Chapter 18

----------------------------------------------------------------- Translator: Diva Chapter: 18 Chapter Title: The Empress's Scheme -----------------------------------------------------------------

As she passed in front of the Main Palace, Talia saw the servants who recognized her frantically pressing their foreheads to the ground. Were they afraid the notoriously infamous Second Princess might grab them by the collar and start a fight?

Talia strode past the maids who stared at her in wide-eyed shock at her unannounced arrival, stepping into the Empress Palace, more lavishly decorated than any other keep in the imperial grounds.

At dusk, Senevia usually enjoyed dinner with the Emperor at the Main Palace or spent the evening quietly in the Empress Palace. Talia figured it would be the latter today.

Sure enough, Senevia was resting in the secret workshop behind her private study.

Talia descended into the basement through an entrance hidden between bookshelves, catching whiffs of dizzying herbal scents, potent incense, and faint smoke tickling her nose.

In the vast room where purple motes seemed to float in the air, alchemy vials filled with ingredients and various experimental tools lay scattered about. Next to a roaring large fireplace, books written in the languages of all races were stacked high.

It was a chaotic scene hard to believe came from her mother, who always dealt only in the valuable and extravagant.

But Talia crossed the room with familiarity and approached the desk where Senevia sat. She was leaning back against the chair's thick velvet cushion, skimming through a parchment scroll.

Seeing her completely ignore her presence made Talia's stomach burn like she'd swallowed a lump of fire.

Talia leaned over the desk and spat through clenched teeth.

"Asros came to see me just a little while ago."

Only then did those deep blue eyes finally flick toward her. Talia continued with a sneer.

"That kid said I'm getting married soon."

"I had no idea Asros was interested in you."

Senevia set the parchment down and spoke indifferently.

The sight of her attention fixed solely on her little brother sparked an urge in Talia to hurl objects around wildly. She clenched her skirt hem, barely suppressing the savage impulse.

"Why should I have to hear about my own marriage from that boy? And what's this about me joining the pilgrimage trip? What scheme are you plotting?"

"Scheme? That's an unpleasant word."

Senevia let out a small sigh and rose from her seat. For a moment, Talia was entranced by her flawless, elegant movements, but she quickly eyed her mother's softly smiling face with wary suspicion.

Senevia spoke in a bright, innocent voice like a carefree girl.

"You're at the age where you should be getting married. When a suitable proposal arrived from a suitable match at the right time, I simply moved things along."

"And that 'suitable match' is some slimy snake like that Serian guy?"

Talia twisted her lips, recalling the slick-faced man who had escorted her at the banquet.

"Of course, a man thoroughly vetted by you, Mother?"

"If you're asking whether Serian can perform as a man... yes, he can. He's quite skilled in that regard. If you wish, he'd gladly serve you with pleasure."

Talia's barbed jab at her mother's string of lovers had backfired horrifically. Her fragile composure shattered completely. Each of Senevia's words turned into spiders crawling over her skin.

Talia screamed as if in agony.

"I don't need that nauseating man! I'd sooner bite my tongue and die than let him touch me!"

"Oh dear..."

Senevia cradled one cheek and sighed regretfully.

"Then I'll find you another groom. I was already sifting through a list for other suitable candidates anyway."

She gestured to the parchment on the desk. Talia spotted a few names written there and shuddered. They were all Senevia's fanatical devotees.

Was this woman planning to marry her off to one of the men lusting after her?

Rage and terror boiled up together in her gut.

"I don't want to get married at all! Stop pretending to care now and just leave me alone like you always have!"

"So... you mean you won't settle for any man but the heir to Grand Duke Sheerkhan?"

Stabbed at a vital point out of nowhere, Talia paled and staggered back.

Senevia curled her lips and flicked her viperous tongue sharply.

"If you wanted him that badly, you should've seized him by any means necessary. I kept that man by your side for a full seven years. What have you done in all that time?"

She shook her head pityingly.

"The man you wanted will belong to another woman in just a few months. You're just going to sit back and watch?"

Talia's shoulders trembled. A chill ran through her at how thoroughly Senevia had seen into her heart.

Senevia gazed at her daughter's ashen face, then donned her mask of the loving mother once more. She continued in a gentle, coaxing tone.

"Talia, I planned all this solely for your sake. To show my precious daughter a way out of her current misery."

A long, white finger softly brushed her cheek's underside. It felt like a white snake slithering over her skin. Talia went rigid, as if paralyzed.

Senevia peered into her terrified daughter's face and whispered feather-soft.

"You have two paths. One is to seize the man you want by any means. The other is to become a slightly less pathetic loser."

Her silky voice clung to Talia's ears like sticky sap.

"I took the first path and got everything I desired. But if you lack the ability, picking a passably satisfying alternative and pretending to be just as happy as the victor is another way. It's a bit pathetic, but if you're going to lose anyway, better to salvage some pride, don't you think?"

Talia jerked away from her like a trapped animal escaping a snare.

Senevia gave her daughter a kind smile.

"This trip is your last chance from me. Think it over carefully and choose your path."

Talia shot her a defiant glare, then fled the workshop like a fugitive. A light, birdlike laugh trailed after her like a shadow. The sound lingered in her mind for a long time.

In the end, Talia set off on the journey with her half-siblings who despised her.

Thanks to the Empress Palace providing all the necessary personnel and equipment, she had nothing extra to worry about. Senevia had even offered to attach her personal guards and high-ranking mages as escorts.

But that met fierce opposition from Gares and fell through. The Crown Prince was already furious beyond measure at having to travel with his thorn-in-the-side half-sister. There was no way he'd meekly accept bringing the Empress's minions along too.

Word had it Gares had gone straight to the Emperor and argued vehemently to revoke Senevia's orders. It was a boon for Talia. She had zero desire to be surrounded by her mother's zealots.

'For my sake? Don't make me laugh...'

Talia glared at the servants loading luggage onto the carriage, picking at the rough skin by her nail.

There was no way Senevia would go to such lengths for her. She was surely up to something else.

With suspicious eyes, she scanned the servants dispatched from the Empress Palace.