“Ahh, yes, but we can see it in the tactics they have begun to employ in the last eighteen years.” Lucien arranged his notes on Severin’s desk.
“And it starts with Princess Rosalinda. Several years before she is born, the only living mage whose core magic is purification and the power to dispel curses dies. These sorts of magic users pop up only every few centuries, so it’s safe to say a new one will not be arriving anytime soon. These rogue forces knew they needed to wait for that particular mage to die because in the Snow Queen’s time, one of her most powerful allies against Tenebris Malus was a young mage named Liv. She, too, had the powers of purification, and besides the Snow Queen herself, she was the only one capable of standing against Tenebris and healing those he cursed.”
“They cursed Rosalinda to make certain no other Conclave mages were hiding similar magic?” Stil guessed.
“Maybe, but I’m almost positive they really did it because they wanted the Magic Knights of Sole out of the way. Sole has been on edge since the princess was cursed, and things rapidly grew worse in the past few years. Currently, Sole is out of commission, which cripples us because—as Friedrich said the night Ariane and I were attacked—the Magic Knights of Sole are the best way to combat rogue mages. Sole needed to be taken out or weakened first, or their Magic Knights would have swept the continent earlier and put a stop to this,” Lucien said.
Severin leaned against his desk, making it groan. “What next, then?”
“The forces were relatively quiet until five years ago when they struck as hard as they could,” Lucien said. “In the span of one season, Lord Enchanter Evariste was taken, Queen Ingrid of Arcainia died, Severin was cursed, and the elves disappeared from their forests in Farset.”
“The elves…they played a role in the Snow Queen’s resistance as well, did they not?” Severin looked to Gemma, who nodded.
“There was a magic user who could open gates and let an elf through to fight on his behalf. No opposing mage was able to stand against the elves,” the seamstress said.
“A magic user who could open gates?” Stil straightened from his languid pose against a bookcase and looked concerned. “Lord Enchanter Evariste could open teleportation gates. He could bring hundreds, if not thousands, of people through—it was partially why he was considered a genius and became an enchanter when he was a child.”
Lucien nodded. “Knowing the tactics used against their predecessors, the Chosen recalled the elves and the gate manipulator and took them both out in one go. I think it was also why you were targeted, Severin.”
Ariane jerked her gaze to Severin, wondering how the prince would take being added to such illustrious company.
Severin frowned. “I have no magic.”
“You don’t,” Lucien agreed. “But neither did General Halvor.”
“…Who?”
“General Halvor. He was a military leader who served under the Snow Queen and was responsible for all the tactics her rebels employed. He thought out every battle plan. The Snow Queen provided the power, yes, but it was General Halvor’s plans that set her strategically against the Chosen so she would win.”
“So?” Severin asked. “There are plenty of other military leaders in the continent.”
Lucien’s eyes softened, the fanatical light in them turning affectionate. “My dear brother. You are the best tactician this world has seen in centuries, and you have cultivated Loire’s army into the biggest and most powerful military on the continent. You are the Halvor of this present time.”
“I see it,” Elle said. “It also explains why they tried to murder Lucien. The rogue mages all but admitted they were harassing him to get to you. You’re the only one of their original targets who is still alive, after all. If they really had managed to take Lucien out, you likely would have collapsed. Even if it was just for a short time, they would have used it to their advantage.”
Colonel Friedrich approached Severin’s desk and tapped a point on Lucien’s notes. “And Queen Ingrid—she once was an enchantress, though she died very sudden and unexpectedly. She was also the only magic user married into royalty at the time. I bet they knew they had to get rid of her, or she would see what was going on sooner. Perhaps she would have been able to trace their magic and oust them.”
“Yes,” Lucien said. “Between dealing with her, Evariste, and the elves, though, I believe they overspent themselves, for two years passed before they stirred again.”
Ariane studied Lucien with a mixture of affection and admiration. It breaks my heart that he ever considered himself lesser, and it makes me understand his puffed-up pretend arrogance as well. It was all because he never saw his own value…and now he’s made the biggest discovery of the last several centuries.
“In the interim, Angelique started opposing them,” Gemma said.
Stil tilted his head. “What do you mean, darling?”
The seamstress’s cheeks turned a very faint pink, but she pressed on. “The year after Ingrid died, Gabrielle and Puss were set loose in Arcainia and killed the ogre. Puss very nearly died, but Angelique saved him and returned him to Gabrielle. When Gabrielle slayed the ogre, she cleansed Carabas of the evil it had steeped the lands with, and the Chosen didn’t respond.”
“They didn’t,” Lucien agreed. “Not immediately.” He stood and repinned his papers to the wall, this time creating a chronological timeline. “They must have feared they raised too much suspicion with Evariste, the elves, Ingrid, and Severin, for they are now far more covert when they do take action. Approximately two years after Evariste was taken, storms that isolate Ringsted began to build. Shortly after, Carabosso resurfaced in Sole—detaining the Magic Knights. The year after, King Henrik of Arcainia married the witch Clotilde, and the Chosen were given a grip over all of Arcainia—the financial center of the continent.”
“They’re running a careful balancing act,” Ariane murmured as she studied Lucien’s timeline.
Elle—who surely had to have the ears of a wolf—drew closer. “Why do you say that?”
“Because they’re setting off a few attacks against countries in ways that made them be mistaken for tragic accidents or independent rogue mages—not a combined effort.” Ariane said.
“True,” Elle agreed. “Evariste made his home in Torrens, while the elves are in Farset, Severin calls Loire home, and Ingrid was in Arcainia.”
“The goblin attacks picked up in Erlauf around the time Henrik and Clotilde married,” Colonel Friedrich noted. “And an evil mage tried to kill Cinderella then, too.”
“That’s not mentioning that the Arcainian princes were cursed during that time as well,” Gemma said. “Gabrielle said Arcainia was nearly overtaken by malice-filled creatures. It was everything she and Puss could do to fight them off until the princes returned and Elise defeated Clotilde.”
Ariane nodded, recalling the story Gabrielle had recited over tea during the previous week.