Heena chuckled, a dry, merciless sound, and shrugged her shoulders. "Very good. Deny it to the grave. But perhaps your resets have damaged your memory, my lovely Empress. You seem to have forgotten that the Vanguard Marquisate title comes with a very specific, very dangerous imperial privilege."
Heena tossed the heavy bronze badge in the air, catching it flawlessly.
"You arrogant nobles consider it insignificant," Heena explained, her voice echoing down the dark corridor, "but the Vanguard family holds the master registry. Every single secret emblem, every insignia, every hidden badge ever forged by the shadow guards of any aristocratic family in this empire is recorded in our vaults. It was a failsafe established by the first Emperor, ensuring that no noble could ever deploy a shadow force that a Vanguard could not instantly recognize and trace."
