Chapter 282: Cyra: Miss lowest ranked.
Sienna’s heart sank. Lina was infamous in the empire for her lack of proper wedding and engagement related behavior. If she was here, Vera was in for a rough night. Lina was overdressed to the point of absurdity. Vera was wearing blue, so was Lina. And Lina’s blue was more eye catching.
The gown was layered with silks, feathers and jewels that screamed to be noticed. Her crown had such big jewels that it tilted precariously under the weight of the ornaments. She swept into the hall like a storm, her voice already filling the space.
"Such a gathering!" she exclaimed, waving her jeweled fan. "I nearly fainted from the boredom of my journey here. But I have arrived to save the night!"
Guests exchanged wary glances. Some rolled their eyes, others stiffened and the bear lord stuffed another honey cake into his mouth as though bracing for impact.
Mija muttered, "Here comes trouble."
Sienna looked at the queen, her own eyes wide in wonder. "What is she doing here?"
The queen grimaced. "How am I supposed to know? I don’t control where she goes and what she does. Invitations were sent to the members of the royal family out of courtesy. Everyone knows they rarely attend engagements like this, only weddings. I am here tonight as your friend, which is why I am sitting here. Lina is different. She was probably invited, and now, we must all suffer."
Lina strutted toward Gael and Vera, her voice rising above the music. She paused dramatically, fanning herself, then turned her gaze on Vera.
Sienna felt the tension spike. Vera, small and timid, looked up with wide eyes, clearly overwhelmed by the princess’s flamboyance. Gael pushed her behind his back, eyeing the princess suspiciously.
Lina tilted her head, her voice dripping with too much sweetness. "I am not going to eat your tiny bride Gael Veythar, I just wanted a closer look. Her family has hidden her so well from the public eye. She is very....cute. My, my....what a curious choice of dress." She tapped her fan against the chin, then declared loudly enough for the entire hall to hear: "It’s ugly. Next time, go to Rancleef’s."
The hall fell silent. Glasses froze mid-air, whispers died instantly. Vera’s eyes widened, her cheeks flushing crimson beneath her veil. Gael’s tail twitched furiously. Cyra’s jaw dropped, even the queen’s serene mask cracked for a heartbeat.
And in that silence, every noble leaned forward, waiting to see what would happen next. The longer the princess stood before the couple, the more tense the hall became.
Then, in a move that stunned everyone, Lina clapped her hands and summoned her attendants. They carried forward a wooden chest with floral decorations. Its top surface inlaid with pearls and gold. With a flourish, the princess announced, "For the happy couple, a gift worthy of their union."
The chest was opened, revealing stacks of gold ingots on one side. pearls in the middle and a two guns made of precious tar crystal said to be worth a fortune. Gasps rippled through the crowd. Before anyone could process the contradiction, Lina swept forward, embraced Vera tightly and cooed.
"Such a cute little tigress! I simply couldn’t resist. I will hug you more often from now on."
Vera froze, bewildered, while Gael’s ears twitched in confusion. Nobles exchanged baffled looks--was this generosity genuine, or another of Lina’s games? The hall buzzed with speculation, the earlier insult now tangled with the extravagant gesture.
Sienna stiffened as Lina turned her jeweled fan toward their table. "Bestie, I missed you!" she squealed, striding over. "You brought an extra friend to grow our little group."
Cyra’s eyes widened as Lina stopped directly in front of her.
"You," Lina said, tapping her fan against Cyra’s shoulder, "are the lowest ranked here. Stand up. I shall sit."
Cyra bristled. "Lowest ranked? I am the daughter of the ruling fox house. I am as much a princess as you are! I am the fox lord’s sister. Hardly the lowest here."
Lina smirked. "Compared the the queen, the matriarch of your fox clan and the white snake princess whose poison could blind me, your power is but a flicker. Debate if you wish, but the hierarchy is clear."
Cyra’s cheeks flushed. She turned to Sienna and the queen, seeking support. The queen remained serene, her silence an implicit agreement. Serenya knew that if she stepped in, some older women from the royal family would be waiting at home, to accuse her of bulling their precious princess.
Sienna raised a brow, amused but unwilling to intervene. She was not in the mood to spar verbally with the most rude and arrogant princess to ever live.
Mija hissed softly, "Best not to challenge her now. She just looked the bride to be in the eye and called her dress ugly. Are you sure that you want to exchange words with her?"
Cyra sputtered, "Thus is absurd!" Yet, under the weight of Lina’s gaze, and the murmurs of nearby nobles and the glare from her grandmother, she reluctantly rose.
A servant scurried to fetch an extra chair, leaving Cyra standing awkwardly beside the table, her pride visibly wounded. But a moment later, she was all smiles when servants carried Mija and her chair, squeezing Lina’s chair between the snake beast woman and Sienna. Her blue gown spilled across their feet like a tidal wave of silk and feathers.
When the extra chair arrived, Cyra squeezed in, forcing all four women to sit shoulder to shoulder around the four person table. And the table became a spectacle--queen, three noble princesses, and a noble matriarch pressed together as if they were sharing precious secrets.
Whispers spread instantly. "Look, the queen is sitting with some of the most famous women in the empire and they are talking. What are they discussing?"
A mother shoved her daughter, whispering. "When I said broaden your circles, that is the kind of circle I was talking about. Not the dogs you keep."
"Did you see Miss Cyra being displaced? How humiliating."
Gael and Vera, once the focus of the occasion, now seemed forgotten. All eyes turned to Sienna’s table, where the four women formed an unlikely constellation. Servants stumbled in their duties, distracted by the sight. Nobles craned their necks, gossiping furiously.
Sienna felt the weight of the attention and sipped her wine calmly, hoping that Lina had been fed some of that medicine which controlled her mouth. If not, then the four of them would end up becoming the drama she had been anticipating.
Lina leaned forward, eyes gleaming and she started her chatter. "So, I heard this is the replacement bride. Isn’t it just like a novel or movie?"
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