Enslaved by the Crown: The Weakest Slave Has the Strongest Ability

By Afternoon, the library had lost its usual quiet.

Two scholars argued softly over a missing volume near the eastern shelves. A pair of servants carried stacks of returned books toward the sorting tables.

Eldrin was halfway through arranging a shelf when he heard the familiar sound of footsteps.

Master Rowan.

He stopped beside Eldrin’s desk and placed a small stack of books down.

”Good work, young one.”

Eldrin looked up.

”Thank you, Master Rowan.”

Rowan gave him a warm smile before turning toward another shelf.

That was it.

Eldrin watched him for a moment.

She didn’t tell him.

The thought brought a small measure of relief.

He had spent the morning expecting the worst.

Every time footsteps approached the library, he had wondered whether someone had come to take him away.

But nothing happened.

No guards.

No summons.

Perhaps Ennessa had decided to keep the matter between them.

Or perhaps she was still deciding what to do.

Either way, Eldrin wasn’t going to remind her.

He lowered his eyes to the book in front of him and returned to work.

.....

(POV: Ennessa)

Ennessa sat alone beside the window, a folded letter resting between her fingers.

Outside, preparations for the celebration continued.

Her attention remained on the letter.

She folded the paper again and slipped it into an envelope.

Then she stared at it.

The problem wasn’t writing the letter.

It was getting it out.

She couldn’t send it through the household’s regular correspondence.

Every outgoing letter from Korrandis passed through the steward’s office. Nothing suspicious was required for a letter to be noticed. A name, a seal, an unfamiliar address...any of it could lead to questions.

And Ennessa didn’t want questions.

Especially from her father.

She tapped one finger against the envelope.

Who, then?

A maid?

Too risky. Maids talked.

A stable boy?

He could leave the estate unnoticed, but he couldn’t read the address properly.

A merchant?

Even worse.

She needed someone who could leave the estate without anyone caring where he went.

Someone nobody watched closely.

Her thoughts returned to the library.

Ennessa leaned back in her chair.

He was certainly reckless.

Breaking into the private archive had been proof enough.

Yet he had also understood exactly what he’d done once she confronted him.

And, more importantly...

Nobody knew him.

He had arrived only recently.

Most servants still called him the new boy.

If someone saw him walking through the city, nobody would wonder why.

Ennessa looked down at the sealed letter again.

There was another problem.

She had already caught him trespassing.

Trusting him with something important was absurd.

But perhaps trust wasn’t necessary.

She only needed him to deliver a letter.

Nothing more.

Her fingers tightened slightly around the envelope.

Now she only had to decide whether using him was worth the risk.

....

The following morning, Ennessa stood in front of the mirror, fastening the last clasp of her dress.

She checked her reflection once.

Then her eyes moved to the desk behind her.

A sealed envelope rested beside a small stack of correspondence.

She picked it up.

Ennessa slipped the envelope into the inner pocket of her dress and left her room.

The library was quiet when she arrived.

She pushed open the doors.

A familiar scent of paper and old wood greeted her.

Master Rowan wasn’t at his usual desk.

Ennessa looked around.

There.

The new slave was sitting behind the reception table.

He had a book open in front of him and a piece of paper covered in Marian writing beside it.

He noticed her almost immediately and stood.

”Lady Ennessa.”

She walked toward the desk.

”Where is Rowan?”

”Somewhere in the eastern section, I think.”

”You think?”

”He didn’t tell me where he was going.”

Ennessa glanced toward the shelves.

She looked back at the boy.

He was more careful around her now.

Understandable.

She still remembered finding him outside the private archive.

And the expression on his face when he realized she had caught him.

She placed one hand against the edge of the desk.

”Do you remember our conversation?”

”Yes.”

”Good.”

She let the silence sit for a moment.

The boy waited.

He didn’t try to fill it.

That was probably wise.

Ennessa studied him.

He was still difficult to read.

For someone of her age, he had an irritating habit of keeping his face under control.

”How is your cheek?”

His hand moved unconsciously toward the spot she had hit.

”It’s fine.”

”I didn’t ask whether you could survive it.”

A small pause.

”...It still hurts.”

Ennessa almost smiled.

”Good.”

His expression changed slightly.

She decided not to explain herself.

Instead, she reached into her dress and placed the envelope on the desk.

The boy looked at it.

Then at her.

”You’ll deliver this for me.”

It wasn’t phrased as a question.

He understood that.

”Why me?”

”Because you’re available.” Ennessa replied.

She paused.

”And because you have a reason not to disappoint me.”

Eldrin’s expression tightened.

He understood immediately.

The archive.

”Where?”

”I’ll give you the address.”

The boy nodded.

”I understand.”

Before handing it over, she looked at him again.

”There’s one more thing you need to understand.”

Ennessa held the paper between two fingers.

”Don’t leave it at the address and walk away. I want it in her hands.”

”Yes, Lady Ennessa.”

Eldrin picked it up.

For a moment, neither spoke.

Then he said quietly,

”...All right.”

Ennessa turned toward the stairs.

”Good.”

She took two steps before stopping.

”And Caiden.”

Eldrin looked up.

”If you decide to disappear with that letter...”

She glanced back at him.

”...I’ll have a much longer conversation with my father about the third floor.”

Eldrin’s fingers tightened around the envelope.

”I won’t.”

”I know.”

She continued down the stairs.

Not because she trusted him.

Because she was certain he had far more to lose than she did.