk it up to discipline, but that didn't seem right. Even discipline had its limits. These two retainers seemed more like statues than living people.

After studying them for a minute, I realized that these two retainers hadn't blinked once. A chill ran down my spine. There was something wrong with these two retainers, something very wrong.

A part of me was tempted to capture one of them and bring them back to the others. However, I decided against it. The chances of me making it out of Sandstrike Castle with one of their retainers in tow was close to zero. The invisibility bracelet was powerful, but it had its limits.

The bigger problem was entering the spire undetected. I was invisible, but a door opening and closing on its own was suspicious. And what if it was locked? While I could wait for someone to enter, or come out, but I didn't know how long that would take.

In that case, I decided to find another way in. The door was locked, but perhaps I could find a window. I went into a nearby room, opened a window, and poked my head out. The spire jutted out from the main keep, like a spear pointing to the sky. It was big enough that I couldn't see it all from my current vantage point. To my relief, it had windows large enough for me to climb through. Perfect.

I pulled my head back in, tied up my dress so it didn't get in my way, before I climbed out of the window. Some people would hesitate to climb along the outside of a castle, especially this far up, but I had no such misgiving. As the descendant of a storm dragon, the sky called to me. Heights weren't a problem. Once I became powerful enough, I would even be able to fly.

Climbing along the outside of the main keep proved tricky. After all, castles were designed to keep out intruders. Thankfully, I found plenty of hand holds. With my physical capabilities, making it up the spire proved no challenge.

However, when I reached the closest window, I faced a new problem. An alarm enchantment protected it. As the name suggested, if I tried to enter this window the enchantment would make a loud and obnoxious noise, alerting everyone to my presence. Even if I escaped, people would know that there was an intruder lurking around. Given that Anna and I were the only outsiders within Sandstrike Castle, as far as I knew, suspicion would fall on us.

Damn it. Lady Isabel was more paranoid than I expected. Who would put an alarm enchantment on a window that could only be accessed by climbing along the main keep's walls?

Well, given the wide variety of spells and enchanted items that wizards had access to, perhaps Lady Isabel's paranoia was warranted.

This just made me even more determined to enter the spire. The question was, how? Do I risk the front entrance? Or do I climb higher up and hope I found a window that didn't have an alarm enchantment?

In the end, I decided to climb higher. I already made it this far up, I might as well give it a try. If that didn't work, I could always try the front entrance.

To my dismay, as I climbed the spire, each window I came across was protected by an alarm enchantment. Even the ones at the very top. My heart dropped. All that effort and I achieved nothing. What a waste of time.

However, as I grumbled to myself and prepared to climb down, the window next to me opened. Surprised, I almost let go and plummeted to my death. Thankfully, I secured myself in time. Even so, it was a close call. My heart drummed against my ribs like a drum.

"There we go, my lady," a woman's voice called out. "Some fresh air will do you good."

This one sounded bright and cheerful.

"Thank you, Carmela," another woman said, her voice huskier and more sensual. "Now then, where were we?"

My nerves thrummed with excitement when I realized that this was Lady Isabel, and I had stumbled upon an opportunity to eavesdrop on her.

The gods were smiling upon me.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.