A load roar erupts from the throne room. The room is in a state of ruckus. 

The huge man tears the letter and hurls the box that was placed on the table, across the room. From the box falls the corpse-hand with the emerald ring on the middle finger. The messenger from Oredrion turns as white as a sheet.

"She did NOT accept my proposal. She REFUSED me. She INSULTED me. Rosalinda, I will make you pay dearly for this insult by defeating you in battle, conquering your kingdom and your body when I take you as mia moglie.", the man roars.

Villainous laughter echoes from  the room.

"Commander"

"Your Majesty."

"Prepare for battle against Oredrion. In two days, I shall return from Oredrion as a conqueror and their beloved Queen will be my prize."

The young thin, lanky messenger from Oredrion is shivering in the room.

"Come here boy!"

The boy bows before the King.

"Tell your beloved Queen that I have a message for her."

"Yyy..ess, Your Mmajesttt..yy"

"Tell her to surrender or Oredrion will be ruined in two days, and she will suffer a terrible fate. Now, GET OUT OF MY SIGHT!"

Queen Rosalinda and King Drais are conversing in the Solar.

    Rosalia's  POV (Point of View)

"Thank you for arriving here on such a short notice, Your Majesty", I say.

"You have helped my son and the trade agreement is benefitting our kingdoms. I believe we are past the point of formalities Queen Rosalinda. You may address me as Drais.", King Drais replies.

"I shall extend the same courtesy, Drais. You may call me Rosalinda", I say.

"Cosmo is planning on attacking Oredrion, as we speak. He has given me two days. If Cosmo captures Oredrion, Methidrion will be next. With the combined forces of Atilus, Oredrion and Dredion, Methidrion and Pendrameda will not stand a chance. The trade treaty will be broken. "

"So, what do you propose my Queen?"

"Let us join forces Drais. I ask you to stand with us brothers and sisters of Oredrion. And we shall return the same favor. Our Kingdoms will grow to be mighty. The trade and the economy will flourish.", I say, while the servant is pouring wine in two glasses

"I agree, Rosalinda. Let this be the start of our new friendship.", Drais says while raising his glass for a toast.

"May our Kingdoms prosper.", I join him.

After Drais departs with his men, I go back to the Solar.

I call Abrigello to the room. 

"Captain, there is a rat amidst us. This spy was the reason, my parents and brother were murdered. He is working for King Cosmo. We need to find him and send a message to Cosmo."

"What do you propose Your Highness?"

An idea strikes me.

I call for Martha, my maid.

"Martha, here is what I want you to do- spread word in the castle- about the battle plans. Make sure to include that these parchments which contain the plans are placed in the Queen's rooms, hidden in the chest. Abrigello, you and three men who you trust the  most, hide in the room this evening. .And whichever servant comes to clean my room and acts suspiciously is the culprit."

That afternoon, Maid Martha spreads rumors- about how the Queen has designed battle plans and hid them in the chest in her room. Some innocuous servants just nod their heads, but don't really know what they would do with this information. Others are relieved to hear that their Queen is courageous and brave. The cloaked man hears these rumors and he plans to go to the Queen's chambers in the evening, when the Queen will go the dining hall to have her supper.

Evening draws near. The foolish spy goes into the Queen's chambers and gets ambushed by the castle guards.

The Captain and the guards corner him and take him to the dungeons and behead him.

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The people in the Castle are afraid of even looking anywhere near the King. Even the Commander is hesitant to approach the King as he is in a vile mood. The King in question is boiling and seething with anger. His knuckles are white and large veins are bulging out from his forehead. In his right hand is a note which is the cause of his anger. It reads:

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In his left hand is a head- the head of the spy. The King in his fury throws the head into the fireplace and the lifeless eyes of the spy stare back as the flames engulf the head.

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Translation: