The sagehand, as the head of a board of royal advisers, plays a crucial role in advising the king. Acting as the point of contact for higher-ups in every ministry, he ensures the execution of orders while prioritizing consultations with the king and adhering to the king’s decisions over his own.

- The Governments of the Three Kingdoms

Even though the old sagehand was way past his prime years, he was still strong and healthy with sharp eyes and a sharper mind. His long hair and scraggly beard had turned white ages ago and his stern face was full of wrinkles. His hooked nose reminds Nia of a hawk’s beak. He was probably older than all four of Nia’s grandparents.

However, despite his old age, he was as dignified as a king. His back was straight and his head held high.

His age and experiences provided him with the wisdom necessary to support a kingdom. In terms of power, he was only one level away from the king as the king’s right-hand man and lead advisor.

According to the law, after a ruler dies, the sagehand is responsible for helping the transition in power from the previous ruler to his heir. This mean the sagehand is in charge until Roshana is crowned queen. In the past, in cases where the next in line to the throne had not had their coming of age yet, the sagehand can step in as the regent until the next ruler came of age.

“Old geezer,” Nia called him by his nickname again. “How is my sister?”

The old sagehand snorted in indignation. “How is your sister? She’s fine! Unlike you who went missing and went running around the place!”

Nia regretted coming to him for help. She should have gone to General Ozar instead.

“What do you mean, running around the place? I was kidnapped by a human trafficker and barely escaped with my life! We stole their caravan and rode for miles while they chased us…” Nia started creating an elaborate and exaggerated tale of how she and her small band of captives fought hard for their freedom and won a stunning victory.

The old sagehand was taking none of her nonsense. “Whatever, don’t think I can’t tell what’s true and what’s false.”

Nia knew his intuition wasn’t as accurate as he thought because he still falsely blamed her for stealing his handclock.

“But what do you mean, my sister is ‘fine’? What about Prince Russek?” Nia practically spat his name out. He doesn’t deserve to be her brother-in-law.

“I don’t know what he did to persuade your sister, but she is bent on making him king! This is unprecedented in history! No matter what I tell her, she simply—”

“Wouldn’t listen,” Nia finished bitterly. “Of course she wouldn’t. He’s threatening her.”

The old sagehand stared at her, stunned. “What?”

“For someone who claimed to be as wise as you did, you’re quite blind to the full picture. Do you want me to draw it all out for you? It was Prince Russek’s men who assassinated the royal family. He was the one who killed everyone that night, and now, he is threatening to kill Roshana as well unless she makes him king as he always wanted.”

The old sagehand placed a hand to his chest, his composure lost for the first time in Nia’s memory. He looked shaken and pale. “No… that can’t be. The royal house of Terensar swore an oath of loyalty to the royal house of Latarias. That oath was reinforced with magic.”

“Isn’t that just a myth? I saw everything with my own eyes! Besides, doesn’t it make sense? He benefits from everything. Who else could have planned it?” Nia demanded angrily.

“But… Roshana benefits too…”

“How? She’s being married to the man who murdered her family! You need to stop the wedding! Don’t let Russek become king!”

“Hush,” Khiran warned the two. Despite the fact that they were alone, there are still ears behind the walls and doors just out of earshot.

 Nia swiveled around in surprise at the sound of his voice. She had forgotten that he was there. He was so silent that he blended into the background like a painting on the wall.

“Who are you?” the sagehand questioned him.

“His identity is not important right now.” Nia deflected the question. “We need to save my sister, and he will help us.”

“What do you mean, his identity is not important? He could be a spy!” the old sagehand pressed on.

“I trust him! He helped free me from the slavers!” Nia defended.

“I don’t trust him and I’m wiser than you!”

“Save your breath!” Nia muttered angrily. “I don’t want to hear any of your nonsense!”

“What nonsense? Kings listen to my words and take them to heart!”

“I said, quiet,” Khiran spoke up again as Nia and the old sagehand started bickering like young children. “We need to hurry up with the plan.”

“What plan?” Nia and the old sagehand asked in unison.

Nia smacked her forehead when she remembered. “Right! Save Roshana.”

“And how do you plan to do that?” Khiran asked. “I don’t know the royal palace that well, so you will have to guide me on this.”

“I- uh-” Nia floundered, not used to making plans on her own.

“You’re here to ask for my help, right?” the sagehand reminded her.

“Yes! Right! We need a way into the palace without raising anyone’s attention and take Roshana away-”

“And leave Saraja without a ruler? Very smart.” the old sagehand tutted at her. 

Nia wasn’t sure why she was ever afraid of him. He was the most annoying person ever, dethroning Khiran from the position of being her biggest anger trigger. Perhaps facing down dangerous human traffickers made her braver.

“I don’t have much of a choice. The palace is full of soldiers from Veruna. We need to remove her from the vipers’ nest.”

“And then?” The old sagehand inquired.

"We go to General Ozar for help and ask him to drive the enemies out with his army. There aren’t that many soldiers from Veruna. Compared to our huge army, they will be outnumbered. As long as Roshana is out of their reach, they won’t be able to use her as leverage. I will destroy the palace myself if it means getting rid of those Verunan people.”

The old sagehand actually smiled in approval, which made Nia nervous and suspicious. He had never smiled at her before. It was the same smile he used to give… Vivian.

The memory pained her, but also strengthened her resolve.

“Aren’t you afraid of going to war with Veruna?” The old sagehand revealed another side to the issue.

Nia pondered for a moment, then shook her head. “Aren’t they the one who provoked us? As much as I’d like to avoid any more deaths, we may not have a choice. The Verunans have thrown the first spear. 

“Luckily, we have a strong army trained by General Ozar. However, it’s more likely that the king of Veruna doesn’t want a war either and will try to appease us by punishing Prince Russek once Prince Russek retreats back to Veruna. After all, Veruna probably needed the alliance with us more than we do. 

“I believe that Russek works for his own gains without the permission or knowledge of his family. If he were to succeed, the royal family of Veruna might tolerate his actions. If he fails, they will likely denounce him to avoid blame.”

“Excellent analysis, princess.” the old sagehand nodded and stroked his beard, pleased. “The tutors taught you well.”

“Wrong,” Nia shrugged. “I didn’t listen to any of them. I learned directly from Vivian.”

“Yes, and he learned from the best of all tutors—me.”

Nia rolled her eyes, having forgotten how narcissistic the stagehand was.

“How do you plan to smuggle your sister out?” Khiran asked. He had been quiet and observant the whole time.

Nia grinned. “I was thinking of dressing up as a maid. And this old geezer here will bring us into the palace.”

“Me? Why would I bring two servants to the palace?” the old sagehand pointed out.

“I’m sure you can find a way to smuggle us in somehow. Khiran will help us find a different way out, and we’ll return to your mansion before having you reach out to General Ozar for his help. I’m sure entering is much harder than leaving so we’ll only need your help for the first phase.”

“That might actually work.” the old sagehand agreed, but he still sounded hesitant.

“When do you want to carry out the plan?” Khiran asked.

“The sooner the better: Tomorrow,” Nia affirmed.

“Good,” Khiran approved of her decisiveness. “Can I get something to eat now?”

“Right, we haven’t eaten since this morning. All we had for breakfast was stale bread and water.”

The old sagehand nodded in understanding. “Follow me to the guest room. I’ll ask the maids to bring you some food and prepare a bath for you two.”

“That sounds wonderful.” Nia looked forward to a nice long bath. She was grimy and dirty from her ordeals and she really wanted a fresh set of clothes.

“You have a lot of nerves coming to me, though.” The old sagehand’s voice rang down the hall as he led the two down the hallway. “Considering the fact that you stole my handclock.”

Nia groaned. “For the last time, I didn’t steal your handclock!” She shot a sideways glare at Khiran who had the audacity to smile back innocently at her.

“Can you prove it?” the old sagehand challenged.

“I can,” Khiran spoke up. Nia glanced at him apprehensively. Was he going to confess his crime right here and now?

Instead of confessing, Khiran walked over to a large vase and stuck his hand in.

“Careful! That vase is priceless!” the old sagehand cried out.

Khiran simply continued to push his hand in until he found what he was looking for and pulled his hand back out. A silver handclock dangled from his grip.

The old sagehand’s jaw dropped. “How did that get there?”

For the second time in her life, Nia witnessed the old sagehand lose his composure. She couldn’t help but feel satisfied and gleeful at seeing him get bested. 

She thought back to what Khiran said to her before: 

“I steal for the fun and thrill of stealing, not for money.”

“I didn’t take it. What’s the point if no one knows enough about it to appreciate its value? I merely removed it from his office and hid it in a vase in the living room.”

Because the vase was so valuable and heavy, the maids only dared to dust and polish its outside, but no one dared to pick it up for fear of dropping it. Because of that, no one realized the silver handclock was lying at the bottom of the vase.

Nia busted out laughing. “Old geezer, it was under your nose the whole time!”

The old sagehand stood there like a statue, completely stunned. His mouth opened and closed like a fish, but not a single word came out.