“Look!” Kerns pointed at a small metal piece after wiping away dust. “We’re not the first ones to eavesdrop here.”
Wilhelmina pulled the ring on the metal piece, opening it slightly. Light from the other side illuminated heated arguments, reminiscent of a marketplace.
“…Unbelievable!” shouted an old man in a white robe with gold trim, clearly a high-ranking elder. “Just because those shameless rioters threaten us, we should compromise? Those ungrateful, insatiable people who desire to get something for nothing, eyeing our wealth. Open the warehouse doors for them?”
“They are not rioters, Lord Faraheim!” replied a middle-aged man. “They are our people who have created your wealth. It’s the 7385th year of the Galactic Calendar, and human civilization has existed for over ten thousand years, yet your views are stuck in the past.”
Are you saying the Queen should compromise with the people?” a middle-aged man shouted. “A monarch should never be threatened by the people. She is the ruler!”
“Inappropriate governance methods will only provoke riots. This is a lesson from history!”
“You young radicals shout about freedom and equality. Wait until the rebels strip you of your white robe; then you’ll know what kind of rioters you’ve helped!”
“If we don’t make concessions now, we’ll lose more than just this linen robe,” an elder in a white robe with blue stripes tapped his cane. “They have the support of the financial elite. We can’t even nominate our own finance minister.”
“Can the finance minister really solve the problem? They are demanding constitutional amendments. When their patience runs out, they’ll demand the Queen’s crown!”
“Watch your words, Lord Stelranston!”
“We are arguing, sir. Watching one’s words won’t resolve our conflict.”
“The Queen will not lose her crown.”
“But our family will lose the monarch!” the middle-aged man replied. “Something similar happened to the French Empire over ten thousand years ago.”
“For God’s sake, young man, we’re facing rioters, not the starving.”
“Don’t twist my meaning, sir. Our class has monopolized too many resources. That’s the fundamental issue.”
“At least we have the army!”
“Don’t count on the Selberg family.”
They have been upright for generations and won’t sacrifice their troops to help you rich and stingy people. The marshal stated when he took office that their family would not turn guns on the people.”
“I’ve said if his son won’t marry the Queen, we should strip them of their military power.”
“Forcibly removing military power now will only cause unrest.”
“Are you saying Selberg will rebel?”
“The marshal would never do such a thing!” someone interjected. “And you are trying to force young Selberg to marry a woman he doesn’t love, disregarding his reputation.”
They left the Senate hall quietly. Angela was already waiting in her pink mini hover car. The two jumped in, and the car started moving.
“Darling, how was the meeting?” Angela asked, “Sorry, I mean, how was the eavesdropping?”
“You can’t imagine how exciting it was,” Wilhelmina said as she opened the window to enjoy the early summer breeze, “If the Senate meeting is so spectacular, why are we going to watch a talk show? The best way for the Senate to increase revenue isn’t through the wishing pool outside, but by selling tickets to the meeting.”
Cairns chuckled, “Poor Selberg brothers. He’s like a steak laid out for everyone to point at.”
Wilhelmina remembered Albert’s proposal and inexplicably blushed, not responding to Cairns. He looked at her puzzled.
Angela looked at them keenly, “Are you two okay?”
“Of course,” Cairns laughed, “Thanks for picking us up, Angela.”
Angela noticed Wilhelmina’s strange expression but said nothing more.
The situation was worsening, with daily protests and violent conflicts. Annabel retreated, stripping her cousin Stanford of his title. The police detained Stanford again for trial.
Annabel’s actions slightly eased the situation. In this brief calm, the final unified exam for the Imperial High-level Department arrived.
Due to special circumstances, Tiel Military Academy moved the professional course exam forward by three days. After completing exams in flight, shooting, and other subjects, they proceeded to language, mathematics, and physics.
On the sixth day of the exam, Wilhelmina sat in the exam room taking the chemistry paper. Chemistry was her weak subject, so she answered carefully, leaving time for the last two high-scoring questions.
After completing the first big question and calculating the second on her draft paper, the classroom door opened. Sir Wolf entered accompanied by a military officer, walking directly to Wilhelmina.
“Your Highness, I’m sorry to interrupt your exam,” Sir Wolf bent down and whispered, “I’m afraid you must end the exam. You need to return to the palace immediately.”
“But this is the last subject. I still have the last question,” Wilhelmina exclaimed softly.
“I’m sorry,” Sir Wolf said helplessly.
Wilhelmina bit her lip, submitted her paper, and followed Sir Wolf out. Outside, she saw Cairns waiting with his secretary.
“What happened?”
“Civil war has broken out, Your Highness,” Sir Wolf delivered the shocking news.
Wilhelmina and Cairns were stunned. “How could this be?”
While opening the military hover car door, Sir Wolf explained: “This morning, the Queen’s cousin, Mr. Stanford, was involved in a fight in the detention center and was stabbed to death. The Queen blamed the democratic party, dispersed all protest gatherings in Odin, and arrested democratic leaders. Schneider received the news and left Odin in advance. The Queen issued a war mobilization alert and declared Schneider a traitor.”
“Has she gone mad?” Cairns exclaimed.
“She has been unhinged for more than a day now,” Wilhelmina pressed. “What about now?”
“According to royal succession law, when royal power is threatened, all members within three generations of the same clan and before the tenth in line must return to their territories and accept protection from the royal guards.”
Wilhelmina and Cairns exchanged glances, an ambitious light flashing in their eyes.
“When do we set out to return to our territories?”
“No later than tonight.”
“So urgent?”
“Obviously, Annabel does not feel at ease leaving us in the imperial capital,” Cairns sneered. “What protection by the guards? It’s actually just surveillance.”
“Oh right,” William Mina recalled. “How is Marshal Selberg?”
“When I left, His Majesty had already sent someone to invite him.”
Cairns nudged William Mina with his elbow. “I’ll bet five pounds he won’t come to the palace.”
“He will definitely come,” William Mina said confidently. “They have been fooling the Queen for six years; they won’t fall short now.”
Cairns chuckled. “Fooling. I like that word.”
They returned to the Rose Palace and did not see the Queen. Palace officials and Brück greeted them and conveyed the Queen’s wish for them to leave the capital tonight.
“I’m very sorry, Duchess Roxton, you will probably have to hold your coming-of-age ceremony in your own territory,” a palace official said. “Her Majesty has granted you all the rights of an adult lord. This is the imperial decree. You can collect taxes in Roxton, dispatch your own defense forces, and enjoy legal immunity.”
William Mina took the golden imperial decree, feeling an indescribable emotion. She had been waiting for this paper for nearly eight years because it meant freedom. She had originally envisioned receiving it at a grand coming-of-age ceremony and leaving Odin, this invisible cage.
