We The Sterling Family Members Are Not Cowards
Prince Ashworth took one look at the expressions on his daughter and niece and rounded on Vaughn Garrison in disbelief.
"You... you hit my daughter and my niece?"
Vaughn was speechless. "I... I did not!"
The prince glanced back at his daughter. No matter how he looked at it, it was obvious the two of them had gotten into a street brawl while he was at the palace.
Maybe it was the kind of unspoken code troublemakers had. If his brother, the Emperor, found out they'd been fighting, they'd both be confined to the Imperial Clan Court for sure.
With that in mind, Prince Ashworth decided it was his duty as an elder to get the younger generation out of this mess.
He immediately turned to the Emperor, his expression dead serious. "Brother, are you hungry?"
The Emperor was stunned into silence. *This idiot. Is now really the time to be asking about food?*
Seeing that the Emperor was still fixated on the fight, Cassidy rolled her eyes and quickly changed the subject.
"Uncle, something huge is going on. Someone is after your throne."
The Fourth Princess fanned the flames. "They're not just after it, they want to kill you, Father!"
In the last fifteen minutes, the Emperor had now been told by three different troublemakers that someone was trying to kill him. At this point, he had no choice but to take it seriously.
He turned his gaze to Vaughn Garrison. "What exactly is going on?"
Vaughn quickly reported everything he'd learned from his interrogation.
The Emperor was floored.
*So, not only are my own sons after my throne, but now remnants of the Previous Dynasty are making a play for it, too?*
Before he could get a word in, Cassidy and the Fourth Princess eagerly launched into their story.
"Father, the Donovan family has to be part of it," the princess said. "When we went to their estate tonight, Vice Director Donovan was about to marry a second wife, and she's a spy raised by those traitors!"
"Uncle, I think everyone in your Imperial Court is a spy," Cassidy declared, "except for me and my dad, of course."
Prince Ashworth immediately jumped in. "The Duke of Crestfall and the Donovans are the most suspicious. Brother, just give the order! We'll wipe out their entire family lines first, and then we can track down the rest."
Cassidy stood right beside her father. "Uncle, I think my dad is right. If this mastermind has been hiding in the Imperial Court for years, they've probably recruited a lot of people. Doesn't it creep you out, spending every morning with a bunch of traitors?
What if they can't hold back and decide to jump you during a morning session? They outnumber us! There are only a few of us Sterlings. What chance would we have?"
The Fourth Princess nodded eagerly. "Father, you can't go easy on them. Those remnants of the Previous Dynasty are after our family's empire, and they're probably plotting how to kill all of us right now."
Cassidy was practically vibrating with excitement. "Uncle, for the safety of the Sterling family, we have to fight back!"
The System in her head immediately chimed in.
*Kill them all! Kill them all! Wipe every last one of them out!*
Spurred on by the voice, Cassidy excitedly jumped onto a stool, her robes swirling as her voice boomed through the room.
"Everyone! It's time for the Sterling family to rise up!"
"You remnants of the Previous Dynasty hiding in the shadows, you scoundrels who undermine the government and hurt good people, your time is up!"
"Today, the Sterling family makes this vow: we will hunt you down on sight and destroy any nest we uncover! We will slaughter every last one of you and leave no one standing!"
"We will make sure that no more traitors run wild in the Imperial Court, that our loyal officials have nothing to fear, and that the people of this land can look up and see a clear sky!"
"We will restore the Aethelian Empire to its pure and rightful glory!"
"We will make this land hear only the griffon's roar, not the wails of ghosts!"
"From this day forward! Every member of the Sterling family will take up arms, prove our resolve with blood, and swear our lives to this cause!"
"And until every last remnant of the Previous Dynasty is slain and the world is at peace, I, Cassidy Sterling, swear I will not return home!"
[Lifespan +1][Lifespan +1][Lifespan +1]
The Imperial Study was deathly silent.
The Emperor was the first to snap out of it, quickly calling for the palace servants to summon Physician Miller. The girl must have been poisoned by that spy at the Donovan estate; it was the only explanation for this.
Vaughn Garrison listened to Cassidy's speech, completely floored. So much for the rumors that she was uneducated. The girl's words were more eloquent and inspiring than anything he'd ever heard from the most well-read officials in the Imperial Court.
Meanwhile, Prince Ashworth and the Fourth Princess stared wide-eyed, soaking in Cassidy's words. A moment later, they felt their own blood begin to race.
The prince shot to his feet, his gaze fixed on the space outside the hall as he raised his voice.
"You're absolutely right, daughter! We Sterlings cannot be cowards. They're pushing us around like this, how can we just let them get away with it!"
"I will personally purge these traitors from the Imperial Court! I will restore a clean and honest government for my brother, protect the vast lands of the Aethelian Empire, and defend the honor of our Sterling family!"
The Fourth Princess was completely fired up. She leaped onto the stool next to Cassidy, her back straight. Her usual gentle demeanor was gone, replaced by the burning, sharp-eyed spirit of a warrior.
"From this day on, I will stand with you, through thick and thin! Even if I have to sacrifice my own life, I will exterminate every last one of these traitors, just to show them that the Sterlings are not cowards!"
Seeing that her father and her cousin, Dawn, shared her ambition, Cassidy's eyes filled with relief.
"Excellent! Spoken like true Sterlings! From now on, the three of us will work together to clean house and bring this court back into the light!"
"Excellent!" Prince Ashworth exclaimed.
"Excellent!" Dawn echoed.
The Emperor looked at the three troublemakers, who were now standing in the middle of the hall, clenching their fists with fire in their eyes. He swallowed hard, and it took him a long moment to find his voice.
He suddenly roared at the servants beside him, "What are you all standing around for? Go and summon every single physician from the Imperial College of Medicine! The more the better! Tell them to get over here and figure out what kind of poison those lunatics got into at the Donovan estate!"
The trio, completely caught up in their revolutionary fervor, didn't even hear the Emperor's words, which essentially meant he thought they'd all lost their minds.
They were already huddled together, plotting how to eliminate the traitors and restore order to the Imperial Court.
Cassidy grabbed some paper from the Emperor's desk and started sketching out a battle plan.
"First, we'll take down that manor in the suburbs and everyone connected to it. Then, we'll go after the people on my list. Next, we'll deal with the officials who sent petitions to His Majesty demanding action against the Marquis of Stonehaven. Finally,
we'll take care of anyone who has a grudge against us."
Prince Ashworth's eyes lit up. "That plan works."
He immediately looked up and instructed Vaughn, "Lord Garrison, the job of investigating that manor is a task for you and the Onyx Guard."
Then he took the list from Cassidy's hand. "I will personally investigate everyone on this list tomorrow."
"As for you, Dawn," he said to the princess, "you can investigate the officials who petitioned my brother to move against the Marquis of Stonehaven."
"Daughter, you can..."
Cassidy quickly cut her father off. "No, we have to go together."
Prince Ashworth was confused. "Why together?"
His eyes suddenly narrowed in suspicion. "Wait a minute. You don't suspect *me*, do you?"