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Adler Estate – East Wing, Training Courtyard

Levi paced beneath the covered archway outside her uncles' study, the rhythmic echo of her boots ringing against the polished stone. The late afternoon light flickered across her tense jawline.

Her hair was half-tied back, her cloak fastened loosely at the neck—her usual grace traded for stormy urgency.

Inside the study, Maximus Adler, the family's combat expert and her no-nonsense uncle, leaned casually against his desk, scanning the latest intel report.

Maximus (without looking up): "You look like someone set fire to the High Council."

Levi: "They might as well have. While they're busy matchmaking like it's a gala, there's a plague crawling through our border towns. If it spreads to the capital—"

Maximus (sharply): "It won't. We won't let it."

Levi: "Then help me."

He looked up, surprised by the weight behind her voice.

Maximus: "What do you need?"

Levi: "A copy of every outbreak report, border guard manifest, and trade record from the last two months. And silence. No Council ears."

Maximus (grins slightly): "Now that's the Adler blood I recognize."

He opened a drawer, pulled out a map and a black folder, and laid them before her.

Maximus: "Crane and Winter are already on it. Quietly. If you're serious, check the midline trade towns first—Nera, Dovrin, and Althea. There's rot in those markets, but it's not just disease. Something's being hidden."

Levi scanned the map, her eyes narrowing as the weight of his words sank in. She rolled the map up.

Levi: "I'll take a look myself."

Maximus: "Alone?"

Levi (turning to leave): "I've got Isa with me. She's smarter than half the palace."

Capital – Evening, Market District

The market was alive with movement, clattering voices, the scent of baking bread, iron, herbs, and soot filling the air.

Levi wore a layered commoner's dress of rough brown and forest green, her hood pulled low over her eyes. Isa walked beside her, a woven basket perched on her hip.

Isa (whispering): "Still think your mother would faint if she saw you bartering for onions?"

Levi (grinning): "Which is why she won't."

They moved through the bazaar, eyes sharp, senses on high alert. Levi took in everything: a vendor with red-rimmed eyes, coughing behind spoiled citrus; a child with a strange rash creeping up his arms. An apothecary hurriedly shuttered his shop as they approached.

Isa (low): "That's the fourth one to shut the moment we walk near."

Levi: "They know something. Or someone paid them not to speak."

Isa: "You think it's connected to the plague?"

Levi (quietly): "I think this plague is just the beginning."

They turned down a smaller alley, the air thickening with tension. Levi narrowed her eyes, feeling the undercurrent of danger shift.

Just then, a whisper reached her ears as a figure passed by.

Stranger (hushed): "Lady Adler."

Levi froze. She whirled around, but the man was already gone. Only a folded piece of parchment remained, half-hidden beneath a crate.

Her hand snapped out, seizing the note and tucking it quickly into her pocket.

Levi (to Isa): "Let's go. We've seen enough."

Hotel Room – Levi's Bedroom, Night

In her room, she locked the door and drew the curtains, the room now cast in the soft glow of candlelight. She unfolded the note with careful fingers, reading its contents. Her eyes grew colder with each word.

"The plague isn't natural. It's a weapon. It started near the port at Dovrin—weeks before the first 'case' reached the capital. Your empire is being tested."

Levi sat back slowly, her breath steady despite the ice forming in her veins.

Levi (to herself): "Then it's time to stop being the test subject."

Levi moved to the communication orb resting in its velvet cradle, its soft blue light pulsing as it connected. Her room, regal yet now feeling like a war room, flickered with the orb's light.

The orb shimmered and solidified into three miniature figures—Maximus Adler, Jake Adler, and Evie Blaze Ford.

Maximus (arms crossed): "You called late. Must be serious."

Levi (holding up the note): "Someone passed me this during my market sweep. The plague's not natural—it was planted. Dovrin's the origin."

Jake (frowning): "Then we've been looking at symptoms, not the cause."

Maximus: "You want to go?"

Levi: "I am going. And I'll need eyes, ears, and quiet backup."

The uncles exchanged a look. Their silence was an answer in itself.

Jake: "I'll pull what I can from internal logistics. Someone's been rerouting trade out of Dovrin—if it's a weapon, they're smuggling it."

Maximus (gruffly): "Watch your back, Levi. You step into Dovrin, you step into someone's war."

Levi (coolly): "Then I'll bring a sword."

The men gave sharp nods, and the orb shimmered—disconnecting, leaving only Evie floating in the glass sphere.

Evie (mock gasp): "No 'Evie, please stay safe'? No 'Evie, let me handle it'? My lady, are you broken?"

Levi (sighing, rubbing her temples): "Evie—"

Evie (grinning): "I'm joking. Kinda. But really, who gave you that note?"

Levi (quietly): "I don't know. Isa saw nothing. I need you to ask the guild."

Evie: "Already on it. Send Isa back to the capital. She can report to me directly."

Levi: "Good. After that, I want you with me in Dovrin. I need someone who knows how to dig through dirt and find gold."

Evie (snorts): "Or corpses. Which, given the state of that town, is more likely."

Levi (half-smiling): "We've found worse."

Evie (mock salute): "Fine. Pack your prettiest dagger. I'll bring the explosives."

They exchanged a final, knowing look—a flicker of real trust between them—before Levi waved her hand through the orb. The connection faded into sparks.

She turned toward Isa, who had returned to the doorway, quietly removing her disguise.

Levi: "Head back to the capital. Report to Evie. Quiet and quick."

Isa (nodding): "Understood."

As Isa left with her orders, Levi crossed the room to her armoire and opened the hidden compartment. A field map, a steel-bladed short sword, and a plain leather satchel rested there.

Levi (to herself): "Time to make some noise in Dovrin."