Latina rubbed her eye.

She was still trembling. But her mind was working. She was an information broker. She had files on everyone. Even servants. Even masseurs.

"His name is Old Tomas," she said. Her voice was hoarse. "He is sixty-three. He has served the First Queen for twenty years. He was originally a barber from the merchant district. He was recommended to the queen by a lady-in-waiting. He is skilled. Quiet. Discreet. He lives in the servants’ quarters of the palace. He has a daughter."

"A daughter," Raven said. "Tell me about her."

Latina looked at him. Her confusion deepened.

"Her name is Sera," Latina said. "She is nineteen. She looks like her mother—who was apparently quite beautiful before she died in childbirth. Sera has been training. She wants to join the Royal Guard. She has the talent. She has the build. Tall. Strong. She has been participating in the selection trials at the East Training Grounds. The trials started three days ago. They will conclude in a week."

Raven smiled.

"Okay," he said. "That is good."

Latina’s eye narrowed.

"Now," she said. Her voice was steadier. The broker was returning. "Give me the information that you promised. You said you were giving information. Not buying."

Raven stood.

He looked down at her.

"The information is," he said, "I have the child. The First Queen is searching for. So desperately."

Latina’s face went white.

Her hand gripped the armrest. Her eye went wide. Her mouth opened.

"What?" she whispered. "What nonsense are you telling me? The lost prince? The child that was stolen from the cradle? That was eighteen years ago. The queen has searched every village. Every orphanage. Every—"

"No nonsense," Raven said. "I have him. He is upstairs. In the carriage. He is wearing a dandelion crown."

Latina’s breathing stopped.

"No," she said. "You are not—"

She looked at his face. At the certainty. At the absolute, demonic confidence. She had been an information broker for twenty years. She could read lies. She could smell deception. She saw neither.

"You are serious," she breathed.

"I am," Raven said.

Latina’s mind raced. The First Queen. The lost child. The reward. It was legendary. The queen had offered titles. Gold. Land. Anything. For the return of her son. The information alone—that someone had found the child—was worth more than her entire guild. More than her network. More than her life.

"Where is this child?" she asked. Her voice was sharp. Hungry.

Raven turned to leave.

"Under my protection," he said over his shoulder.

Latina trembled.

Her head went down. She stared at the floor. She had the information. The most valuable piece of information in the capital. But she did not have the child. She could not sell the child. She could only sell the knowledge of the child.

"Wait," she said.

Raven stopped.

"Okay," she said. Her voice was calm. Calculating. The broker had fully returned. "So what is the name of that girl, by the way? The masseur’s granddaughter?"

Raven looked back.

"Sera," he said. "You told me already."

"No, the old man’s daughter," Latina corrected. "What are you going to do with her?"

Raven smiled.

"To replace the old man," he said, "I need to give him some first-hand shock. And his granddaughter some first-hand satisfaction. Wouldn’t that be the way he would favor me?"

Latina’s face twisted. "What? What does that even—"

But Raven was already walking up the stairs.

The door closed behind him.

Latina stared at the empty staircase.

The man—the one whose mouth had been erased and restored—was standing against the wall. He was trembling. His hand was over his mouth. His eyes were wide. He looked at Latina.

"He would have killed you," she said. Her voice was flat. "If you had said one more word. He would have erased more than your mouth. Remember that."

The man swallowed.

"I will keep that in mind," he whispered. "Sir. Don’t send someone behind him. Or he would become our enemy. A very powerful enemy."

Latina nodded.

She looked at the empty staircase again. Her mind was racing. The child. The lost prince. Under his protection. She could not take it from him. She could not fight him. He had erased a man’s mouth with a snap. He knew her deepest secret. He was dangerous. But the information...

She turned to the man.

"Spread the news across the capital," she said. Her voice was cold. Calculating. "The child of the First Queen has been found. By the Information Guild. Organize an auction bid."

The man blinked.

"Auction?" he said.

"Yes," Latina said. She smiled. A thin, sharp smile. "He gave me so much information for free. I need to make some money, right? The First Queen will pay. The Crown Prince will pay. Every faction in the court will pay. For the knowledge of who has the child."

She rolled her wheelchair to her desk. She pulled a scroll. She began to write.

"Even if it is a lie," she murmured. "Even if he does not hand over the child. The information itself is worth a fortune. And by the time they discover the truth, I will be rich enough to buy a new pair of legs."

She smirked.

Raven emerged from the flower shop.

The morning was bright. The market was loud. The old woman behind the counter did not look up. She arranged dried roses. She pretended he had never entered.

He walked to the carriage. The women were inside. The boy was with the old man, feeding the horses. Raven looked at the women. All three of them. They were huddled together. Their faces were flushed. Their thighs were pressed together. The wooden dildos were still inside their asses. Their eyes were desperate. Heart-shaped pupils. Wet lips. Heaving chests.

He had booked an inn for them. A room. A bed. A bath. They needed rest. They needed food. They needed to be clean.

But they did not want rest.

They wanted him.

"Are you going to come?" Vess asked. Her voice was small. Needy.

"Are you going to... be with us?" Juhi asked. She shifted. The dildo pressed deeper. She winced. Her small tits tightened against her shirt.

The pregnant woman said nothing. She just looked at him. Her hand was on her belly. Her dark eyes were wet. Her lips were parted. She was craving. The parasite was vibrating. She needed his cock. In her ass. In her mouth. Anywhere. She was his vessel. And she was empty.

Seeing all three of them completely becoming addicted to his cock, he couldn’t help but feel the twitch in his crotch. But he knew there were more adventures for him out there.

Raven looked at them.

"You can rest," he said. "I will come."

He turned.

He walked away from the carriage. He stretched his back. His shoulders cracked. He looked up at the sky. The sun was climbing. The morning was fresh. He could smell bread. He could hear horses. He could feel the city.

He saw the poster again. The knight’s helm. The training grounds. The selection of the Royal Guard.

He smiled.

"Let’s go to the knight order, shall we?" he said to no one.

He walked toward the East District.