"You are all dismissed," said Professor Akihiko, gathering the documents he had just been reading to his students. As far as Katerina knew, their professor was the uncle of the current Baron White, Lord Kanata, whose barony belonged to the Duchy of Storm—the domain that for centuries had guarded the northern border against barbarians from the Wild Lands. The girl was glad to receive lectures on musketry from a man who clearly spoke from experience, which included not only the battles themselves but also their logistics, terrain assessment, the provisions needed to feed an army—for everyone in the Duchy of Storm had to undergo mandatory military training and know the risks of war and its cost, unlike the rest of the kingdom, where nobles were not obligated to do so. That was why disgraced nobles like Leon Star were often sent for a couple of years of service.

  She too began gathering her notebooks, filled with theoretical knowledge on how to fire and reload a musket, as well as its construction and mechanism. All of it was so fascinating that she relished absorbing every piece of knowledge given to her. Even though many of her fellow students complained about the lack of practical training, Katerina understood that theory was equally important—without it, one could lose a battle, and with it, a war, thereby failing to protect one's homeland. Recalling the history of her home, one of her family's vassals, Count Hart, had for a very long time defended against the combined army of the Crow and Storm families. Her grandmother, of course, had provided her with tutors, but they only exalted the Blood family and their vassals, offering very little practical training. In the Royal Academy of Crow, however, the princess was pleasantly surprised by the approach to learning. Despite her status, she was treated like everyone else, and almost all the teachers tried not to single out favorites or unfavorites. It was hard to tell after just a month of study, but at least that was her impression, which greatly pleased her.

  A month. That was how long had passed since the last Royal Ball of Crow, where she, together with Arthur IV, had stood up to her grandmother, and now she was reaping the rewards of her efforts. It had been difficult and uncomfortable, but having her brother by her side had given the girl confidence in her own strength. She looked proudly upon her success, even considering how poorly the ball had gone. Princess Carolina, her sister, had fallen ill and had not been seen anywhere for a month. Rumor had it that her condition was worsening daily. And the scientist from the Free City of Starhorod, Munib, had been killed by Prince Delmar III of the Desert Empire, which would clearly worsen relations between the independent Free Cities and the Desert Empire with the Kingdom of Crow. What surprised Katerina most was that at the upcoming negotiations in the Kingdom of Stone, the royal delegation would be led not by the King, but by the simple-minded Princess Vanessa, which also astonished all the other nobles in the kingdom. Did the King of Crow, Lord Idivig, want war with the Empire and the Cities? Such were the rumors circulating throughout the city, and as the girl thought, throughout the entire country. That was why now, more than ever, it was important to master military science, learn to shoot a musket, fight with swords, train her body—to survive in the difficult times ahead. Especially since her grandmother, the elder Katerina, was already advanced in age, and she, the younger Katerina, would have to lead the Duchy of Blood, to protect both it and the entire Kingdom of Crow.

  With these thoughts, she left the lecture hall and, to her surprise, encountered two young men who were apparently waiting for her. One was a short youth with black, short, curly hair and a light, dazzling smile, dressed in the black uniform of the academy. Baron Orange, Lord Richard. The second was also a short young man, but he seemed to be his complete opposite with his straight blond hair, dressed instead in a white uniform. Her brother, the Prince of Crow, Lord Arthur IV. She wondered what such a wonderful pair—the object of desire for almost the entire female part of the academy—was doing standing here. Katerina already knew the answer to that question, but still sighed wearily instead of greeting them, looking down at the boys from above, as they were shorter than the tall girl, who was also wearing boots with high soles.

  "If it isn't the most beautiful Lady Katerina!" exclaimed Baron Orange in his usual vulgar manner. The girl tried to maintain an indifferent expression, but she found this type, who had risen from the commoners, extremely unpleasant—not because of his origins, but because of his insolence and the way he behaved with people. In a word, she considered him vile.

  "I greet you, dear sister," said the Prince of Crow with a slight nod of his head. In Arthur, the girl saw a wonderful gentleman, possessing excellent manners. And considering the situation at the ball, he also had remarkable restraint, with which her dear brother had advocated for her.

  "Lord Richard, Lord Arthur, I am glad to greet you," the girl replied to the youths' greetings, though she was not particularly glad for the first.

  "We are the ones who are glad, to be able to contemplate your beauty every day within the academy," said Baron Orange, continuing to smile his vile smile. Katerina decided to leave Richard's words without any comment, as he made these stupid compliments to her every day. Did other noblewomen really fall for this man's silly words?

  "Dear sister," Arthur began. Towards him, Katerina felt great sympathy, not because of his appearance, but because of his actions. A true future king. "Baron Orange and I..."

  "Nameless God, little Arthur, we're among friends here, what 'Baron Orange'?" Lord Richard interrupted him. Katerina barely restrained the hand holding her bag of notebooks and textbooks from hitting the Baron in the face. How dare he interrupt sweet Arthur?!

  "Lord Richard," the Prince of Crow exhaled wearily. Apparently, he too found his bodyguard's behavior difficult, especially after Lord Adrian and Leon had left the capital for training in the Duchy of Storm. Now Richard, who used to constantly shuttle between Adrian, Leon, and Arthur, spent all his time with the latter. Didn't this man's company tire her brother? "May I now continue my thought?"

  "Of course, dear brother, please continue," Katerina said, casting a menacing glance at Baron Orange. But he, as if catching her gaze, blew her an air kiss when Arthur wasn't looking, further infuriating the girl.

  "We wanted to go and visit the warehouse where Professor Munib's mechanical constructions are currently stored, the ones that stopped working after the professor's death," Arthur finished his speech.

  "Why?" inquired the girl, not understanding why they needed to examine the non-functioning, but still deadly, "Mu-6," as everyone in the caravan had called them when she traveled with them, since they had killed the prince of the Desert Empire after he killed their creator.

  "To understand where their weak points are, in case we are ever attacked by someone using them," Richard unexpectedly answered for the princess. It turned out that even this vulgar playboy had thoughts about defending his home.

  "Should we be doing this?" the girl asked in surprise, having no idea how these magnificently frightening mechanisms worked, which she had seen at the ball, frozen after their creator's death and having carried out the final sentence for Lord Delmar, the Prince of Desert.

  "Of course not, dear sister," Arthur replied with a slight smile. "But at least we'll have another chance to look at these monumental constructions."

  Katerina said nothing to the Prince of Crow, pondering the situation. The pretext of "finding weak points" was merely an adventure for two young lads who simply wanted to look at the strange, metallic creations. On the other hand, Katerina would be able to assess them herself and understand how dangerous or fundamental they truly were.

  "Well then, gentlemen," the girl unexpectedly said to the young men, taking her brother by the arm. "Lead the way for a fine lady to inspect them!"

  Richard smiled strangely at the sight, while Arthur blushed awkwardly, clearly not expecting such initiative from his sister. But he composed himself, and they proceeded beyond the academy grounds into the Inner District of the capital, where the warehouse housing all of the late Professor Munib's creations was located.

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  It was a large building. Officials and other people guarding the place, or simply workers, bowed their heads in Arthur's presence, letting the Crown Prince pass wherever he wished, happily directing them to the warehouse where the metal constructions were kept. This amazed Katerina to the depths of her soul. At the academy, where status was disregarded, it was usual to see ordinary Arthur. But now, stepping outside the academy with him for the first time, his status, like some form of superstitious magic, had returned—people parted before him and bowed. Yes, they had been together at the Royal Ball of Crow, but there they were surrounded only by nobles, which was a different form of perception. After all, her grandmother had even been rude to the Crown Prince. But here, people seemed to tremble with awe before Lord Arthur IV. Finally, they entered the hangar, and the smell of steel, rust, and burnt oil hit the girl's nose, as if this were not a warehouse but someone's strange grave. Besides Munib's constructions themselves, which seemed like monuments in this cemetery, there were two other people familiar to the girl, whom she had not expected to meet at all—Caspar and Professor Abid, who had also traveled with them to the city of Star. They were standing and arguing loudly, attracting the attention of the newly arrived aristocrats.

  "They need to be taken home!" Caspar exclaimed, still in his dreamy manner. But unlike during the journey, he was dressed in quite respectable clothes, apparently left over from the Royal Ball of Crow, where the girl had seen him in something similar.

  "Oh, child," said Professor Abid in his old voice. As far as Katerina knew, he was older than Munib, though she didn't know by how much. He still didn't look like a decrepit old man, and like the late professor, he was dressed in a white bisht. "How many times have I told you, without Munib's voice, these are just piles of metal junk. Only he knew how they worked."

  "That's why I'm saying we should deliver them home, so that you, the great scientists, can revive the professor's legacy!" Caspar exclaimed, unable to contain his emotions, raising his voice to a shout, paying no attention to the trio that had entered the hangar. Abid, on the other hand, noticed the people who had stopped, but continued his conversation with the young man.

  "My boy, the Mu-6 are undoubtedly Munib's legacy, but as I've told you time and again, that whippersnapper so muddled their schematics that it would take me ten years just to figure out how they work. And I have my own projects, important for the well-being of Starhorod, as do all the other scientists. So this load of scrap metal would also have to be transported back somehow, and they're incredibly heavy! It's one thing when they load themselves, quite another when we have to haul them ourselves," the old man waved dismissively, no longer looking at Caspar but at the newcomers, waiting for them to approach.

  "I heard about your 'lift' from Professor Munib—it's still in the development stage! And we brought the train here ourselves, which is much heavier than them!" the youth retorted, brushing aside the man's argument.

  "Because we were paid for the train and allocated resources. For returning these tin cans, no one's going to pay, and I'm not about to haul them back to Starhorod on my own back," Abid grumbled, clearly displeased with Caspar's behavior. "And anyway, child, you clearly don't appreciate the beauty of this 'lift.' The Mu-6 are merely toys in Munib's hands, unusual though they may be. But the 'lift'—that's a construction that will help us move quickly between the levels of our Starhorod dungeon, and possibly even on the surface. What drives you is merely the desire to see the Mu-6, to know that Munib's legacy is alive, not any practical benefit to our society. And now, it's time to greet our guests. I already know the beautiful Katerina, but would you introduce me to your companions?"

  Caspar turned in shock and saw the trio that had entered. But upon seeing Arthur, he frowned. However, when he looked towards Katerina, he remained silent and kept his face impassive. The girl thought he probably didn't know how to relate to her or how to behave in her company now. Earlier, he had flaunted his muscular torso before her, clearly trying to attract the girl's attention. Now he shyly averted his gaze before the princess of the entire kingdom.

  "This is His Highness Arthur and His Grace Richard," the girl said, introducing her companions to the professor.

  "Oh, the prince himself! Forgive my manners, I am utterly unfamiliar with your traditions," said the professor, attempting some semblance of a bow, but getting tangled in his bisht and nearly falling—only quick reflexes prevented the man from tumbling.

  "Not at all, Professor Abid. No harm done. I'm glad to see you in good health, and I offer my condolences for your loss," Arthur said, trying to maintain notes of sadness in his voice, as Katerina noticed.

  "Don't give me that aristocratic flattery. Though after spending so much time in this place, I understand you lot simply can't do without it. I hope I haven't been rude? I'd still like to keep my head on my shoulders facing the right direction, unlike Munib," Abid said, and Caspar shot the professor an angry glance but still uttered not a word.

  "Yes, for such words, if someone else heard them, one might indeed lose one's head," Richard chuckled, listening to the professor's speech.

  "Forgive him, Professor. This boor is rarely respectful," Katerina interjected into the conversation, now looking at the Baron with disapproval.

  "What's the matter? I only spoke the truth," Richard sniffed at the girl's words.

  "Richard, stop it. You're being vulgar," Arthur interrupted, now joining this minor verbal sparring himself. Baron Orange said nothing in response, merely continued smiling strangely. "Professor, may I ask you one question while you're still here? I heard that in a few days you're leaving our capital, together with my sister Lady Vanessa, heading to the Kingdom of Stone."

  "Ah, yes, that's right. And every day this lad tries to convince me to take these useless pieces of iron with us. He even asked your king for permission! And surprisingly, he agreed, asking only that we leave one specimen behind. My opinion is this—let him leave them all. I'm not taking these mechanical, heavy constructions anywhere!" the old man replied, catching another angry glance from Caspar.

  "Thank you, Professor. My question is this: you said they are now piles of scrap metal. Is that true?" Arthur asked. Katerina and Richard both looked rather strangely at their prince. The girl merely thought it odd to ask such a question of a man who had just lost a valuable asset, whose information should probably be a state secret.

  "Absolutely, one hundred percent true, young man. Those creatures, while activated, obeyed Munib's commands, which he spoke to them. But now, without their master's voice, even when activated, they just burn coal and do nothing," the professor replied, turning his gaze to the Mu-6, as if finally burying them in this warehouse. Katerina, apparently like the Baron, was surprised when she looked at him, that the professor was revealing such important information to potential adversaries.

  "Thank you for your answer," Arthur nodded towards the old man. Katerina was even surprised by the simplicity of their dialogue.

  "Well then, we must now go prepare for the journey. Come, Caspar. I'll leave these young people here—let them admire Munib's legacy," said the old man and moved towards the exit. Caspar silently followed him, still not uttering a word.

  "Aren't you afraid that we will no longer fear these metal constructions of yours?" Baron Orange suddenly called after the departing scientist.

  The old man stopped, turned towards the young people, and smiled predatorily:

  "You should fear not the iron constructions that walk the earth, but those that rule the skies," Abid grinned and left the warehouse with Caspar.

  At that moment, the trio unanimously turned their gaze to the silent legacy of Munib, which even when activated remained non-functional, unwanted by anyone—not even by fellow scientists from his hometown—except for its deceased creator and Caspar, who followed in his footsteps. As Katerina had this thought, she heard the door open again. An unfamiliar man entered the warehouse, surveyed the young trio, and greeted them:

  "His Highness, Lord Arthur; Her Highness, Lady Katerina; and His Grace, Lord Richard."

  The young people shifted their gaze from examining the Mu-6 to the newcomer, who bowed to them and remained in that half-bent position.

  "My name is Lord Samuel, a member of Baron Glass's family," the man continued speaking once he had captured Katerina and her companions' attention. "I have come with a message from the palace. His Majesty Idivig wishes to see His Highness Arthur."

  "Is it urgent? I'm somewhat busy," Arthur waved dismissively. Katerina saw in this response not laziness, but a sense that the King of Crow was always sending for Arthur, never releasing him from a hyper-vigilance that her grandmother had also surrounded her with. So she understood his weary replies, having been in exactly the same situation. Had the Prince of Crow decided to help her because he felt the same way?

  "Yes, Your Highness, it is a rather urgent matter requiring your immediate presence at the palace," Samuel answered honestly, still not changing his posture.

  "Fine, tell me what's happened now that requires me to rush to the palace," Arthur exhaled, looking at the man with a slightly bored expression. It was evidently not the first time someone had been sent for him.

  "Her Highness, Lady Carolina, the twin sister of our King of Crow, and your half-sister—has passed away."

  And Katerina shuddered, remembering her grandmother's words: that in the capital, she would not be safe, unlike in her own home.