“Oh, man, and to think, I was worried you’d missed your honeymoon. This might as well have been your honeymoon, huh, Alessia?”
“It’s not like that!” I protest.
“Then what was that look on your face when you said his name?”
I open my mouth to refute her observation, but I catch a glimpse of my reflection on the edge of the tub, and I realize my cheeks are a bright pink. Turning away so Mina can’t see me, I say, “Look, it’s not what you think, alright? I just got to know him better, and he saved my life out there, so I’m appreciative!”
“Sure. We’ll go with that,” Mina chuckles. “So, about this plan of yours. What are you hoping to do?”
I’m grateful for her wonderful subject-change timing. It’s like she knows exactly how far to push me before I genuinely get upset, leaving me feeling seen instead of attacked.
“I’m hoping to send missionaries to Krasta to relieve their hunger crisis. Aurelio had the wonderful idea of sending in knights to both protect the missionaries and assist in the manual labor necessary to restart Krasta’s farm fields, so I’d like to do that, too.”
“I’m assuming the issue your father had was that Krasta will see that as a threat,” Mina says.
“Kind of. The civil war dividing the capital will prevent the missionary work from being noticed. My idea was to gather intelligence on the civil war and the royal family’s whereabouts so we could get in touch with them. I want to stop the bloodshed in their capital and bring a peaceful resolution to the conflict so our work in the farming villages doesn’t go to waste. Their soldiers will be desperate if they run out of food, see, and I don’t want them to think they can take what they want from the villages by force. Unfortunately, that is what my father believes will start a civil war: contacting the royal family.”
“While he has a good point, there is a more surefire option.”
I frown. “There is?”
“You could march in and take the capital by force.”
I whip around to look at her so fast that another inch of water sloshes out of the tub. “What?”
“You heard me. I’m dead serious, Alessia.”
I search Mina’s face, but she’s absolutely right: there’s not a hint of doubt or regret in her expression. She’s smiling politely as ever, her full, round face full of joy like we’re arranging a child’s birthday party instead of contemplating international invasion.
“The way you can keep a straight face when we talk about this stuff is terrifying,” I say, shuddering. “This isn’t a lighthearted decision.”
“It’s not. But I can see how much being in that village affected you. I haven’t seen you that angry in a long time, the way you looked when you told me about your trip. You truly care for the people of Lihra and the rest of the citizens of Krasta that suffer from poor leadership.”
“Of course I do. I’m the leader of a nation myself. Leadership that poor have no excuse; it’s downright selfish.”
“Right. But you won’t be able to ask the royal family to step down, not nicely, anyway.”
“Yes, that would incite a war,” I confirm.
“Then if we can’t avoid conflict, we should initiate it, right?” Mina points out. “By marching in and subjugating Krasta, however temporary the subjugation may be, you’ll shut down a civil war, re-institute their political system, and bring the economy back to life all in one fell swoop.”
My heart beats a little faster in my chest. “You know what, Mina? I should have appointed you to be a royal advisor a long time ago. You’re totally right. This is the best way to mitigate casualties.”
“We may lose some of our own,” Mina warns.
“I know. But think about how many people must have died in Krasta’s civil war by now,” I remind her. “The sooner we step in, the sooner the bloodshed stops. Plus, if we don’t step in at all, who’s to say Krasta won’t fall into the hands of an evil dictator that wishes to invade their neighboring countries? I don’t want to see their country go through that if I can help it.”
“This is a calculated risk, one that you can’t take lightly. If you do this, some of our people may resent you for getting involved and wasting precious lives and resources.”
“If that’s the case, I’ll only take volunteers,” I say, setting my jaw determinedly. “I don’t want to force anyone to march into Krasta’s territory if they’re unwilling. We have plenty of knights; those that prefer to stay out of it may stay behind and guard the borders.”
“A wonderful solution!” Mina chirps.
“There’s still one problem, though,” I say, my smile fading.
“What’s that?”
“It’s Daelia. There’s no way the Holy Church won’t send her in with the missionaries. If she’s in Krasta when it comes time to invade, she’ll stand in my way or die trying.”
