Chapter 40: Executive Aide

Chapter 40: Executive Aide One hour later, the interview results for the Executive Aide position were announced. A smile bloomed on Lethia’s lips the moment she spotted her name glowing on the hologram board. All that remained now was the written test. This test covers general knowledge about werewolves, and another tailored to the elite culture of Lykon Haven. Lethia strolled down the corridor of Lykon Haven’s Main Building, the walls crawling with vines as if nature were desperately trying to balance out the modernisation of its architecture. She couldn’t help but admire how the capital kept trying so damn hard to make this dead city feel alive with all its artificial flair. Somehow, it still puzzled her why the werewolf central government was merged right here in Ashenhold, alongside the humans. But after spending a few weeks in the capital, she finally understood: the mindset of Ashenhold folk and countryside wolves was like fire and water. And the fact that Varrel thought he could be the first to bridge that gap made her chuckle inwardly. Foolish. Delusional. But amusingly so. Whatever it was that Varrel had planned, Lethia no longer gave a damn. All she needed now was to bring both Varrel and Lana falling down, reclaim her ranch and cheese farm, and one day live peacefully with her child out in the countryside, far away from the twisted heart of this city. She glanced around, scanning the directional signs, and her eyes lit up when she spotted one pointing to the cafeteria. Checking the time on her phone, she realized she still had an hour before the written test began. This morning, she’d only managed to eat peanut butter on plain toast—Robot Chef was still under maintenance, its frame mauled by Freya’s claws. On the way here, Renar had explained that Freya felt neglected. He hadn’t said it outright, but Lethia’s guts told her that it was her presence that triggered the cat’s jealousy. It was weird, sure, but... she felt oddly proud because of it. That damn cat had been getting on her nerves since day one in Renar’s penthouse. The hologram screen flashed with Lethia’s order—creamy spinach chicken steak and guava juice—now being processed after she scanned her payment. She then made her way to a seat by the wide glass window that overlooked a terrace garden with a fishpond trickling peacefully in the background. She input her queue number on the top corner of the table and rested her chin on her palm, eyes fixed on the glimmering ripples of the pond. Her thoughts drifted back to the interviewer’s question—it felt like a trap. A deliberate jab. When it came to the father of her unborn child, Lethia was completely speechless. She felt lost, directionless. On one hand, she was sure that she never had an affair with Karmen. But on the other, Varrel had claimed that the sperm donor used in her IVF was Karmen. That truth knocked the air out of her lungs. Chasing Karmen down for proof seemed useless now. The child was still biologically his. She rubbed her temple, headache blooming behind her eyes, her mind fumbling for an exit that didn’t exist. "Hey... can we sit here, right?" Lethia turned to her left and found Chasey already plopped down beside her, a man in tow. "Ah, yeah, go ahead," she answered, forcing a smile. ’Why the hell bother asking when your ass is already on the seat?’ "Congrats to us for making it to the next round!" Chasey clapped silently, her expression bright with excitement. Too bad her cheer didn’t rub off on Lethia, who only managed a faint, reluctant smile. "Ah, right—Lethia, this is Adam. Adam, this is Lethia." Chasey, now sitting snugly between them, introduced the two with an easy grin. Lethia, caught off guard by the sudden introduction she never asked for, merely dipped her head politely. Just for the sake of small talk, she asked, "You both seem close. You’re friends?" "Of course. We’ve been good friends since... thirty minutes ago," Chasey replied with a nonchalant grin, leaving Lethia staring blankly at her. ’Seriously? Who the hell starts calling someone a friend after just half an hour?’ But again, Chasey did seem naturally sociable. And even though Lethia wasn’t exactly fond of mingling, she knew damn well that surviving in Ashenhold meant having at least one companion. And someone as effortlessly friendly as Chasey might actually make a decent one. "You’re very sociable. Must be easy for you to make friends," Lethia said as she took her tray from the food delivery robot. She tried—really tried—to keep her tone polite and not dripping in sarcasm. "Of course. Friends are everything in Ashenhold. Ah, Adam—do you know Lethia?" "The Stiletto Queen, right?" "Oh! So you’ve seen the viral video?" The two of them dove straight into the topic like kids in a candy shop, raving about how iconic the video was. What made Lethia bewildered was, they chatted with such buzzed enthusiasm like Lethia wasn’t sitting right next to them. Lethia, meanwhile, just focused on her food, savouring each bite of chicken steak, feeling like a total outsider in a conversation about herself. "By the way, Lethia," Chasey turned to her mid-chat, "your ex-husband’s running for parliament. So why do you want to become an Executive Aide?" ’Took her long enough to ask,’ Lethia thought. "Is he? I didn’t know that," she replied flatly. "I came to Ashenhold for protection... and I need a job. That’s all. Simple as that." She couldn’t be arsed to give a serious answer. Hopefully, Chasey would just take it as it was and move on. "She should aim to become Queen—or at the very least, a parliament member," Adam chimed in with a teasing tone. "Oh, you’re right. If we excel as Executives, they can promote us to VIP Aide." That part caught Lethia’s attention. She listened more intently, curiosity flickering behind her eyes. "VIP Aide?" she asked. "Oh my queen, you don’t know that?" Chasey blinked dramatically, only to be met with a silent shake of Lethia’s head. "Lykon Haven’s aides are split into two ranks—Executive and VIP," Chasey explained, pausing briefly as her food arrived on the tray. "If you perform well as an Executive, some parliament rising leader might just elevate you to VIP Aide," Adam continued for her, "and that comes with the chance to become a member of parliament yourself." Lethia nodded slowly, absorbing that little fact that had never come up during her studies. Chasey chuckled. "And by doing well, it’s a broad term. You could even... perform well in bed, and it will make you ascend to VIP." Lethia nearly choked on her guava juice at that. Chasey reached over and patted her back gently, giggling like it was the most casual thing ever. "Yeah, you’re right... Alfonso is the perfect example. The bloke even ditched his mate just to climb his way into parliament," Adam added with a blank stare as he chewed his food. Lethia, her plate nearly cleared, began thinking sharper, ’So the Aide position could actually be a gateway to power. But why is Callista adamant about it being fair play?’ She smirked to herself, already entertaining a few plans to spread her wings wider. "Seems like anyone would sell themselves just to hold power," she muttered bluntly. Chasey and Adam turned to her with wide eyes, visibly startled by her unfiltered words. Lethia, caught in their stunned silence, blinked at the way they stared at her. She grew awkward in the moment, realizing her sass might not land the same with everyone. The conversation moved on, thankfully, shifting toward the parliament and juicy gossip about the current candidates. Back in the countryside, Lethia had often heard the noisy buzz of Ashenhold’s democratic festivities whenever the election season rolled around. Now, she finally understood why it felt so grand. After all, it wasn’t just about choosing the next King or Queen as the new ruler—this election also decided twenty parliament leaders, the backbone of the people’s voice in the country. "If you two pass the test," Chasey asked playfully, glancing between Lethia and Adam, "whose Aide would you want to be?" "I don’t really care about that. I’m applying to work under the system," Lethia muttered, resting her chin on her hand as her gaze drifted toward the window—outside, a little girl was being carried on her father’s back. And just like that, the ache for her own father crept back into her chest. "I want to serve under Zeran Tuffin. You know how filthy rich that guy is at such a young age? I want to learn from him, grow better," Adam said with a grin, his teeth flashing like he was already halfway there. Chasey downed her iced cola in one go before announcing, "As for me, I want to serve my prince—Caelum." Lethia snapped her head around. Chasey’s eyes were practically sparkling, her cheeks turning a shade too pink just from saying his name. "I’m his die-hard fan," she gushed. Lethia chuckled inwardly at the way Chasey had suddenly turned into a swooning puppy. She wasn’t sure if she should brag that she might end up serving the Tuffin guy herself. But then her eyes flicked, like something had sparked. "Hey... wanna make a deal?" she said, turning toward the two werewolves. "What deal?" "If you pass the test, I’ll try to get you both in under Tuffin’s line." Chasey and Adam exchanged confused glances. "How could you even do that?" Chasey asked. "I have my way. Renar Tuffin happens to be my attending doctor. I might be able to talk to him." Lethia was bluffing hard, but in Ashenhold, a gamble was better than staying still. Trying would never kill, right?