Kira kept her stance relaxed, though her muscles were taut beneath the cloak.
"Danger," she echoed. "And here I thought the Blackwood manor was the safest place in the empire."
The young man's eyes didn't waver.
"Safe? Only for those the patriarch deems useful. The rest…"
He didn't finish the sentence, but his gaze swept over her with deliberate slowness, as if measuring her worth.
She forced a faint smile.
"And I suppose you are here to make yourself useful to me?"
A corner of his mouth twitched upward.
"I am here to make sure you survive long enough to be worth helping."
Kira tilted her head. "That sounds suspiciously like a threat."
"A truth," he corrected smoothly. "Your maids didn't leave of their own accord. Someone moved them—someone who wants you isolated. That's the first step."
Her heartbeat quickened. "First step… to what?"
"To making you disappear."
The words hung between them, heavy in the cold air.
Kira considered her options. Trusting him outright was foolish, but so was walking away without more information. In the game, there had been assassins, betrayals, and political plots—but none this early in the story.
"And you know who's behind it?" she asked.
"I have a suspicion. But I need something in return."
Of course. There was always a price.
"Go on," she said.
"I need you to gain the patriarch's trust… enough that you can get into his study. There's a ledger hidden in his desk. Bring it to me, and I'll tell you exactly who is plotting against you—and why."
She raised a brow. "You're asking me to commit treason in my own household."
"I'm asking you to choose whether you want to be a pawn… or a player."
A faint wind stirred through the garden, rustling the frost-bitten branches. Kira met his gaze, searching for any sign of deceit, but all she found was cold, calculating certainty.
"And if I say no?" she asked.
"Then I suggest you start writing your will."
She didn't agree. Not yet. But as she turned to leave, she couldn't shake the feeling that refusing him might mean she wouldn't live to see the end of winter..