"As far as I know, this girl was very close to Lin," he said, "because it was this redhead, right?"

"That's right, Your Highness."

"She always seemed very loyal, sometimes too much. She did not leave her side without a clear order."

"She was bribed." Kalena tapped the crumpled paper lying on the table. "Or blackmailed, depending on how you interpret it. She had money attached to the last letter, for which she bought the poison, much cheaper and less effective than it should, but still lethal if you drank more of it. From what we were able to read, she had known Okiani Nawarin for a year."

"So it was an Okiani?" the king narrowed his eyes furiously and twisted his lips. "I didn't want to believe it. I even suspected that some enemy had sent someone against me."

"What are you going to do, Your Majesty?" Luko asked.

"And what do you think I can do in this situation?"

The question remained unanswered, but in her heart, Kalena had already guessed everything and suspected that others did too.

Galaspiael ordered everyone to appear in the throne room and let the guards bring by force those who would refuse to go voluntarily. As they gathered, he looked at everyone closely.

"Forgive me for the last indisposition," he began, "it is a miracle that I managed to survive last night. Our queen, unfortunately, is still in deep shock and cannot accompany us today."

"We hope that Her Highness will find calmness. Is her state serious?." Aymon was the first to dare to speak.

"She is perfectly healthy but aware that her life was in danger and frightened because of that. She suffered a lot and I would lie if I said that it did not affect me."

Galaspiael's every word was filled with rage. Kalena stood next to him, almost paralyzed with fear. She couldn't look into his eyes, as in the past, she couldn't look up at her owner in terror.

"As far as I know, your Silver Guard quickly tracked down the culprit," Samin broke the thick silence.

"Indeed. I am sorry to say that the person who committed this crime is one of you. Okiani, who once swore absolute obedience." Galaspiael closed his eyes for a moment. "Nawarin, please come forward."

The tall, swarthy man stepped back at his name. He wanted to escape, but Jun and Tas.h.i.+ held him down and dragged him to the center of the room.

"Okiani Nawarin, you are accused of trying to poison the king and his wife," Samin stepped forward. "You now have time to prepare for the trial."

"It won't be necessary," Galaspiael interrupted him and stood up. "The Silver Guard has collected all evidence. Personally, you did not pour the poison into my cup, but you used an innocent girl! You wrapped her in and manipulated because you didn't dare to kill me! Could I at least know the reason why you became a traitor?"

The accused remained silent. Kalena pursed her lips and stared at him intensely. She jumped violently when Galaspiael shouted.

"Answer me! Serving foreign masters does not free you from the etiquette!"

"Forgive me, Your Majesty," he croaked, falling to his knees. "I can't tell you."

"You will tell everything here or during the torture," the king said coldly.

"Kill me if you want, I won't tell you anything."

Galaspiael narrowed his eyes. Kalena glanced at him but quickly turned away. She wanted to leave as soon as possible.

"I see. No repentance... I wanted to show grace, but you give me no choice. Therefore, I condemn you to death for treason. You'll be beheaded once the celebrations are over."

Death penalty. For the first time in his life, he issued such a sentence. Kalena saw that it cost him a lot, he seemed devastated by the fact that he was forced to make such a decision. Okiani Nawarin was led out. He did not scream, he did not struggle, he seemed reconciled with fate.

"Do any of you think this is an unjust punishment?" Galaspiael turned to the others. No one objected.

"There is no excuse for such an act," Aymon responded firmly, "you have done the right thing, Your Majesty. I think you should now thank the man who saved your life yesterday. It will certainly be a rewarding moment when the king now mentions them to everyone."

"Yes," Galaspiael looked away for and sighed, letting the rest of his emotions leave him. "I wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for Kalena's quick intervention yesterday." He looked at the girl near him. "I am grateful to both you and Zarkin. If there is anything I can do for you to repay you, don't hesitate to ask."

She had no idea what to say, so she just shrugged. She thought about asking for dismissal on that day, preferring not to watch the execution. Everyone stared at her to the point it got uncomfortable.

"It seems that, like me, you also did not sleep well today," he added, understanding that the girl would rather not speak. "You're terribly pale. Eat something sweet, it should give you strength. Gentlemen, '' he turned to Okiani, "yesterday, before the poisoning, I was about to tell you something I had recently come up with. I thought about it for a long time and I think it is possible to do it."

"What is it, Your Majesty?" Asked the short Okiani, whom Kalena had not noticed earlier.

"Don't you think that the Scribe a.s.sociation should share the resources it has? The organization, which was created so that everyone has equal access to knowledge, completely closed itself to the outside world. Until someone joins this group, they don't get access to anything. I know that many of you, as well as many of your family members, could get an education, but they did not want or could not a.s.sociate with this organization. It's understandable, it's hard to find a master who would devote a year of his life to you and introduce you to the a.s.sociation. The Righteous Conspiracy doesn't allow too many foreigners…" He paused and took a deep breath. "I would like to propose a different solution, which is a primary school. So far only for the children of aristocrats, but the plans are much bigger. Three or four years of free learning. No matter what views we have regarding the acquisition of knowledge, you must admit that everyone should write and read at a decent level, especially the ones who will deal with the affairs of the kingdom in the future. I am sure that a few hours of study a day will not be a big difficulty for your children."

"What organization will this school be under?" Samin asked.

"I told you under none," said the king.

"However, the way it works is very similar to the Righteous Conspiracy. Maybe let's make an academy for future Madegaldian spies!"

"Samin, it's not polite to shout, we're not in the market," Aymon remarked. The fair-haired man flushed with rage, but when he turned around, a calmness settled on his face.

"Excuse me. My fears arise only from concern for the good of Kagolania."

"I understand you, but the Academy will only be modeled on the functioning of the Oath. Hardly anyone can withstand the intensity of training at the Scribes' a.s.sociation, which is why I prefer to extend my studies, but allow a larger group to complete it."

"Maybe we can just hire Scribes for this?" Someone asked. Galaspiael looked at him.

"Hire them for what?"

"For reading and writing. They can finally do something useful."

"The a.s.sociation is an international organization, even I don't have the power to change its rules. Please, think about my idea, I will be happy to hear your opinions. I can a.s.sure, I will take full responsibility for the claims of both organizations if they occur."

Kalena listened intently until she realized that Samin stood behind her.

"Use your position well. Only a few have this chance you just got."

"Excuse me?"

"It's obvious the king likes you a lot," he explained, and for a moment he contorted his lips in a strange grimace. "I also saved his life once and yet he never mentioned me at an audience."

*

In the evening the palace garden was empty. Everyone wanted to witness the execution of the traitor Okiani. Zarkin wandered aimlessly around the large garden, not feeling the need to do anything useful at all.

At one point, he heard someone's voice, so similar to Mei's, that he jumped. He did not see anyone until entering the cherry alley. Then he saw Nailan for the first time.

She sat among several other servants, completely outs.h.i.+ning them. When she noticed Zarkin, she waved merrily, as if they had known each other for a long time. Encouraged by this gesture, he came closer.

"Are you lost?" She asked.

"I was just resting. I deserve after all this."

"It's Zarkin from Silver Guard," said the pet.i.te blonde maid. "The one who poisons people."

"Not only poisons, sometimes saves," he corrected. "I saved the king."

"Lord Zarkin, who poisons and sometimes saves people. Nice to meet you, I'm Fan Nailan."

"I wonder why I haven't met you before. Where did I have my eyes?"

The girl looked at him pityingly.

"Have you not yet noticed that Her Highness's servants are separate from you? We came from Velikania recently, we haven't mastered Kagolanian language yet."

"Velikanian and Kagolanian are very similar" he fluently switched to her native language, to which she responded by nodding appreciatively. "Kagolania and Velikania were one back in the old days."

"I know. It will be nice to talk to someone in our language. But later, we now have to get back to work."

"Of course. The queen probably does not have such a great person by the side." Zarkin bowed. "Goodbye Nailan."

He followed her with his eyes until she disappeared at the entrance gate. Then he sat down in the place where she could still smell her perfume and sighed deeply.

*

The execution took place in the evening. Kalena had to be present.

Later she was supposed to go home, however, an inner feeling made her go to the palace garden. She wandered there a long time until finally, she found a small gazebo, surrounded by wild rose bushes. It was there that she came across Galaspiael.

He sat all alone inside, staring at a flat, polished stone, resembling a tombstone, placed in the center. He didn't notice that she came over. Kalena sat next to him and put her hand on his shoulder. He didn't even turn his head toward her.

"Do you think I'm a murderer?"

"No," she replied, "of course not."

"I saw your expression," he murmured, "back then."

"I saw the beheading for the first time in my life and I must admit that it is not something pleasant to watch, but I still think you did the right thing. Ask who you want, they will tell you the same thing."

"I don't think I did the right thing and I'm afraid the opinion of others won't change that." He sighed heavily. "Thousands of years ago people fought monsters. I envy them. It is much easier to kill a monster than a human... There should be better solutions."

"He tried to poison you," she reminded, "if you let him live, he would probably try again. Or he would turn someone else against you."

Galaspiael sighed again and fixed his eyes on the smooth stone.

"Whose grave is this?" Kalena asked, wanting to keep the conversation going.

"My slave's. Her name was Yumi," he answered. "She lived in a palace when I was eleven. She tried to make friends with me." He blinked to stop tears. "That's the only thing she wanted. To spend time with me because I was the only person her age."

"And what happened to her?"

"One day I got angry and killed her."

"Why you did that?" Kalena asked carefully, seeing that the boy was already on the verge of endurance.

"Because I was a child. Or rather a little monster who lived in the belief that he was allowed everything." He grimaced in disgust at his old self. "Not so long, because my father was very concerned that I murdered an innocent girl for fun. It happened that my master was outside and told father what to do. I was to go to Yagn-Sho for training, and after returning to live among the subjects and learn to respect them."

Kalena tried her best to hide the shock caused by his confession. She knew he wasn't lying, but at the same time couldn't imagine Galaspiael killing anyone as a child. Something like that just didn't suit him.

"I always thought you did it of your own free will."

"When I could come back, I decided not to. Everyone here... remembered how I was. Everything in the palace that reminds me of the past. About ancestors, I should be ashamed of... and about the soulless monster inside me."

"There's no monster inside you! The case with Nawarin is different, don't compare it to Yumi. And don't compare yourself to that kid you were! You're not like that anymore You've grown up and I'm sure Yumi is proud of you." She took his hand. "I think wherever she is now she has forgiven you."

*

Kalena managed to persuade Galaspiael to return to the palace, but he did not want to rest. They began to make a copy of the book stolen by her.

"Every man can enchant something different, but in most cases, the power is over one of the five elements." Kalena carefully wrote each word and continued. "This art was abandoned after the great war and banned in the Great Empire of Madegald, Sekania and also Kagolania..." She stopped reading aloud and looked at Galaspiael.

"Gyeul's Great-grandson gave the last scrolls to the Righteous Conspiracy." He nodded. "What's next there?"

"Just stupid things I told you about earlier. The author made a mistake about five hundred years of the history of Kagolania.

"You can skip history chapters, that's not what we mean. This is not the original version of this work anyway. The second sentence you read was a comment from the Conspiracy. The real pre-war version probably lies in some archive, if it survived to this time."

"You said once that you can't skip any words."

"You had to learn how to write, that's why I said it. Give it to me!" He reached out. He opened the book on the page, where there were no more Kalena's comments.

"Both men and women can master this art. We don't know exactly what determines what a person will be able to enchant, but it has been proved that representatives of dynasties have the most powerful powers... see? It's exactly what I thought. There are no divine ancestors, the people who came here a few thousand years ago simply had a highly developed enchantment talent. Ordinary subjects did not understand what was happening and began to wors.h.i.+p them. And years later, when everyone had learned to enchant, the legend remained. There is a logical explanation for everything, there is no magic in this world."

"Read on," she urged him, "I've already written everything down."

"For enchanting, the human being uses the life energy from its body. This energy can connect with the energy outside. That's when the outside can then be imposed by one's will. Over time, the body gets used to regularly straining, but you can still feel weak."

"It doesn't make sense," she said.

"I understand. I told you that I used my power once, although I was not fully aware of it at the time. It's exactly as written here. I sent a strong wave that hurt Gyeul, but knocked me down too."

"How did you know what to do and what you enchant?"

"I had no idea what I was doing, it was an act of despair," he admitted, "it just came to my mind suddenly. Before we start learning it, we still need to figure out what you can enchant with your energy."

"I don't want to discourage you, but as far as you remember I was a slave." Kalena smiled crookedly. "I don't think I have any power. For sure it's hereditary, you have more chances with your powerful ancestors. I will help you develop your talent."

"But it would be much more fun to study it together. To have our own secrets from the whole world... You don't want to?"

"Even if I could enchant something, I will soon start training with Jun, I will continue to deal with Kagolanian dynamite and work in the guard. What life energy should I use when I come home in the middle of the night and I'm exhausted? And what energy will you use?" She paused for a moment, realizing, she was yelling at him. "Now this case with Nawarin, the academy, the ban on slavery, and I know that at dinner you told Okiani about something else. You will die from overworking!"

They sat in silence for a long time, until she wanted to apologize at some point though she didn't think her words were offensive.

"Forgive me. When you want to rest, just tell me," he said calmly. "I won't be angry about it, and I can even talk to Jun to give you more time off."

"Why don't you rest yourself? You've imposed so many duties after the coronation that you'll soon get lost in everything. Get one thing to the end, then realize other ideas. You have time."

"I know," he interrupted, "I'll take a break soon. Do not compare what was before the coronation, it is completely different."

"And what has changed since then?" Kalena changed closer to him. "Why do you have to work almost to death now?"

"You won't understand this."

"How can you be so sure? Tell me what's wrong with you. Without any big words."

Galaspiael clenched his teeth.

"You never had the whole country to care about. You have no idea what it is like."

"Right, I have no idea," said Kalena calmly, "and I can't help you with that. But something bad has been happening to you for a long time. I wish I could at least comfort you, but I can't if you close yourself to me."

There was a long silence.

"I'm afraid," he confessed after a moment. "I'm afraid that eventually people will open their eyes and see that I am not fit to be king. I want to meet their expectations at least a bit, but I know that one day they will see that I can't. Today I proved that I can't handle it. I'm glad no one noticed except you."