Magnus's POV
I sat in my chamber. The silence pressed against my ears like a physical weight.
Beside me, the fire crackled in the hearth. It was meant to provide warmth. But tonight, the sound was nothing more than irritating noise.
I stared into the dancing orange flames. I watched them consume the logs. Much like I intended to consume the throne of Blackwood.
My thoughts were dark. Alaric is no longer the person I can control.
For years, I have carefully cultivated his rage. I have fed his hunger for revenge like one feeds a starving beast. I needed him to be a tyrant.
I needed him to be hated. So when the time came, the coup would feel like a liberation rather than a betrayal. But now, his focus has shifted. He is obsessed with a ghost who fell from the sky.
I had initially dismissed Elara's warnings as the bitter ramblings of a jealous woman.
I was wrong. I have seen it with my own eyes. Alaric is softening. He looks at that chef not with the eyes of a King. But with the eyes of a man who is finding peace.
Peace is a luxury I cannot allow him to have.
A sharp knock at the door disrupted my thoughts.
Elder Hrothgar stepped into the room. He looked anxious. His eyes darting toward the shadows.
"Ahhh, my partner in crime." I said.
My voice dripping with sarcasm.
"What are you doing here so late at night? To what do I owe this midnight visit?"
Hrothgar did not smile. He sat across from me. His hands wringing together.
"I am bothered, Grand Prince. The Alpha is well. He is no longer going accordingly to our plan. The trajectory of his rule is shifting away from the darkness we require."
I narrowed my eyes.
"I was thinking the same thing. But when you say the Alpha is well. What do you mean by that? Is he supposed to be sick? Or perhaps at the point of dying?"
Hrothgar went quiet. He looked like a man caught with his hand in a neighbor's grain sack. He did not respond. His silence told me everything I needed to know.
"Don't tell me you were the one who sent a rogue to attack him in the forest." I inquired.
My voice dropping to a dangerous whisper.
"I am sorry, Grand Prince." Hrothgar said. He finally found his voice.
"I thought it was the right time to strike. He was alone with the ghost girl. I believed that if he died there, everyone would think the Moon Goddess had punished him for defying the sacred ritual. It would have been clean. All I did was ensure you get the crown. I wanted a new era to begin in the Blackwood Kingdom."
"You did it for yourself, Hrothgar." I spat.
I leaned forward until I could smell the stale ale on his breath.
"I told you I would let you know the right time to strike. You acted on your own will, and you failed. Now, Alaric is alert. He is hunting for enemies in his own woods."
Hrothgar looked guilty. But his incompetence still filled me with bile.
"Now the Alpha has sent Eunuch George to get his mother's last draft." I continued.
"He wants to know the late Luna's final wishes for her offenders. We both know the truth of that woman. She was soft hearted. She would never wish anything bad for another wolf, even those who poisoned her. She will tell him to forgive. If he reads those words, he will find mercy. It will destroy our plans of portraying him as a tyrant. We cannot dethrone a man the people see as a saint."
"Grand Prince Magnus..." Hrothgar started.
"You better have a very good plan for me after the rubbish you just did." I interrupted. My eyes flashed with anger.
"I already have Eunuch George in my custody." Hrothgar said.
I paused. The anger in my chest was replaced by a surge of genuine amusement.
I looked at him. My eyebrows raised. "You kidnapped Eunuch George?"
"Yes." Hrothgar said.
He was gaining a bit of confidence.
"I knew he was close to finding the draft. I did not want him to ruin our plans. So I took him. I am here to ask the way forward."
I let out a foolish laugh. A deep, guttural sound like a man drunken with wine. I leaned back in my chair. The tension leaving my shoulders.
"You are indeed my partner in crime." I said. Pointing a finger at him.
"But next time, start with the best news instead of beating around the bush. This changes everything. Now we have a new plan in place."
Hrothgar looked confused.
"What do you mean? What will we do with him?"
"You should know me by now, Hrothgar." I said.
"What do you think I would do?"
"You would use Eunuch George against Alaric?" he asked.
"Smart man. You really are just like me. We will turn his most loyal servant into the instrument of his downfall."
"With all due respect, Grand Prince." Hrothgar said. "That is a terrible idea. We all know how loyal Eunuch George is to Alaric. He will never speak against the King."
"I know that, Hrothgar. Just watch how I plan this out. Logic is a weak shield against a broken heart. Tell me, how are the rogues we are training in the south camp?"
"They are doing well, Grand Prince." He replied. "They are strong and hungry."
"Good. Very soon, they will go on a mission to capture the chief royal chef. That is where we will start. I want to see what they have learned so far. If we take the girl, Alaric will lose his mind. A man who loses his mind is a man who makes mistakes."
"No problem, Grand Prince Magnus." Hrothgar said.
"As for Eunuch George, keep him. I will attend to him when the time comes. And the rogue who shot the King... send him to me. I know Alaric will find him eventually, so I want to make sure he says exactly what I want him to say before he is executed."
"I will do all that you have asked." Hrothgar said.
He hesitated for a moment.
"But I am still bothered about the late Luna's last draft. We know she is soft hearted. If she says Alaric should forgive, we won't be able to trigger his anger."
I let out that drunken laugh again. I shaked my head at Hrothgar's lack of vision.
"You are too shallow, Elder Hrothgar. That is exactly where Eunuch George comes in."
Hrothgar leaned in. His curiosity piqued. "How?"
"We will not give Alaric the whole truth." I explained.
"We will tear the draft in half. We will only give Eunuch George the portion where she listed her offenders. Seeing that his own family, the Grand Queen Mother, was part of the plot will be enough. It will trigger Alaric's anger beyond anything we have seen. I know Alaric too well. I know what triggers him. Leave the manipulation to me."
"And the other half?"
"Burned." I said. "Along with her mercy."
I stood up and walked to the window. I looked out over the dark expanse of the kingdom.
"But we need more. We need a visual. We will find the late Luna's mother. The old woman who ran mad after her daughter was poisoned. We will bring her out of the shadows. We will feed her, clothe her, and tell her exactly what to say. We will give her a dress stained with blood and tell her to claim it is the clothes the late Luna wore the day she died."
I turned back to Hrothgar. My face wore a mask of cold ambition.
"I will watch Alaric turn into that uncontrollable tyrant that he is. He will see blood, and he will want more. The palace will flow with blood that day. In the chaos, the people will beg for a new leader." I laughed lightly.
I yelled. "They will beg for me!"
