Through the narrow, high window of the terrace, the afterglow of the setting sun spilled across the ground, casting dark red stripes on the wall.

Few places remained in the entire kingdom where one could still witness the sunset, and Clearwater Port was one of them. Legend held that the Demon Month, shrouded in snow and cold winds, had little impact on this place. Apart from the Black Sails Fleet being unable to leave port, the entire city remained as busy as usual.

And the master of this harbor city, Garcia Wimbledon, was sitting at the square table by the window, earnestly looking at the letter in her hand. Her gray hair was tinged with gold in the setting sun, and the interplay of light and shadow on her face accentuated her angular features, making her uniquely charming and heroic.

Farien had been standing beside her for quite some time.

Although the letter had taken longer than her usual credit time, Farien chose to wait quietly – he did not want to interrupt this tranquility himself.

Finally, Garcia sighed softly and put down the letter.

"Father is dead."

Farien paused. "What?"

"My father, Ailin Wimbledon, King of Graycastle, is dead."

She rarely repeated what she said, he thought. If he had asked that usually, she would have ignored it. But she wasn't joking? The King is dead?

"..." Farien opened his mouth, wanting to offer a few words of comfort, but what came out was an inquiry, "How did he die?"

Fortunately, Garcia didn't care – she was the Third Princess of the kingdom, the Lord of Clearwater Port, and the Supreme Commander of the Black Sails Fleet, and she didn't need anyone to comfort her. "The letter says that my brother Goron killed Father and was then captured by the royal guards. He did not commit suicide out of guilt, so he was brought to public trial by the King's Hand and several other ministers and sentenced to be beheaded."

"That's not normal," Farien said subconsciously.

"Of course it's not normal," Garcia said expressionlessly. "Although my brother is rather foolish, he's not stupid enough to seek his own death. If no one guided him, he wouldn't be able to do such a thing."

"Someone framed him?"

"Let me guess..." The Third Princess closed her eyes. "Someone probably arranged a detailed plan, enticing him with the promise of helping him ascend the throne – to bring someone into the inner court of the royal city, someone must have arranged it beforehand, including rooting out, replacing, and bribing. But that's not what Goron is good at, or rather, he's too lazy to do those trivial things. The rest is simple. The person who arranged the plan had his complete trust but betrayed him in the end."

Farien remained noncommittal. These were ultimately guesses. How it happened was not important; the key was the result. He believed the Third Princess thought so too.

Sure enough, Garcia opened her eyes and continued, "There are probably nine or ten such people with the First Prince. They have brute strength but their brains are full of muscles. It's normal for them to be completely played by others. But..." At this point, there was a hint of anger in her voice. "My Second Brother's methods are too crude."

"You mean, Tifico Wimbledon did it?"

"Besides him, who else knows Goron so well? And who benefits the most from this?" Garcia tapped the table unconsciously with her fingers. "Even a blind man could see it! Yet, just because of Father's favoritism towards him, he didn't need to do this!"

Her Highness was angry, Farien realized. It was rare to see the Third Princess reveal such an expression. It seemed that although she had always complained about Wimbledon III being too biased, she ultimately did not want her father to end up like this.

Farien could understand this feeling more or less. In large families, the head of the family always gave the younger generation the feeling of a large mountain that they wanted to overcome, both in awe and hatred. If she was right and this was really the Second Prince's doing, then his actions were indeed brutal.

"But... why would he do this?"

"Because he's afraid of me," Garcia took a deep breath, as if trying to control her emotions. "He's afraid of the Black Sails."

Seeing that Farien did not answer, she continued to explain, "Tifico has spies in Clearwater Port, which is not surprising, just as I have planted spies in Golden穗City and the royal capital. After learning of the existence of the Black Sails Fleet, it's easy to imagine what my next step would be. Golden穗City can't possibly raise an army that can compete with the Black Sails. So he used the most foolish method, using Goron as bait to get what he wanted."

"You mean, he wants an army?"

"He wants the throne," Garcia said. "After Goron's death, he is the first in line of succession. With Father dead, he is probably on his way to the royal capital right now. As long as he becomes Wimbledon IV, he can mobilize vassals and armies without territorial restrictions." At this point, she shook her head. "However, as I said, as Father's most beloved son, he didn't need to do this."

"Isn't that terrible," Farien said worriedly. "If the Second Prince successfully ascends the throne, declares the end of the Struggle for the Throne, and orders you to return to the royal city, what will happen?"

Garcia said disdainfully, "This step is too straightforward. Father's favoritism towards him does not mean that all the ministers will support him, especially after the act of murdering the king – although Tifico pushed it onto Goron, it can only fool the common people of the kingdom. He wants to fully grasp the authority of Graycastle, and it will probably take a long time. So..." She looked at Farien, "I have to change my plans a little."

Farien immediately knelt on one knee and said, "I am at your disposal."

Garcia stood up, walked to the window, and turned her back to Farien. "After he ascends the throne, he will definitely deal with me as soon as possible, but the only means he can use is probably to order Joey Cole, the Duke of the Southern Territory, to pressure me. And the latter will probably use the excuse that it is not appropriate to mobilize troops during the national mourning period after the new king's death – that old fox is always unwilling to do a losing business. At most, he will gather his vassals and surround the border of Clearwater Port as a show of force." The Third Princess paused slightly. "But these actions will bring us unnecessary trouble, so we will set sail tomorrow."

"Set sail? Your Highness, do you want to..."

"Eagle City, being located in the interior of the kingdom, is almost an undefended city. The Three Bays River tributary can reach Clearspring Town, from which it takes only one day to reach Eagle City. After taking Joey down, the entire Southern Territory will be under my control. This is an interesting time difference. When he sits on the throne and wants to instruct Duke Joey, he will find that the entire Southern Territory has become my territory. I wonder what kind of expression he will have."

"But, you also said that Wimbledon III has just passed away, so—"

"What, do I need to shed tears first?" Garcia turned around, and the setting sun falling into the horizon draped her in a purplish-red light gauze. Her face was hidden in the darkness, with only tiny rays of light radiating from her eyes. That gaze was as firm as a rock. Farien thought that even if there was anger and regret inside, there would never be sorrow.

Sorrow is not suitable for a king.

"No, you don't need to," he said seriously.

Garcia nodded in satisfaction. "Go, summon all the captains to me. Since Tifico is unwilling to wait until five years later, I will not disappoint him. After obtaining Eagle City, the entire Southern Territory will be independent."

It didn't matter whether Tifico had done all this or not, he thought. She could always find a path that suited her from the ever-changing situation, and once she made a decision, she would forge ahead bravely. This was her charm and the reason why he had followed her here.

"Yes, Your Highness... no," Farien said in a deep voice. "Your Majesty the Queen."