As dawn approached, Levisia was thankful that she had a relatively uninterrupted night’s sleep. Her own thoughts kept waking her up at night, but no one had disturbed her to solve some issue. Now that she was fully rested, she was in a cheerful mood as she dressed and went over to Sheila’s room.

Her mood quickly went downhill when she found Sheila laying in her bed, her window wide open and the duvet on the floor. As she got closer, she could see that Sheila’s face was caked in sweat.

“Sheila? What’s the matter?” Levisia said, reaching out to feel Sheila’s forehead with the back of her hand. She frowned at the heat radiating from her skin. It was as though Sheila’s skin was on fire.

“I am fine, your Highness. Just a slight illness, nothing that will stop me from my duties.” Sheila said, clearly struggling to sit up. Levisia pushed her back down and threw the duvet over her.

“No, you are not going anywhere, Sheila. Look at you. Stay here, and don’t get and move.” Levisia gave Sheila one last look before she left her room and hurried over to Pel’s. He was leaving his room as she arrived, and could tell something was wrong.

“Lev- Your Highness? Is everything alright?” He asked, bowing in a way that ensured his wig stayed in place. Fearing that Sheila was climbing out of bed, Levisiai dragged his hand and pulled him back to Sheila’s room. Just as she feared, Sheila had thrown the covers back and was sitting upright in bed.

“Oh no, you don’t,” Pel said as he burst into the room and stopped Sheila from standing up. “You are staying right here. You look like a sweating corpse, Sheila. Admit it, you’re sick.”

“And I need you to look after her, Pel,” Levisia said, her hand on the door handle. “I’m sorry to ask this of you, but I will be spending all day with the Kraidens. I will have someone bring water, food, and medicine for you. Please rest, Sheila. And do not worry about me, Pel. I can handle myself.” With a final smile to them both, she closed the door and hurried towards the ground floor where everyone was waiting for her in the dining hall. She briefly explained what was going on to a maid, and sat down to eat her now-cold breakfast.

As she ate, she noticed that there were other people at the table. She felt as though she had seen them before, at least vaguely. Helga, thankfully, came to her rescue.

“Your Highness, that man there, the one with dark brown hair, is Roman Dussle. He is the ninth prince. And the woman with the light pink hair is Kori Sue, the thirteenth princess.”

Roman, with his hair falling over his deep blue-green eyes, was talking to Kori as he sipped his tea. Kori’s head turned her way, and they briefly made eye contact. Her sky-blue eyes widened for a split second before returning to their normal size. She quickly turned her head away, only occasionally glancing back at Levisia.

Though Roman’s and Kori’s reactions seemed lukewarm, Levisia couldn’t help but think that they didn’t like her.

But there was one man she did recognize.

“Jedian Holter.” She said, and it dawned on her where she had met them all before, at the Mentine estate. What were they all doing here? Had they been following them?

As soon as their gazes met, Jedian nodded at her and gave her a brief smile. Levisia returned the gesture and continued eating her food. Soon, everyone has finished and their plates were carried away. Elizabeth ushered everyone into the entrance hall, where Jedian reached out to tap Levisia.

“Princess Levisia. I am Jedian Holter, the seventeenth prince. I believe we have met before, have we not?”

Before Jedian could respond, Elizabeth called to them from outside. Annoyed that she would not get an answer, Levisia followed Jedian out to where the carriages were waiting. When she arrived, she found Elizabeth loudly chastising Merril for being in her carriage.

“Why do you always leave your carriage behind and crawl in here!?”

Merril made some incredibly childish comments that made Elizabeth flare-up. Levisia watched in equal parts confusion and disgust. Two of the most powerful women in the Empire, right when it is at its peak, were arguing over who sits in whose carriage.

“Jedian! Join us, why don’t you?” Merril shouted from the carriage. Levisia glanced behind her to see Jedian standing a few feet away, a visible look of confusion on his face. Levisia looked between the two, wondering why Merril was on such friendly terms with someone she had just met. Was she genuinely trying to be friendly, or was it another plot to annoy Elizabeth? Given Merril’s fondness of deliberately winding up Elizabeth, Levisia guessed it was the latter.