The enormous chandelier hanging from the dome cast a soft light over the grand hall. The exquisite marble floor reflected a faint glow, silently bearing witness to the ravages of history.
Murals inside the hall depicted the Federation's history. Between them stood statues of its great leaders through the ages, their faces solemn and imposing. At the center of the chamber was a large round table, surrounded by rows of burgundy chairs. In the middle of the table stood a massive screen used to display motions and voting results.
This was the Federation's largest parliamentary chamber, the place where its future was decided.
Not long ago, parliament had voted on legislation concerning District 25... The introduction of this legislation was bound to cause an uproar, yet scarcely any news of it had reached the public, as though someone had deliberately suppressed it.
Everyone within parliament knew whose handiwork this was, but not one of them dared expose it.
The reason was simple. This ostensibly fair parliament was on the verge of becoming a one-person parliament. The Misen Family's power had reached an unprecedented peak in the Federation's history, and no one dared provoke the family at the height of its influence.
Yet the person responsible for all this was not the leader of the Misen Family. Without inside knowledge, no one would have guessed that the family's true ruler was its so-called "heir."
Dorothy Misen was someone whose name alone could silence others in the Federation.
No one knew why she chose to maintain such an apparently low profile and hide behind the scenes, but there was no doubt that the power concentrated in her hands had reached a terrifying level.
The session ended, and the councilors left one after another.
The young woman stood out from the crowd. She