Elara met his gaze without flinching. "Deserve is irrelevant. I'm competing whether I deserve to or not. The question is whether I'm capable of winning."
"And are you?"
"Insufficient data to predict with certainty. But I've survived six months of assassination attempts, built profitable operations, and secured powerful allies. That demonstrates baseline capability."
The Emperor's mouth twitched. Almost a smile. "You answer like a military strategist, not a princess."
"I answer honestly. Pretending capability I don't have would be inefficient."
"Indeed." The Emperor gestured. "Return to your seat. Let's see how honest you remain when the real test begins."
Elara walked back to her chair. Duke Romian's hand briefly touched hers—reassurance—as she sat.
"That went better than expected," he murmured.
"The test hasn't started yet. That was just preliminary assessment."
"You think it's still coming?"
