A resounding slap caressed Aries's ears the moment she stepped foot in the library in the Hyacinth. Her careful, soundless steps skidded to a halt as she reached a shelf, a space for tables and chairs coming into full view.
Over there, two ladies were standing near the round table.
'Oh.' Aries whistled, folding her arms as she leaned her side against the shelf. She kept her eyes on the two ladies at a not-so-faraway distance.
The ladies were facing each other: one had her face tossed to the side, her cheek was burning, the other one's face was also burning in anger, smoldering, hands tightened into a fist.
Princess Agnes calmly looked back at the fuming Lady Ivory, ignoring the red marks the latter's hand left on her cheek.
"Why are you furious, my lady?" she asked with genuine wonder in her voice. "The east district is under your jurisdiction, and yet, the food storage was burned down. Why are you blaming me? When in the first place, you should've seen such things from happening as the announcement is approaching."
The corner of the princess's lips curled without remorse. "Blame your incompetence and frail governance. If you can't even protect this small district, how will you protect an empire?"
"You…!" Lady Ivory raised a hand once again and unhesitatingly swung it toward the princess's face. This time, however, her hand was stopped midway as a hand grabbed her wrist.
"I took that first slap to call it quits," said Princess Agnes, tightening her grip around Lady Ivory's wrist. "One is enough, my lady."
"I'm going to kill you," Lady Ivory remarked firmly, eyes glinting with growing resentment. "Do you think you'd get away from this? The emperor wouldn't sit still —"
"The emperor wouldn't care, my lady." A crafty smirk turned up on the princess's face. "Why would he? As I've said, if you cannot protect this small town and allowed your opponents to make a score, that only shows your incompetence. I don't think he would even want an incompetent person around his personal space."
Princess Agnes took a step forward, reducing the distance between them.
"You should thank me, though. Losing this competition is far better than winning. Do you know, why? That is because if you made this sort of mistake as an empress, getting disqualified isn't your biggest concern." She leaned her face closer and stressed her next words. "You and your entire house will be hanged."
Lady Ivory's breath hitched until her neck turned taut. Her eyes were still shaking in anger, but she didn't look away from the lack of remorse in the princess's eyes.
Princess Agnes let out a weak scoff, releasing the lady's wrist.
"You're welcome, my lady." Her smirk turned into a kind smile, sending fire into the lady's blood to boiling point.
"You will regret this," Lady Ivory warned whilst massaging her wrist. "I'll make sure you'll regret ever humiliating me."
Princess Agnes shrugged offhandedly, making Lady Ivory shake in anger. However, the latter simply let out a sharp scoff before turning on her heel. As soon as she did, she paused, seeing that Aries was leaning against the shelf while watching them.
Aries raised a book she got from the shelf, showing them she was there by coincidence.
"Tch." Lady Ivory hissed before stomping away without faltering.
As Lady Ivory walked past Aries, the latter quirked a brow. Aries glanced over her shoulder, hearing the loud bang of the door as the lady slammed it closed. Another whistle slipped past Aries's lips, looking back in the princess's vantage point.
"Your cheek will swell if you do not take care of it immediately," said Aries calmly to the princess. "Why would you even sell yourself out?"
Aries slowly peeled her side against the shelf, sauntering toward the princess until she was standing before her. Her eyes shone satisfaction but also genuine wonder, studying the red mark Lady Ivory left on the princess's cheek. She didn't notice it until now that she was looking at the princess up close, that the corner of her lips also bled from that slap.
"Good thing she wasn't wearing heavy jewelry." Aries snapped her eyes ever so tenderly at the princess. "She could've cut your stunning face, Princess."
Princess Agnes' expression was solemn, looking back at Aries sternly.
"Isn't reassurance what you want, my lady?" she returned with a tinge of sarcasm in her voice. "I don't think she will win the competition, and since she knew who was the person behind the incident in the east district, she'll do everything to drag me down with her."
"You have no more opponent for the title," she continued, balling her hand into a tight fist. "Did I prove myself worthy?"
"Why are you angry, Princess?" Deep lines appeared in between Aries's brows. "I didn't tell you to go this far. I just told you to take out Lady Ivory, but there's nowhere did I tell you to take away the people's source of sustenance. That's a stretch."
"A stretch…" Princess Agnes could not help but scoff in dismay, listening to how Aries shamelessly washed her hands clean. "The South is sending its ration since we had more than enough."
Aries pressed her lips into a thin line and raised a hand. Her hand stopped midway as her brows rose, noticing how the princess stiffened. As expected, the princess only pulled up a false bravado and barely concealed her fear of inflicting pain again.
"May I?" she asked while Princess Agnes lowered her eyes. Seeing her reaction, Aries took that as her silent consent. She carefully reached for the princess's swelling and burning cheek, her cold palms somehow soothed it.
"You did great, Princess," Aries crooned, her eyes narrowing. She observed how the princess looked back at her with shaking eyes, offering her a gentle smile. "Thank you for giving me the reassurance that I want."
"Will you now tell me where is she?"
"Not so fast, Princess." Aries shook her head, brushing the princess's cheek with her thumb. "I still need you to do something."
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