"You look like you need rest. Go, I'll finish it all up in your place" Neah felt her body collapse at those words, appreciating the gesture more than she could tell. But her mind chased her for that. She hated how weak she got in these times.

Neah might have taken Howl in a fit of jealousy and rage but she knew she had gotten lucky with her selection. The female was something else with her work ethic and dedication. Neah appreciated it, even if she hated everything else about Howl's situation.

"Don't get cocky with me. You're still a prisoner here and your family is still being kept as a hostage" Neah reminded the other, her voice no longer sharp and biting. Even Howl didn't think of it as a threat since she showed no signs of cowering before Neah.

They had fallen into a quick dynamic people had dubbed 'the CEO and the secretory' and Neah had to admit that it fit. Howl was more than picking up for her slack in the past few days. She did work Neah had no energy left for and she would have seriously considered proposing to Howl had it not been for Maria.

"Anyway, how's the search going? Any progress?" Howl asked as she took half of the paperwork Neah had. She had gotten used to doing them and knew what was contained in these reports by heart. Neah didn't even need to brief her anymore.

"Alester is looking for Trishula but he won't tell us even if he found him. The Albest council was informed about their ambassador here but they claim to not have sent anyone. And the killer is still out on the loose, causing us to lose vessels. He's even resorted to killing normal people" the princess moaned as she rested her head on the table.

The bad news just kept on coming one after the other. She had not had the time to comb through her court for traitors yet and it wasn't looking like she would have time to do so either. There was just too much happening at the same time.

"I was asking about someone else but I can see that your mind is not at a proper place right now. Go and take a rest. I'll handle things here" Neah wanted to protest but her eyes decided for her. They dropped, again and again, causing Neah to rub them in irritation.

So much for putting her all in there and getting these papers done on time. She would have to get back to them tomorrow when Howl would no longer be there. Then she would be able to get started on the cases she was behind and finally have time to look over Maria's case.

God, she missed Maria a lot.

"Fine. You win tonight" Neah relented her hold on her papers, making sure to lock the important ones in her desk drawer. It was magically resistant and would not open for anyone, not her. It was a secure location for her to keep secret stuff.

Howl didn't say anything as Neah did this, her eyes dropping at every other blink. It was difficult to keep them open for a long time now that her body had gotten the signal for 'rest time'.

She quickly left the room before the urge to work more took over her mind. She knew that if she stayed there, then she would just be a hindrance to everyone.

'I guess it's time to sleep' Neah picked herself up as she left the room. It was too late to go back into the room anyway. Howl had already taken charge of the paperwork and any amount of force would not make her change her mind.

Neah moved silently through the halls, her head held high even as her alertness dropped by the second. She was following her well-trained instincts to find her room when she felt the barely-there thread of magic. It caused Neah to instantly stop and her mind lost its sleepiness.

There was someone familiar and powerful in these halls who was not afraid to show her powers. Neah felt her body respond to the threat by forcing her powers to collide inside her arms.

She peeked around the surface, only to take in a sharp breath to see Lady Karin standing in front of old man Asura. Neha would have tried to save the old man, had she not known how powerful he already was. This meeting also looked peaceful since the two people in front of her did not show any aggression.

Instead, they seemed to be deep in conversation and Neah sprained her ears to be able to hear them more accurately. Whatever they were discussing was bound to be fascinating.

"-is near. Are you sure you don't want to join us? There is a way to revive him as well. If this experiment is successful then we'll have so much power" Ashura boasted. He sounded certain of his victory and Neah paused.

She was sure the old minister was talking about his secret pet project she was not allowed to peek in. This conversation made her even more curious about what it could be.

"It's a fool's dream. My love is dead and he shall remain so. Don't go and dirty 'his' name if you want to do your experiments. And also stay away from my territory or else I won't be lenient anymore" Lady Karin did not sound threatening but you could not mistake the growl in her voice.

She was subtle in her threat and Maria had a newfound respect for the redhead lady. Unlike the court, she did not need a loud or powerful presence to be heard. She was the powerful presence herself.

"Ah, did our little experiment get too close to your territory? I'm sorry that we did not notice. We'll be sure to keep it under our command next time" Ashura dismissed, his voice trying to sound sorry.historical

Neah felt the brief clash of magic as the two elders stared at each other. Her instincts told Neah that things might get complicated if blows were exchanged here.

Thankfully, things did not come down to blows. They both calmed down as they stared at each other. It felt like conversations happened as those eyes met each other.

"Just stay clear of me and don't mess with the node. The oracle is already out of your grasp anyway. The last I knew, the node threw them towards Imu. Who knows where she ended up?" Lady Karin's parting words haunted Neah.

Maria was where and what did she do? Also, why Imu? Last Neah heard it was an unstable continent on the verge of a civil war.