Merchant Prince Corvus stood in his private study overlooking Valdris's harbor, watching three trade galleons prepare for departure. Each one carried legitimate cargo—spices, textiles, and alchemical components—that would generate respectable profit.
Each one also carried encrypted intelligence reports that were worth considerably more than their manifest cargo.
He turned from the window and returned to his desk, where twelve folders were arranged in precise rows. Each folder represented an operative embedded in the foreign exchange program. Each one a carefully cultivated asset. Each one producing intelligence that the Republic, Ashmar, and Solhaven believed was secure.
They were wrong.
Corvus opened the first folder.
The boy had delivered his report on Shroud manipulation technology three days ago. Excellent work. Technical specifications detailed enough that Valdris researchers were already analyzing its potential applications.
The boy believed he'd stolen it.
He hadn't.
