TORI DID not realize when she fell asleep. Well, whatever. She did not open her eyes yet as she tried to control her breathing. She could feel that she was not the only person in the infirmary. Tori wanted to know who were the other people inside her room, so she pretended to be asleep. Well, that was the only thing she was best at ever since she transmigrated: pretending."You are always like this. You are always in front of me no matter how I run to catch up with you. And when I thought I can finally grasp you, I would realize that it's just all a mirage." Heartfelt words of Duke Rowan Castaña echoed inside the room. Tori was taken aback for a split second after noticing the genuine care from the pawn she never really put to mind. This was the road she had chosen in order to survive. Tori herself could not distinguish what was genuine and what was pretense in her actions anymore.She knew that she was being selfish when she decided not to let him know. But she needed him to ge
EVERY SERVANT in the Rozenreff Duchy was frozen on their spot when the furious Duke Luwen Rozenreff slapped the newly arrived Tori. The discreet smirk of Sabrina did not go unnoticed by Tori and Lily but the eldest daughter of the Rozenreff Duchy did not even flinch from the sudden assault.Furious red eyes met Tori's cold ones. "What are you plotting right now? You released the very person who tried to assault the queen! That criminal deserves to be punished along with her accomplice!"Smiling cruelly, Tori replied with a mocking voice. "Accomplice? Do you mean the second prince? And what? Punish him by making him forfeit the crown? Hell will freeze over before that happens, father.""You insolent brat!" The Duke raised his hand to strike her again but Sabrina's voice stopped him midway."Father, please stop! Sister Victoria will take responsibility should that commoner misbehave again, right sister?"You want me to step down if Tessa creates a ruckus again? How absurd."Never forget
She knew that Zeno McMillian was the type of person who disliked facades and charades. He was the type of person who wanted no bullshit. "I can accept that you're in the noble faction but know this Sir Zeno. There are neither factions nor royals that will be affected but those in the Pivet Alley. I know that they're just sewer rats compared to the high society but they're living beings. They should not be the casualties in our power plays."You can't let those innocent dies, can you?In Tori's estimated ring of affected areas around the darted location of the dam construction, the Pivet Alley which was located at the southernmost part of the capital was the only residential area that would be affected. She concluded that the plague that would kill the second prince was an elaborate plan that caused a hundred thousand more casualties around the empire. Just to kill the second prince."No. Your ring of the affected area is too small. If you are following the river that passes through
His frightened eyes were for her. Zeno McMillian was scared for her safety. "Why are you doing this for someone who already loves someone else?"Tori finally stopped walking forward. "That word again. Is that also the reason why you betrayed the House Larat? Because you allegedly love my sister?" Her mocking red eyes sharpened like a predator's eyes in the night."Love is a sentiment that can even ruin an empire and I did not betray my family for that. I did it for something bigger – an obsession that kept me awake at night." He whispered his last words but Tori heard them loud and clear from him. She did not like the way he looked into her eyes so she went back on track to what they were talking about."The dam construction is not your whole plan. You're using the dam to have an excuse to overflow this side of the river, haven't you? This part of the river is already contaminated but this does not ensure his death so you needed it to reach the capital. And the dam construction is the
Tori flicked her hair slowly, her ruby eyes never leaving his sapphire ones. She gave Prince Lauren a sugary smile that could fool anyone except the two princes. "Have you forgotten that I am a Vesta candidate, your highness? I will be queen no matter who is the king." Tori did not blink under his scrutinizing eyes which earned her a nonchalant shrug from Prince Lauren."Never forget the last part of our deal, Lady Victoria. The information in this scroll is mine alone to own."You are really Prince Corean's older brother."You have my word, your highness."Tori's grin could not be contained with the way things were moving around her. Looking outside the window, Tori's eyes glinted while watching beggars fight for a piece of bread. They reminded her of nobles fighting for an ounce of power. Glancing slyly at the first prince without turning to him, Tori saw how immersed he was in what he was reading.The northern region of the empire is a land of dispute. The newly conquered tribes ar
"YOU CAN be quite desperate, Lady Victoria. Are you that afraid to lose Cory? Wake up. You will never own him not until you will take the risk of trusting someone. But looking at you, you're just a scared little girl who chose to abandon him first just because you're afraid of being betrayed."What Tessa said haunted Tori that night. She was sitting on her bed and no amount of Chamomile Tea could appease her troubled mind. All of her handmaidens retired already. The estate was eerily silent but her mind was in chaos.Trusting someone, huh?Staring at her canopy as she lay on her bed, Tori remembered her life as Talia the moment she closed her eyesFLASHBACK…TALIA WATCHED with fervent curiosity as some middle school students rushed past her. They all looked happy as they snickered with each other from some sick joke between them that they only knew. Talia walked faster away from the scene that reminded her of everything she did and will never have.Opening the door with her spare key,
TORI WALKED towards the tall mirror after contemplating her life as Talia. Though it was dark, the moonlight helped her see her reflection. The image before her reminded Tori of the original Victoria she saw in that dream with the goddess Gaia. Tori traced her face on the reflection.The constant nightmare brought by the original Victoria's memory scarred Tori more. Seeing the original plot rolling every night in her sleep, highlighting the original Victoria's head rolling on the plaza grounds would wake Tori like an alarm clock every dawn.Tori knew that it was not her memory, but seeing the same wretched scenes for over a year would change a person.For her, the life she had before and her life now as the new Victoria Rozenreff had an uncanny resemblance, a resemblance that Tori would ruin."You suffered betrayal as I did but that's where our similarity ended, Victoria. You gambled with a non-existent emotion called love. You clung to a myth called happiness. What you desire is your
Standing in front of her bed, Prince Corean looked at her with a mocking grin on his face. Gone was the passionate look he had earlier and was replaced by a sinister cold one that Tori grew to loathe in a few seconds. "In the end, you are only a woman playing politics."Tori steeled herself as she gracefully sat on her bed, she gave him a sly smile before she flipped her hair and touched her swollen lips. "Is that so? Then why are you acting like a virgin noble lady? I should be the one doing that. Besides, you are my fiancé. You own my body, your highness."You will not break me. No one can. Not even you, my only chosen king.Prince Corean kneeled on the bed and grabbed her shoulders with a smirking face. His face was a few inches above her so she had to tilt her head to meet his gaze. "Keep believing in that, my sweet fiancé. But will find Tessa only then, will I consider my betrothal to you."Prince Corean leaned to kiss the corner of her lips before he walked away towards the bal