"Took you quite some time. I thought you will stay inside until daylight. Dragging you out would be ugly."
Inez smirked under the black veil, seeing Cherry's pale face. She placed her hand on her knees, standing up from the coachman's body with her feet on either side of him. Dusting her hands off, she faced the crown princess's lady-in-waiting.
"Countess Lloyd, isn't it a bit late for you to travel alone?" she asked as she pulled down the veil that was covering half of her lower face. "As Her Royal Highness's lady-in-waiting, you must've heard about the recent terrorist attack. It's not safe."
"Your Highness..." Cherry staggered back as her lips quivered, her entire body shaking.
"What's with that look, Countess Lloyd? I didn't come here to harm you." Inez smiled amicably, but her eyes reeked with the bloodthirst. "I'm simply surveying the area because of the attack. We noticed this carriage and had to stop it, but as we were approaching, we noticed the coachman doing something suspicious."
She glanced back at the corpse behind her. "You would've been in great danger if we didn't come. The coachman was apparently part of the Valiente."
Inez kept her friendly smile as she shifted her focus back to the woman several feet away from her. Cherry, however, simply glanced at the coachman and then at Inez. There was no way Inez was telling the truth. The coachman was dead and he could no longer defend himself.
The dead speak no tale.
Cherry took another cautious step back and held her breath, eyes at Inez. "Your Highness, I was told to go home. My husband fell ill, and he needs me."
"Oh? Lord Oscar?" Inez gasped and rocked her head in understanding. "Then, shall we escort you to the whorehouse in the fifth district?"
"What?"
"Lord Oscar is there, Countess Lloyd." The ninth princess's lips stretched from ear to ear until her eyes narrowed. "He's a regular in this whorehouse and had kept a few mistresses — young ladies, twice younger than you. Maybe that is why he needs you there since children are still inept at how to take care of him aside from warming his bed."
"I will escort you there since it will be in my conscience if something happened to you," she added and raised a finger, motioning her men to take Cherry.
Cherry's heart shook as she looked back at Inez blankly. She couldn't even think about her words as she darted her eyes at the approaching men in black.
"No..." she whispered and staggered back, nearly tripping, but managed to stay on her ground. "You can't --"
Her breath hitched, and before she could even think about it, Cherry jumped and fled. The men who were approaching her stopped as she ran away, looking back at Inez in silence.
Inez smirked as she stared at Cherry's back in amusement. "Whoever gets to catch her gets to taste her first." And then snapped her eyes ever so tenderly as she glanced at the other men near her.
"Make this look like a random attack. This is where she would be found." She ordered, and the men bowed their heads.
"Yes, Your Highness."
When she peeled her eyes away from them, she set them in the direction where Cherry fled. Some of her men already came after her, but Inez stayed for a moment while the rest started breaking down the carriage.
"Countess Lloyd." Inez licked her lips like a demoness who crawled her way up to the surface. 'I will make sure you will beg me to kill you. It will be a long and fun night... Countess Lloyd.'
********
[ Sapphire Palace ]
Aries stood on the balcony wearing only her robe. She had been staring at the thick darkness in silence, inhaling the chilly night breeze as winter approached. The tension brewing was slowly seeping through the cracks of the calm surface of the empire.
This silence... was far noisier than any commotion.
Ignorant ones couldn't feel it, but certain people, especially those who were heavily involved in the court matters, couldn't deny this dread shrouding the empire. Things would change and by now, Ismael had already had enough weapons to fight for what he was fighting for.
Just a few tweaks and everything would fall in its rightful place.
"I always wonder how come you can come in and out in my chambers with no one noticing," Aries spoke softly as soon as she felt a presence behind her, glancing over her shoulder when a hand crawled around her waist.
"I have my means." Abel bent over and planted a kiss on her shoulder before resting the side of his head over it. "Do you wish for me to get arrested?"
Aries let out a quiet sigh, holding his arm before she turned around to face him. "No." She crawled her arms over her shoulder as she leaned closer. "I was simply curious whether you are simply skilled or they lack qualification to be called knights."
"The only qualification a knight need is his life, darling." He simpered. "They die early anyway, so having more talent will become a waste."
"That is... ridiculous."
"It is not — at least, not in this land." Abel shrugged nonchalantly and pulled her waist closer. "That's the reality of the people in here, don't you agree?"
"Is that your conclusion during your stay in here?" she dawdled; her fingers crawling up from his nape to his hair as his answer was a simple brow raise. "Anyway, you are quite bold to be in here. Aren't you afraid my husband comes back and finds us out?"
Abel simpered and batted his eyes coquettishly. "He will be busy checking the arms I sent him." He then lifted her by the waist and sat her down on the railing.
"I sent him a lot to keep him busy all night." He winked while Aries arched a brow at that devious smirk plastered on his face.
"You are quite generous in giving out weapons to another empire, Your Majesty."
"I'll give them more if that means I get to spend another second with you." Aries giggled at his reply as she bent over while he kept his head raised.
"It's quite a cheap price for your time, darling. You're too precious," he dawdled into her mouth while she grinned against his lips. "I'm jealous."
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