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"What brings the elusive princess of the kingdom to my humble abode? Ah, and Howl as well" The red-haired lady asked with a large smile. The very smile was filled with glee and superiority which made the princess grit her teeth in annoyance.

The red-haired lady greeted them as if they were friends but her aura spoke of smugness and glee far too much. Neah did not like her principles.

"I think you know why we are here. We would like to know what happened to Lady Kujou a few hours ago and unfortunately, your intelligence is the best out there" the princess had to remind herself that she was doing this for Maria. She should not lose her cool here.

"Oh! Did something happen a few hours ago? I had no idea but thank you for the warning" the lady replied and she did sound thankful. But her eyes were sharp and her face held that gleeful smile that made it anything but a humble thanks.

Neah could see Howl shifting around on her feet in an awkward manner. She must be feeling the pressure from the red-haired lady\'s unique quirks. Neah was somewhat used to it since so many court ladies usually decided to adopt a similar mannerism but Howl was too out of depth here.

"Howl, stand out for a second. You\'re no help here" the princess ordered, not breaking the eye contact with Lady Karin. This was a battle she could not afford to lose.

Howl, thankfully, did not ask Neha to reconsider and quickly flew from the scene. Neah hated the look of amusement that flashed over Lady Karin\'s face but she held herself back from commenting. She did not want to give the other any more advantage over the issue.

"Lady Kujou, huh? She was a loyal one indeed. She refused to bow down to me when I visited her last. It must be a big blow" Lady Karin started as she held up her teacup. She had not offered Neah any and Neah would not have taken it even if she had.

Besides, Lady Karin was playing around too much. This topic was serious and could end up costing them a lot if they did not deal with it.

"Lady Karin, please. I would like to ask for your cooperation just this once. I\'ll even bow to you if that is what you want me to do" Neah hated bowing to others but she would make an exception if it helped her out.

And Lady Karin looked taken aback as well by her words. Her eyes might not be wide in shock but her aura looked disturbed enough for it to be the same thing.

"No need. I don\'t need the bow of a princess that allows a dangerous weapon to be let loose in her country. Although I can\'t be of any help here, I can tell you a few things" Lady Karin finally decided to help her out.

Neah thought she saw sympathy and understanding in the other female\'s eyes but it was gone with a blink. The Lady was back with an impassive face and Neah felt her attention snap back toward hef in an instant. Lady Karin was serious this time, a first as far as Neah had seen.

"It\'s a soul doll that killed Lady Kujou. I don\'t know who did it or who the soul doll was but someone is trying their hands at the revival magic of a scale they should not play with. Unfortunately, I cannot step in and help" Lady Karin sounded angry and for justified reasons.

Soul magic was a big deal to the point that even the worst of the worst did not dabble in it. It was taboo for a reason and Neah had heard stories about those who tried.

"They\'re trying to gather magic for the ritual. But won\'t a big source be better-" Neah felt herself slip as realization slammed into her.

"It\'s a good thing she managed to escape when she did, right? She would have been the idea sacrifice as well" Lady Karin said it too casually but for Neah, it was a hard pill to swallow.

She could imagine Maria being led into a trap and then being killed by a soul doll. It also made her glad that Maria had managed to escape in time. Had she known about it and then decided to run away? Or had it been a coincidence that it happened like this?

Why did she not tell Neah? Neah could have helped her out and sought a solution.

"Don\'t think too much. Things would have ended up this way whether you wanted it to or not. That\'s just how they all are - free spirits, unbounded" Lady Karin had a wistful look on her face and Neah wanted to ask her whom she was thinking about.

But there was so much else to think about and a conspiracy to undercover before she could even think about bringing Maria back into her life. Things just loved to be more and more complicated.

"Lady Karin, would you not like to assist us? The attack was near your territory and you might become a target as well" Neah tried to convince the redhead madwoman.

Lady Karin was powerful but she was not omnipotent. Maria could feel her pressure increase for a fraction of a second but she refused to back down. Her other half growled in a warning and wanted to take a bite out of the redhead.

Neah forced it down before looking Lady Karin right in the eye.

"We\'re not enemies and I would rather not see you die unnecessarily. Call me when you need help" Princess Neah stood up and left before Lady Karin could get in another word.

It was such a small win but it felt good nonetheless. To get a one-up on the scary redhead of the court was always a fresh feeling.

"Is it done? What is our next step?" Howl asked once the princess joined her. She looked anxious, just as anyone would in such a dangerous place. Lady Karin\'s oppressive aura did not help Howl feel better.

"We go back to the court and perform a cleaning drive to filter out the filth. I don\'t want traitors in my home" was the princess angry? Justifiably so. She was not only angry but terrifyingly so.

She could not believe that such a big conspiracy had been going on right under her nose. What else had she missed and who else knew.

Alester knew for sure because that was the only reason he would have let the oracle escape otherwise. Or so Neah would like to believe. But who else?

Who else had been a part of this conspiracy?