Chapter 8 Feigning Innocence Is My Cup Of Tea

• Lady M smirked.
• “A lady after her own heart, I like that. Follow me.”
• Lady M guided the three of them towards a secret passage that led to a comfy-sized room that looked like Lady M’s office. The latter sat comfortably, and Tori followed suit. Lily and Rowan stood at the back of Tori, completely on guard.
• “Leave us for a moment,” Tori ordered the two, which they reluctantly followed.
• When Tori was left alone with Lady M, the latter finally spoke,
• “So tell me, what is a noble lady doing here?”
• Tori took off her hood and sat comfortably.
• “Now, that isn’t the information we must be talking about. How about we start our conversation with the location of the Elysian Crown?”
• Lady M abruptly stood up from her seat due to shock from what she heard. Tori couldn’t blame her. After all, the Elysian Crown was why the original novel got the title ‘Thorny Crown.’
• Thorny Crown was the title of the novel series, which later became a popular Netflix Series. The story was about the first prince and the second prince, both heirs to the throne. Originally, to decide the rightful heir to the throne, like all the previous kings, went through, the heir apparent had to use all their resources to locate the Elysian Crown.
• Whoever finds it first will become the Crown Prince.
• But the wench Sabina, the female lead of the series, and the noble faction didn’t want to risk since the second prince displayed quite the intelligence, so they destroyed the Elysian Crown and sabotaged his death.
• Though the sabotaging part wasn’t confirmed by the author, the second prince allegedly died during the great plague in the Season 2 of the series. Come to think of it, it did not highlight the death of the second prince in the Netflix Series. That was so shady.
• In the original story, the Elysian Crown was never seen again. The story got the title ‘Thorny Crown’ as it represented the female lead and male lead’s thorny path before reaching happily ever after. Although Tori didn’t know what’s the ending since they got burned together with the author.
• Suppose I can secure the Elysian Crown before it falls to the Rozenreff Dukedom and Castaña Dukedom, both loyalists to the noble faction. In that case, the second prince can take part without worrying about dying.
• ‘The hunt to the Elysian Crown’ was an official occasion wherein there was only one rule. If either heir apparent died during the duration of the hunting, the other one should give up the claim to the throne. Thus this rule eliminated the possibility of assassination for the second prince. After all, the noble faction could not afford to be destroyed. If any princes died, the two Dukedoms would claim the right to join the hunt for the Elysian Crown.
• Either way, any result is not a loss for me. But I prefer the amber-eyed prince to be the future king.
• “Do you know how heavy that claim is, my lady? And even if you know the location of the crown, how will it benefit me?”
• It was Tori’s turned to smirk,
• “Whoever has the crown’s location got the right to decide who will become king. Isn’t it Lady M’s wish to support the aristocratic faction? And let me correct you. This information won’t benefit you but the entire people you wished to protect.”
• Yes. Lady M, short for Lady Merilla of House Larat, was a loyalist to the aristocratic faction.
• Lady M’s face turned serious. Only a handful knew who she was. And she couldn’t believe that she heard these words from a young lady of the House Rozenreff, who was known to be a loyalist of the noble faction who openly supported the first prince.
• “Is this the noble faction’s scheme to trap us?” a flustered Lady M asked. She was having a hard time believing.
• “I don’t need to prove anything. I’ll just show you.” Tori stood up, but before she left the room, she dropped a small piece of paper onto the floor.
• “I’ll be back by next week to discuss my terms and the information I want. Goodbye for now, Lady M.”
• Hurry and become my vassal. It would be nice to gain full access to the Information Guild.
• THE RIDE back to the estate was quiet and uncomfortable. Lily was still adjusting to her newest hobby, which involved coats and back alleys. On the other hand, Rowan was skeptical of why she had to change carriage just to visit the Turvy. He didn’t entirely doubt her, but he was more on the worried side that this thing may endanger Tori.
• Tori was grateful that the two weren’t asking anything. These two were her trusted aides, so they needed to know this. They also needed to see where the Turvy was located and who was in charge of that place in case Tori wanted to send a confidential message.
• When they safely arrived at the estate, Tori saw the familiar crest of the Castaña Dukedom on a carriage.
• No way! It is too early for the Duke to arrive!
• She unknowingly snapped her attention from the window to Rowan.
• “Lady Tori?”
• No! It’s too early! His loyalty to me is not yet that strong to forsake his family for me!
• Tori, with no help, descended from the carriage and went straight inside the manor. Lily and Rowan were both hot in their heels and wondering what was wrong.
• “Is something wrong, Lady Tori?” Lily asked her, but she didn’t reply until Teresa confirmed the facts.
• Tori dashed towards the head maid, Teresa.
• “Is the Duke of Castaña Duchy here, Teresa?”
• “Lady Victoria, you’ve arrived. And no, Duke Castaña is not here but Lady Elisa.”
• So that wench is targeting the Duchess instead of the Marchioness, huh. What a smart move.
• “Are they in the drawing room having some tea, Teresa?”
• “Yes, Lady Victoria.”
• Tori smiled sweetly at Teresa, though her eyes hid the wickedness she felt. “
• I must greet Lady Elisa then.”
• Tori turned to Rowan and charmingly smiled at him.
• “You can rest now, Rowan. And thank you for guarding me.”
• “Lily, bring the ribbons to my room. I’ll have to visit my dear sister I missed so much and greet our guest.”
• “Yes, Lady Tori.”
• This should be fun. You’ve been building this friendship for a month as a contingency plan since I wrecked your plan with the Marchioness. I’m curious, sister dearest, what will be your next move when I ruin this so-called friendship again?
• Tori’s friendly smile greeted the two ladies, chatting while having tea in the playroom. Lady Elisa stood up to greet Tori while Sabina was not happy before she masked her actual feelings with fake enthusiasm.
• “A pleasant afternoon, Lady Victoria.”
• Tori replied to Elisa’s charming courtesy with an equally perfect one.
• “Please have a seat, Sister Victoria.”
• Instead of replying, Tori hugged the wench. Tori and Sabina were picture-perfect loving siblings, but if anyone would hear their inner thoughts. They would surely crack up.
• “Please enjoy your stay here, Lady Elisa.” Tori took her seat adjacent to Elisa and directly in front of Sabina. The kitchen maids served her tea. Tori hated teas, but she had to pretend that she loved them, but if only she could choose, she’d instead have caffeine.
• “Yes, I am enjoying my stay, Lady Victoria.”
• “How’s the Duke and Duchess, Lady Elisa? It’s been a while since I visited your estate.”
• A dim expression passed by Elisa’s face before smiling like nothing. Tori glanced at Sabina, and she didn’t say it, but she couldn’t let her guard down with her ‘saintly’ half-sister.
• “They are doing fine like they always do. How about you and Lady Sabina?”
• You immediately shifted the topic, huh. This might be when the Duke learned of his illegitimate son’s existence, and he must be searching for him like crazy. After all, your father did not consider you as the heir apparent.
• “Oh. My father always gazed at my mother’s portraits. It pained me to see him suffering, but it touched me that he loves my mother so much.”
• Tori wanted to emphasize the words “so much” in front of Sabina, but they had guests, so she only made herself content by glancing at the wench to convey her message.
• Sabina’s uncomfortable form was like an aphrodisiac to Tori. It brought her joy to continuously humiliate her.
• “Lady Elisa, I heard they invited you to the queen’s tea party. That is so nice!” Sabina changed the topic before Elisa could reply.
• So that’s how you play your game, huh. Bring it on, sister.
• Elisa smiled shyly at them.
• It must be with the fact that Duke Rozenreff’s daughters got no invitation at all. Oh, do not fret about it, dear Elisa. I don’t have the slightest inkling to enjoy tea in the same place where my killer lives.
• “My mother brought the invitation with her after discussing my future coming-of-age ceremony with the queen.”
• “You will meet the prince. That’s so lovely!”
• Careful, dearest sister. You’re showing your horns.
• “Which prince? Do you mean Prince Cory? I don’t know, but I think I won’t.”
• Elisa was trying to be polite in consideration of Sabina’s upbringing. They gifted royalty their castle to reside in. The first prince’s castle was next to the late queen’s castle, while the second prince’s palace was in the northernmost part since he loved to isolate himself.
• But I thought I was supposed to be the stupid one in the original plot? Why is there a talking baboon in front of me, anyway?
• “Oh.”
• Oh, I remember. In the original plot, Lady Elisa silently loved the male lead. She was so in love with him that she became hostile to any Crown Princess candidate. But Sabina tricked her by making her believe she would give the Crown Prince to Elisa when she became queen. Sabina even promised to help her be a concubine in the future. What a load of bullshit.
• “Wait. Does my dearest sister like a certain someone? Which one of the princes?”
• Sabina was immediately flustered and was unbelievably blushing. Elisa was smiling, though it was a bit forced.
• She must be feeling threatened. After all, Sabina still had the Rozenreff blood.
• It will be boring if I won’t create a crack in your friendship. Let’s see how you handle this, dearest sister.
• “Oh my. I’m so excited about this kind of topic.”
• “It’s the second prince, right? That’s why you want to attend too,” Elisa was holding on to that one piece of hope.
• What a delightful friend.
• Before Sabina could reply, Tori interjected.
• “Oh, it wasn’t the second prince. I saw how my sister smiled with the first prince during the banquet. Oh my, my sister is growing up already. It makes me feel so lonely.”
• As expected, with someone who has loved the first prince since she was young, Lady Elisa dropped her teacup. Though her dress got drenched with a partially hot chamomile tea, she barely reacted.
• “Lady Elisa, what happened?” Sabina, with her maid, Shena, immediately assisted Elisa while Tori took her sweet time observing the scene unfolding in front of her.
• Tori saw how Elisa flinched with Sabina’s touch.
• “I- I am fine, Lady Sabina. I think I have to cut short my visit. I am so sorry.” Elisa’s maid guided her to stand up.
• “I am so sorry, Lady Elisa. Did I say something wrong?” Tori also stood up wary, as if she was at fault. Shena openly glared at her while Sabina sent her a distant gaze for a second.
• Elisa chuckled awkwardly,
• “No, Lady Victoria. Never. It was just my clumsiness.”
• Let’s see if you can still glare at me, Shena, after I say this.
• “I apologize again, Lady Elisa. Should I have known that Lady Elisa also shared the same feelings with my dearest sister towards the first prince, I could have changed the topic.”
• The glaring Shena and the cold Sabina turned pale upon hearing what Tori said, especially when Elisa smiled timidly at them and abruptly left the drawing room.
• Oops. I think I heard a rope breaking when their friendship snapped.
• “Don’t worry, dear sister. Lady Elisa will return since you are best friends.” Tori assured Sabina, who was busy glaring at her as Tori left the drawing room.
• Ciao!