Former Fake Becomes Grand Duke of the North

I chuckled at Duchess Galdur’s question. The two of us were dancing at the House Wirt ball, surrounded by dozens of people. However, due to a spell cast by the Duchess, none of them would be able to overhear our conversation. This was perfect for my purposes.

“Was I that obvious, Your Grace?” I asked.

Duchess Galdur let out a derisive snort.

“You weren’t subtle at all.” She said. “Out with it. The only reason why I agreed to dance with you is my own curiosity. However, I have no patience for word games. So, if you have something to say, then just say it. Otherwise, I will walk away.”

Well then. That made things simpler.

“Very well,” I said, “I won’t beat around the bush, as they say. Which candidate for the throne does House Galdur support, or plan on supporting?”

Duchess Galdur raised an eyebrow at me.

“That’s it?” She asked. “How disappointing. I expected you to ask me about something far more interesting. If this is all you have to offer, then I see no reason why we should continue with this.” Despite her words, she kept dancing with me. “However, I’m feeling generous. Try again.”

I blinked her in surprise, trying to figure out what she wanted. She was disappointed that I asked her about the imperial succession? Why? Was she not interested in who the next ruler of the Reichwald Empire would be?

Hmm, now that I thought about it, that made a certain amount of sense. According to Elmer, House Galdur refrained from participating in politics unless it was to accomplish a specific goal. Duchess Galdur was an active participant in high society, yes, but that was different. While politics and high society were intertwined in many ways, one could participate in one but not the other. It was uncommon, but it happened.

However, Elmer also said that when either House Galdur or the Tower of Magic made a move, the other responded. My overall goal was to figure out what the Tower of Magic was up to. To that end, Father and I figured that their movements were in response to House Galdur’s actions. What if we had it backwards? What if the Tower of Magic moved first, and House Galdur was responding to them? In that case, I knew what to say next.

“Do you know why the Tower of Magic is trying to kidnap Father?” I asked.

Duchess Galdur gave me a questioning look.

“Duke Guld is Father.” I explained. “Grand Duke Kaltbrand is Dad.”

Duchess Galdur laughed at that.

“Interesting.” She said. “So, you consider yourself a Guld as well as a Kaltbrand.” She shrugged. “Well, I don’t care either way. However, your second question was more interesting than your first one. Not by much, but enough to pass.” She smirked. “If you want to figure out why my dearest sister is after your father, why don’t you ask that brother of yours?”

I frowned. I had the feeling that she didn’t mean Sieg.

“Emmerich?” I asked.

Duchess Galdur nodded.

“Yes.” She said. “According to my sources within the Tower of Magic, Katarina caught Emmerich Guld having a dalliance with her disciple. It caused quite the stir. Katarina destroyed an entire floor of the Tower of Magic when she found out. Why do you think he went on a sabbatical to the Mistwood? It was to flee my sister’s wrath. She wants to lure him back using your father as bait.”

I stared at her dumbfounded. A part of me didn’t want to believe her, since I found the idea ridiculous, but it didn’t seem like she was lying.

“So, Tower Master Katarina is after my father over a personal vendetta?” I asked in disbelief. “Her actions have nothing to do with the imperial succession?”

“Well, I didn’t say that,” Duchess Galdur said. “I believe the phrase ‘kill two birds with one stone’ applies here. Tell me, what do you think would happen if Katarina got her hands on your brother?”

I mulled it over for a moment. In Tower Master Katarina’s shoes, what would I do? How would I satisfy a personal vendetta and further my political agenda?

“She would make Emmerich marry her disciple.” I said.

“Exactly!” Duchess Galdur said. “Thus, tying House Guld and the Tower of Magic together through marriage. That way, once the Tower of Magic declares its allegiance for Prince Jeremias, House Guld would either have to support him or remain neutral. Either way, Prince Jeremias benefits.”

I frowned at that.

“That doesn’t make sense.” I said. “Emmerich is already a member of the Tower of Magic.”

“Yes, but tower magicians enjoy a certain degree of autonomy.” Duchess Galdur said. “If your brother marries Katarina’s disciple, he’ll be under her thumb. She could also use him as a hostage if necessary.”

I considered Duchess Galdur’s words. It made sense, though I would have to talk with Elmer-… No, I would have to talk with Emmerich about it. If he decided to run away and hide, while leaving others to suffer from the fallout of his actions, I would make him pay for it. However, I would give him the benefit of the doubt for now.

“Why are you telling me this?” I asked. “What do you gain?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Duchess Galdur asked. “This is a perfect opportunity for me to thwart my sister’s plans without getting my hands dirty.” She smirked. “Besides, the heir to House Kaltbrand now owes me a favor. No matter how you look at it, I benefit.”

She made a fair point.

“It looks like our time together is over.” Duchess Galdur said.

I looked around. She was right. The dance was coming to an end. I had been so focused on our conversation that I hadn’t noticed until she pointed it out.

“I enjoyed dancing with you, Lord Wulfe,” Duchess Galdur said. “So much so that I’ll give you a hint. If you pay close attention tonight, you’ll figure out the answer to your first question.”

The dance ended just as she finished speaking, so I didn’t get a chance to ask what she meant by that. The two of us parted and bowed to one another.

“I enjoyed our time together, Your Grace.” I said. “Thank you for accepting my request.”

“Oh no,” Duchess Galdur said, “The pleasure was all mine.”

With that, we went our separate ways. I caught Lina’s eyes and nodded towards the refreshment tables. After dancing with Duchess Galdur, I needed a drink. Lina nodded back and the two of us headed towards the refreshment tables. I grabbed two glasses, one for me and one for Lina. When she arrived, I handed the second glass of wine to her. She accepted it and took a sip.

“So,” Lina said in a low voice, “Did you learn anything from Duchess Galdur?”

“Quite a few things.” I said, also speaking in a low voice. “I’ll tell you later, once we return home.”

Lina nodded.

“I noticed something interesting about Leopold when we were dancing together.” She said.

I gave her a questioning look.

“He’s wearing cufflinks with tree designs on them.” She said.

My eyes widened. This could mean nothing. After all, the crest of House Reichwald was a golden tree burning with sacred fire. However, the crest of House Galdur was also a tree, though theirs was shrouded in mist. If the tree on Leopold’s cuff symbolized the latter rather than the former, well, that had interesting implications.

“Duchess Galdur said that if I paid attention tonight, I would figure out who House Galdur supported or planned to support.” I murmured.

Lina nodded.

“I think we know the answer to that question.” She said.

I shook my head.

“Let’s keep our eyes open.” I said. “Just in case.”

Lina smirked.

“You should dance with Duchess Galdur’s daughters.” She said. “Maybe you’ll notice something as well.”

I gave her an annoyed look.

“And start a slew of rumors?” I asked. “No, thank you.”

I already attracted too much attention when I danced with Duchess Galdur. If I danced with her daughters as well, people would misunderstand and assume there was something going on beneath the surface. That was a headache that I didn’t want to deal with.

“Very well,” Lina said with a chuckle, “I’ll ask Sieg to dance with them.”

The rest of the ball went by without issue. As planned, I paired up with different partners for each dance, though I gained nothing of substance in the end. For the final dance, I paired up with Lina. I also noted that Leopold paired up with Lady Josepha for the final dance, which all but confirmed my suspicions.

Unless I completely misread the situation, House Galdur had thrown in their lot with Leopold. This would upset the current balance, and I didn’t know how things would turn out in the end. Regardless, with House Galdur’s support, Leopold would have a real chance at winning the throne. The downside was that this made him a threat to the other candidates, and they would target him as a result. My intuition told me that the fight for the throne would heat up in the near future.

When it was time to leave, I told Lina that I planned on stopping at Kaltbrand Manor first, before joining the others at the House Guld townhouse. There was something that I needed to do first. She could either join me, or return home with the others. Lina raised an eyebrow at that, but chose to join me.

It was near midnight by the time we arrived at Kaltbrand Manor. If the servants found Lina’s presence here at such a late hour odd, they kept it to themselves.

“Keep the carriage ready.” I said to the driver. “We’ll be leaving again soon.” I turned to Baron Kurz, who had come out to greet me. “Tell Elmer that I wish to see him in my study. Don’t let him know that Lady Lina is with me.”

Baron Kurz gave me an odd look, but bowed and headed off to obey my command. After that, I led Lina to the study and asked her to stand in front of my desk. Meanwhile, I waited beside the door to my study.

“Wulfram, what is going on?” Lina asked, frowning. “Why are you doing this?”

“You’ll see.” I said. “Just trust me.”

Lina’s frown deepened, but she nodded. We didn’t have to wait long. The door to the study opened and Emmerich walked in. When he saw Lina, he froze. Before he had a chance to recover his composure, I grabbed him by the lapels of his jacket and slammed him against the wall next to the door. I pressed my forearm against his throat. Enough to keep him in check, but not enough to hurt him.

“What the…?” Emmerich said. “Let go of me!”

“Quiet!” I hissed. “I’m the one asking the questions. If you don’t want to get hurt, I suggest you cooperate. And don’t even think about using magic to escape.”

Emmerich stared down at me with wide eyes and nodded.

“Emmerich?” Lina asked from behind me. “Is that you? What are you doing here? I thought you were in the Mistwood.”

I shook my head.

“No,” I said, “He pretended to be the personal servant you sent to me and hid himself here instead of the Mistwood. I realized who he was right away, but decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. At the time, I assumed he had a good reason for his actions.” I narrowed my eyes at Emmerich. “However, now I’m not so sure.”

Emmerich studied the both of us, before he sighed. His appearance changed. His hair became golden, his eyes became green, and his features became similar to Father and Sieg’s. In short, he dispensed with his disguise.

“I don’t know why I even bothered if everyone was just going to see right through it.” He muttered.

Lina walked up beside me and crossed her arms as she regarded her brother.

“Emmerich,” she said in a sharp voice, “What are you doing here? Why did you lie and say that you were going to the Mistwood?”

“First, could you let me down, Wulfram?” Emmerich asked. “It’s difficult to breathe.”

“No.” I said.

Emmerich pouted and turned to Lina.

“Big Sis…” He began in a pleading voice, but Lina cut him off.

“Answer my questions, Emmerich.” she said.

The man in question sighed.

“I thought it would be safer to hide here than go to the Mistwood.” He said. “Also, I wanted to meet Wulfram and get to know my new brother.”

Lina’s eyebrows raised at that.

“‘Safer?’” She said. “Emmerich, what’s going on? Are you in some kind of danger?”

“He’s Tower Master Katarina’s real target.” I answered. “According to Duchess Galdur, the reason why the Tower of Magic is trying to kidnap Father is to lure Emmerich out of hiding.”

Emmerich’s eyes widened at that.

“What?!” He exclaimed. “No, that can’t be true. Tower Master Katarina wouldn’t be petty enough to attack House Guld because of a personal vendetta.”

“‘Personal vendetta?’” Lina asked. “Emmerich, just what did you do?”

“He had a dalliance with Tower Master Katarina’s disciple.” I said.

Emmerich glared at me.

“Will you let me answer?” He asked. “Otherwise, Lina will misunderstand the situation. I don’t know what Duchess Galdur told you, but at least give me the chance to tell my side of the story.”

I glanced at Lina. She nodded. I sighed, before letting go of Emmerich. He stumbled a bit, but recovered his composure and straightened himself out. I closed the door to my study, before I gestured for the others to join me at my desk. Emmerich sat down, while Lina and I remained standing. The two of us glowered at him while he explained what happened. If he felt nervous because of this, he didn’t let it show.

“First of all,” Emmerich began, “I would like to point out that nothing happened between me and Valerie. She’s Tower Master Katarina’s disciple.”

Lina crossed her arms.

“Then what happened, Emmerich?” She asked.

I decided to remain quiet and let her lead the questioning. As Emmerich’s older sister, she knew him more than I did.

“The two of us were in the Tower of Magic’s library, looking for reference materials for a project the both of us were working on.” Emmerich said. “While perusing through the taller bookshelves, I ended up falling and landing on top of Valerie. Another tower magician saw us. Rumors spread throughout the entire Tower of Magic within a day. I heard that Tower Master Katarina was furious with me, so my master suggested that I leave the Tower of Magic for a time and wait until everything died down.”

Emmerich grimaced.

“Tower Master Katarina caught me as I left and tried to capture me.” He continued. “Saying that I would ‘take responsibility for my actions.’ The only reason why I managed to escape was because my master kept Tower Master Katarina busy while I made my escape.” He gestured to Lina. “At first I planned on heading to the Mistwood. However, when I found out that you planned to send a servant to Kaltbrand Manor, I changed my mind and decided to take that servant’s place.”

Lina’s eyes narrowed when she heard this.

“Yorick and I are going to have a long talk after this.” She said. “There is no way you did this without his help. After all, I entrusted him with finding a servant for Wulfram in the first place.”

I glanced at her. Yorick was the head of the Pink Orchid Trading Company, which served as the cover of House Guld’s spy network. In short, Yorick was House Guld’s spymaster.

“You planned on sending a spy to me?” I asked.

“I planned on sending a spy to work with you.” Lina answered. “Besides, Rosalind is a Blue Shadow. You have no room to complain.”

I almost pointed out that Lina herself wanted Rosalind, but decided against it. There was a time and place for every battle.

“Why didn’t you come to us for help, Emmerich?” Lina asked, facing her brother once more. “If you had, we could have dealt with it as a family.”

“I know,” Emmerich said, “I just didn’t want to bother everyone with a minor issue like this.”

I raised an eyebrow at him.

“You call earning the wrath of Tower Master Katarina a minor issue?” I asked.

“Yes.” Emmerich said. “I planned on explaining the truth to her after she calmed down.” He sighed. “I didn’t think that she would go so far as to attack my family.” He gave me an uncertain look. “Are you sure I’m the reason why Tower Master Katarina is trying to kidnap Father?”

I nodded.

“According to Duchess Galdur, yes.” I said. “Rather, you’re the excuse she’s using. Her real objective is to marry you to her disciple and hold you hostage in order to force House Guld to support Prince Jeremias, or at least remain neutral in the fight for the throne.”

Lina frowned at me.

“So the Tower of Magic is supporting Prince Jeremias?” she asked.

“Again, according to Duchess Galdur, yes.” I said. “While she might have lied to me, I don’t think she did.”

Emmerich nodded.

“I think she told you the truth.” He said. “Over the years, I heard rumors that Tower Master Katarina taught Prince Jeremias magic herself.” He frowned. “Hold on. Why would Tower Master Katarina kidnap Father to try and get me? If she wanted House Guld to support Prince Jeremias, wouldn’t he make for a better hostage?”

Lina shook her head.

“While the Tower of Magic is protected by the Pact, there are lines even they can’t cross.” She said. “If they kidnapped Father, they wouldn’t be able to hold him for long before the Emperor intervened. We would pay a heavy price, but the Emperor would help us. He would risk angering the other ducal families otherwise.” She gestured to Emmerich. “You, on the other hand, make for a much more convenient hostage, especially if you married Tower Master Katarina’s disciple. Keeping Father as a short-term hostage and you as a long-term hostage nets the Tower of Magic the most benefit.”

I closed my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose, before taking a deep breath. After a few moments, I opened my eyes again.

“So, the Tower of Magic was pretending to attack House Guld over the sale of magic tools in the Riverlands.” I said. “However, that was just a cover for them to kidnap Father, which in turn was a ploy to lure in Emmerich so they could use him as leverage against House Guld. Do I have that correct?”

Lina and Emmerich glanced at one another.

“That’s an accurate summary of the situation, yes.” Emmerich said. “Tower Master Katarina… Well, she prefers complex and convoluted plans like that. I assume it’s to prevent Duchess Galdur from finding out her true objective and interfering.”

I gave him a dumbfounded look.

“Duchess Galdur is the one who revealed the truth to us in the first place.” I said.

Emmerich shrugged.

“I never said it worked.” He said. “I just said that’s what Tower Master Katarina prefers. Tower magicians are researchers, not schemers.”

I sighed.

“Regardless, we should head to the townhouse.” Lina said. “We need to inform Father of this.” She narrowed her eyes at Emmerich. “And you, Little Brother, are coming with us.”

Emmerich’s shoulders slumped.

“Yes, Big Sis.”