“Not at all,” Severin said. “I am only sorry it took us this long to aid you.” He fell silent, but Angelique could tell by the furrow of his brow and the wrinkles on his forehead that he wanted to saysomething.
“Yes?” Sheasked.
The prince stood straighter, making the muscles of his broad shoulders bigger. “You will travel to Sole, Iassume?”
I’m starting to think maybe I shouldn’t have pushed him to speak.“Yes,” she cautiouslysaid.
“Then I have arequest.”
I knew it!Angelique mentally howled.Iknewit! Am I the continent’s nanny? Or just the village idiot who is incapable of refusinganyone?
Friedrich must have sensed her great displeasure, for he gave her a slight smile that had an edge of desperation to it. “Severin was here in Erlauf when he received the communication from Lord Enchanter Clovicus about the mirror. We’ve been wracking our brains ever since, trying to figure out something that would giveusan edge over the Chosen, given that they’ve so greatly stacked the deck in theirfavor.”
“It is greatly troubling that they have the mirror,” Cinderellaagreed.
“What’s in Sole?” Angelique gloomilyasked.
“Information,” Severin said. “My brother and I have been communicating by courier. After Clovicus confirmed the mirror was missing, Lucien pointed out there is one artifact that is just as ancient as the mirror and is mentioned in Verglas’ records of the Snow Queen—though in truth, we don’t know how powerful itis.”
“And what artifact might that be?” Angelique pressed her lipstogether.
“A dagger,” Severin said, “calledFoedus.”
“The Snow Queen’s best friend—Phile, the Robber Maiden—owned it,” Friedrich said. “She went on to found a thieves’ guild that disappeared over time, and with it all records of the dagger, though it’s said she bragged greatly of itsabilities.”
“Did anyone everwitnessits powers?” Angeliqueasked.
“Not at the time of the Snow Queen,” Severin said, “but the dagger appears in multiple historic records and was always said to possess great power. If the scant records I’ve found are correct, it’s just as old as the mirror, if notolder.”
And the older the artifact, the greater the power—or so it’s assumed. We lost the ability to forge such powerful artifacts before even the time of the Snow Queen.Angelique pressed her lips together as she thought. “And you think information on this dagger is inSole?”
“Yes,” Severinsaid.
Silence prevailed for a moment, then Cinderella rolled her eyes. “Men,” she muttered. “You can’t give her a bare-bones explanation like that and expect her to understand or be satisfied!” She turned to Angelique and smiled. “The Queen of Hearts was the historic Sole Queen who commissioned the elves to make the legendary weapons for her Magic Knights ofSole.”
“I am well aware of Sole’s history.” Angelique smiled slightly to soften the dryness of her words, but Cinderella didn’t seem tomind.
“Of course, but before she decided to ask the elves to forge the weapons, she gathered up historic records about weapons that had been charmed and enchanted. Ciane actually has the largest record of magical armaments in the world as aresult.”
“I assume that means Foedus was one of the weapons she had researched?” Angeliqueasked.
Friedrich nodded. “She never found Foedus, but she gathered a great deal of information onit.”
“You want me to find that information?” Angeliqueguessed.
Severinnodded.
“And you can’t send one of yourRangersto retrieveit?”
“Not with all of Ciane under a sleep spell and protected by your magic,” Severin said. “One of my Rangers almost got through, but the Magic Knight who remained behind to protect the still-sleeping Princess Rosalinda nearly killed him. And with the entire royal family sleeping, all our connections with Sole are officially cut off, so there’s no way we can ask him to standdown.”
“He would know you, however.” Friedrich smiled winningly. “And given your role in the princess’ survival, I imagine he’d let youpast.”
Angelique slightly tilted her head back so she could stare at the ceiling.Yes, ofcourseI’m your only option.A slightly rebellious part of Angelique wondered if she stopped showing up so often, if Severin and the others would miraculously find a way to solve all of these supposedly-unsolvable problems if not forher.
Stop it, she told herself.I’m just being bitternow.
She sucked in a deep breath of air. “Are you hoping to recreate Foedus,then?”
