the timid bride

# Chapter 85 – The Trap Beneath the Throne

The palace's great hall had never been so tense.

Word of Lord Vale's arrest had spread across the realm. Some praised Queen Zara's unflinching judgment. Others whispered about her growing ruthlessness. In the eyes of the nobility, lines were being redrawn—and they were terrified of finding themselves on the wrong side.

That fear was exactly what Zara needed.

---

"Your Majesty," Thorne said as he placed another record onto her desk, "we traced three correspondences between Vale and the merchant guild of Dunroth. They were laundering funds through trade shipments marked as 'glassware.'"

Zara skimmed the papers. "Who controls the Dunroth guild now?"

"Lady Morel. Recently elected. Formerly neutral. But she once worked under Virela."

Zara's eyes narrowed. "Neutrality doesn't exist anymore."

---

Kael entered minutes later with a report of his own.

"The tunnels under Rivermount were only one piece. The Flamewatch intercepted a message in the northern highlands. Someone's trying to reactivate the old watchtowers."

Damon frowned. "For what? Those towers were abandoned after the border war."

"Which makes them perfect staging grounds," Kael said. "They're invisible to the current military structure. No patrols. No reports."

Amara added, "We'll need to retake them. Quietly."

Zara stood. "Then we move quickly. Before the rebellion grows teeth."

---

She ordered two detachments: one led by Amara to reclaim the highland towers, and one led by Kael to uncover the full Dunroth laundering network. But in the shadows, Zara was planning something far more dangerous.

A trap.

She had leaked word—falsely—that a hidden vault beneath the throne room held a relic of immense magical power. She claimed it could control minds.

It was bait.

If the Trin network truly had a spy inside the palace still, they would come for it.

---

Three nights later, the bait was taken.

Flamewatch reported movement in the royal crypts. Silent figures cloaked in black entered through the old servants' tunnels. Zara, in full armor, waited in the shadows with Damon and a squad of elite guards.

She didn't have to wait long.

Three figures entered the sealed corridor beneath the throne room. Two were guards in disguise. The third—

A court historian.

Elias Serent. A man who had spent decades preserving the kingdom's archives. Harmless. Invisible.

Until now.

Zara stepped from the shadows. "I always wondered how our ledgers kept disappearing."

Elias froze. "You don't understand—"

"I understand perfectly," Zara said coldly. "You traded history for profit."

The man laughed bitterly. "History? You rewrote it the day you sat on that throne. The true rulers of this land were silenced generations ago."

"You mean Corshal?"

"I mean the line before him. The line you erased!"

Zara's eyes flared. "That line murdered my family. Burned cities. Enslaved towns."

Elias snarled. "Because your bloodline was stolen. You wear a crown that belongs to the House of Trin."

A shocked silence.

Even Damon stepped back.

Zara's voice dropped. "Say that again."

Elias raised his chin. "Your great-grandmother was a Trin. She was cast out, hidden, then forced to marry into the royal family. Everything since then has been a lie."

Zara stared at him, mind racing.

Thorne had once mentioned a branch in the family tree that was mysteriously severed. Could it be true?

Elias smirked. "You are the rebellion, Queen. And you didn't even know it."

---

They arrested Elias. Dragged him screaming from the crypt.

Zara stood in silence long after the corridor cleared.

Damon approached. "Do you believe him?"

"I don't know," she whispered. "But we need answers. Not rumors. Truth."

---

By morning, she summoned Thorne and presented him with Elias' claim. The old man went pale.

"There was a Trin daughter. Disowned. Records erased. But… yes. It's possible."

"And what would it mean?"

Thorne bowed his head. "It would mean your blood carries both legacies. The destroyers and the rebuilders. Light and fire."

Zara looked out the window, the rising sun catching her eyes.

"Then maybe it's time I stop running from the fire."

---

That night, she addressed the Circle of Fire.

"There are truths buried deep beneath our throne. Truths we were never taught. But I will not be ruled by secrets. Not anymore."

She lifted the ancient Trin crest. "If I am descended from both lines, then I will unify what they broke. The rebellion dies today. Because I carry the blood they all fear."

They erupted in cheers.

And for the first time, Zara felt the full weight of her crown—not as a burden, but as a weapon.