Duskwind's Perspective

  Duskwind had always been good at reading people. It was how he had navigated his way through college back on Earth, securing internships he barely qualified for and talking his way through exams he hadn’t studied for. Business, after all, wasn’t about being the smartest person in the room—it was about making other people think you were.

  And now, in this new world, he had landed himself in the service of the most powerful lord he had yet encountered: the Queen of Balance.

  It was an unfortunate name, really. Balance? Duskwind had studied business theory; balance was stagnation. The real trick was to subtly shift things in your favor while making others believe they were still in control. He had done it in his past life with professors and bosses, and he would do it here.

  Queen Selene was strong, yes—overwhelmingly so. But strength wasn’t everything. Strength could be guided.

  And that was why he was here, in the grand hall of the Verdant Nexus, standing among the other vassals.

  The meeting was set to discuss future expansion, but Duskwind had bigger plans.

  ---

  The grand hall was unlike anything he had ever seen, even in fantasy movies. The walls shimmered with veins of crystal, their surfaces etched with glowing Fae script. The massive table at the center pulsed with magic, displaying a perfect map of Selene’s growing empire.

  The other vassals were already seated when Duskwind arrived. IronFist sat with his arms crossed, still looking slightly uncomfortable despite his recent rise in standing. SilverLily was relaxed, her sharp eyes watching everything but saying little. Thornhaven, ever the soldier, sat with his hands on the table, scanning the map like it was a battlefield.

  And then there was her.

  Selene.

  She sat at the head of the table, composed as ever, her gaze calm yet impossible to meet for too long. Her presence wasn’t loud, but it filled the room, making even the strongest of them feel like guests rather than equals.

  Duskwind had to remind himself that was fine. He didn’t need to be her equal. He just needed to be useful.

  ---

  Selene’s voice was steady as she spoke. “Our last operation removed a destabilizing element from the region. The Serpent King’s remnants are finished, but that was never the real concern.”

  She gestured to the northern section of the map, where the newly conquered jungle lay. “There will always be another enemy. We will continue expanding, securing key resources and ensuring stability before the next challenge arrives.”

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  Duskwind saw his moment. He leaned forward slightly, keeping his tone measured—confident, but not arrogant. “My Queen, expansion is inevitable, but expansion without control leads to overreach.” He gestured to the map, tapping the areas around her borders. “Your military is unmatched, but what you need is a proper economic strategy. If I may advise, we should be focusing more on controlled growth—trading resources rather than absorbing more land outright. Expansion should be deliberate, not reactive.”

  He said it carefully, knowing it wasn’t just about the words—it was about the delivery. Make her think he was valuable. Make her want to rely on his insight.

  Silence followed his statement.

  Then Selene looked at him. Not at the map. Not at the territory he had pointed to. At him.

  It was only then that Duskwind realized how cold her gaze could be.

  “Controlled growth,” she echoed, her tone neutral.

  Duskwind nodded, feeling a small victory. “Yes. As a queen, you don’t need to be dealing with every minor land dispute or economic adjustment. That’s where advisors come in.”

  He let the implication settle.

  Selene didn’t react at first. She didn’t scoff. She didn’t laugh. She didn’t even blink.

  Then, slowly, she leaned forward, resting her chin on one hand as she studied him.

  “Tell me, Duskwind,” she said, her voice deceptively soft. “Do you know why you are alive?”

  The question made his breath hitch. It wasn’t what he had expected.

  “I—” He hesitated, caught off guard. “Because I swore loyalty to you?”

  Selene’s expression didn’t change. “No.”

  Duskwind swallowed. The room felt colder.

  “You are alive,” Selene continued, “because I allowed it. Because I saw value in keeping you. But make no mistake—you are not here to advise me. You are here to serve me.”

  The words cut deeper than he wanted to admit.

  Selene didn’t raise her voice, but it carried the weight of a queen who expected obedience, not discussion. “You assume balance means hesitation. That because I rule through balance, I must crave stability.” She tilted her head slightly, watching him the way a predator watches something weak. “But balance is not peace, Duskwind. It is precision. It is control. It is knowing exactly when to act and when to wait.”

  She gestured toward the map. “You would have me sit and trade while the world around us grows stronger. You think I should be cautious, careful, slow.”

  Duskwind forced himself to speak. “Not slow. Just—”

  Selene cut him off. “I do not hesitate. I do not wait for power to come to me. I take it. Because if I do not, someone else will.”

  She leaned back, her presence still heavy. “You are not here to manipulate me, Duskwind.”

  That was when he realized—she had known exactly what he was trying to do from the moment he opened his mouth.

  “You are here to follow my will,” Selene finished, her voice still calm. “And that is the only reason you are here at all.”

  ---

  The silence that followed was suffocating.

  Duskwind, for the first time in a long time, felt small. He had thought himself clever. He had believed he could make himself indispensable. But Selene… she had seen through him from the start.

  IronFist shifted slightly, his expression unreadable. SilverLily merely observed, a small smirk playing at the edges of her lips. Thornhaven said nothing, but his eyes flicked between Duskwind and the Queen as if waiting to see what came next.

  Selene let the silence hang a moment longer before moving on, as if the matter was already decided.

  “Our next objective,” she said, voice returning to normal, “is securing the eastern trade routes. Now that the Serpent remnants are gone, there’s an opportunity to expand without immediate conflict. IronFist, you’ll oversee the initial fortifications.”

  Duskwind barely heard the rest of the conversation.

  By the time the meeting ended, he stood numbly, nodding when necessary, but the reality had settled deep in his bones.

  Selene was not a ruler to be manipulated.

  She was a force to be obeyed.

  And if he ever forgot that again, he doubted he would leave the next meeting alive.