Tahni was at a loss following Ederra's instruction. The girl must have known that she shuddered to even be in the vicinity of the malevolent block of ice in the guise of a human that was Reyoma Tersi. Everything about her was exaggerated, as if Reyoma herself hadn't known when to stop in her rendition of the "perfect" Kassi woman. She would have been beautiful even without her makeup, but her perpetually shifting eyes gave one to understand that a simple existence would have never been enough for her. For some reason, perhaps not even known to her, she had decided that she wanted more, which in this case meant having the throne and all the privileges that would entail.

Breathing in sharply, Tahni turned and started back towards the tea tray, willing to believe that accidentally spilling hot tea on someone could reasonably count as a distraction. It would have been a pity about Reyoma's pretty dress, but Tahni was also very curious as to how the other girl would react. Would she carry herself with as much practiced poise as before? If there was someone who could pull it off, it would certainly be her.

Unfortunately, Tahni would forever have to wonder, as she became distracted herself just before reaching the table.

She goggled in silence, then pointed a shaky hand at the newest group of servants currently crossing the lawn.

"What's that?" she asked breathlessly in regards to the sizeable shiny object two under-butlers were carrying on a dark velvet cushion.

"Oh? That's Victor's Cup, of course," said Reyoma.

"You mean the victor's cup?"

"No."

Reyoma stepped next to her and they both watched the servants scurrying towards the garden gate while Ederra remained by the table, presumably fussing over a teacup Tahni had never requested. Tahni's eyes were starting to water since she couldn't bring herself to tear her gaze away from the glittering trophy.

"The first hunter to ever win the grand event was named Victor," explained Reyoma. "Most said it was just a coincidence, but I think Fate wanted to make Herself known on that day. Why, the boy hadn't even been in the cards to win!"

"Why?" asked Tahni absently. She cleared her throat having just found it unaccountably dry, then blinked her tears away and gazed at the retreating back of the servants as they carried the cup beyond her reach.

"You don't know the legend?"

Reyoma sounded incredulous, but Tahni suddenly had no energy to spare in order to antagonize the girl.

"I'm sure I've heard it before, but I must have forgotten," she replied without rancor. "Please enlighten me."

"I used to love this story as a child," confessed Reyoma. "I loved how Victor overcame the odds to help his family. That's why he joined the hunt in the first place; the lord of the estate had promised a big prize at the end of the day, and Victor's parents were in dire financial straits. I'm sure he also had numerous starving siblings as well, so he took the mantle of savior and rescued them all by winning."

Despite her current distraction, Tahni knew more must have been afoot.

"What's the plot twist?" she asked suspiciously.

"He was nine years old," replied Ederra. She brought forth a cup of tea on a thin white porcelain saucer and handed it demurely to Tahni. "Please enjoy, my lady."

"Oh, my infusion!"

Reyoma hurried back to the table to fix her beverage, but returned a few moments later holding a cup similar to Tahni's. The servants were just then exiting the estate gardens, leaving Tahni with a painful longing in her chest.

"The funniest thing about the affair is how he wasn't even able to lift the cup at the celebratory feast," said Reyoma. "That is how he is always depicted in illustrations, sculptures, and tapestries: a little boy who's struggling to lift his trophy so he could bring it home and have it melted for money."

Tahni was struggling herself in order to maintain her composure as they finally reached the point she'd been aiming for all along.

"Melted, you say?" she asked with studied innocence. "How much could it possibly be worth then? Is it made of silver?"

"Channa, no," chuckled Reyoma. She sipped daintily from her cup, smacked her lips in relish, then let out a contented sigh. "Iskarian midnight bloom," she went on in a husky voice. "How I've missed it."

She shook her head, as if trying to steer her thoughts back to the conversation at hand, then directed a beaming smile at Tahni.

"It's pure white tersdom," she said solemnly. "And the argument can be made that it's more valuable than the royal crown and scepter put together."

"No," breathed Tahni, marveling at the opportunity that had just brushed past her.

"It's true," insisted Reyoma. "The Tzeru estate used to be incredibly wealthy back in the day. That is the reason why the newly minted royal family wanted it at all costs when they first came to the throne some three centuries ago. It was and still remains a symbol of absolute power."

Tahni hesitated a moment, unwilling to cast more suspicion on herself, but she could already feel the desire simmering within her very being. Soon it would boil over and her fate would be sealed, so she might as well plough ahead and deal with the consequences as they came.

"How come nobody's tried stealing it yet?"

She tensed, anticipating a narrowing of eyes from Reyoma and an accusatory glance from Ederra. Instead, she barely got any reaction at all. Reyoma chuckled and Ederra - who should have known better and might have already guessed at the nefarious direction Tahni's thoughts had taken - barely moved at all, as if she were some statue instructed to serve and observe while pretending not to notice what was happening around her. In fact, she barely paid Tahni any mind, focused as she was on the other girl.

"But they must have," said Reyoma, then took another sip of tea. "I suppose it's just proven too impractical to be carried out. The mansion is well guarded, the object is ridiculously heavy, voluminous and recognizable, so there are plenty of risks involved."

"One might argue that in this case, the risk is proportional to the reward."

The words were out of Tahni's mouth before she'd even become aware of them, and she bit down on her tongue in dismay. It was as if she wanted to reveal her intentions. Fortunately, the other two seemed too caught up in their own trains of thought to pick up on the obvious.

"I think so too," said Reyoma. "But I personally wouldn't risk it, and I'm sure most career criminals think the same way."

"What about a madman?" muttered Tahni. 

From her vast experience dealing with herself, she knew that further struggles would be useless. There was nothing to be done now but surrender to the inevitable, since the fate of both herself and that blasted Victor's cup were now entwined.

Still, she was terribly grateful when Ederra spoke up at the same time and her own words were drowned out.

"What I've always wondered is why the estate held on to Victor's cup if the boy needed it for his family and couldn't even find the strength to lift it. Did they all starve?"

Reyoma pondered for a second, rosebud lips pursing in a mien not unlike some famous Terevansian portraits on display in Kassi's snootiest art galleries.

"You're right, you know," she said at last. "That aspect is never explained, though I suppose the lord must have given him the equivalent sum. This way, he got to keep the cup and not antagonize public opinion."

"Smart man," commented Ederra. "We've immortalized little Victor but we don't even remember the lord's name. If he were a proper tyrant, there would have been a place for him in the history books as well, but he must have chosen to be kind instead."

They both paused and turned to regard Tahni at the same time, as if waiting for her input again. She blinked, struggling to bring herself back to the present discussion and its uninteresting turn, all the while plans and schemes vied for attention at the back of her mind, ranging from ludicrous and impractical to deceptively hopeful. What were they talking about again?

"I've never heard of this story," she said bluntly. "I don't remember seeing any tapestries either."

"Perhaps not all tutors consider it appropriate for young ladies?"

Ederra nodded at Reyoma's suggestion.

"Mine certainly didn't. I found it in Kade's Appendices."

They both paused for exactly three seconds before bursting out laughing.

"That sounds far more gruesome than it actually is," managed Reyoma. "I swear, every man over the age of forty I've ever met has that entire encyclopedia on display in his library."

"I'm fairly certain my father has actually read it."

"Is he a masochist?"

"He's a lot of things which shouldn't be mentioned in polite company."

"Is it too late to admit that I'd rather not be polite?"

Tahni frowned, still weighing whether she should feel upset or not for being left behind in the exchange. This Reyoma girl was playing too hard at being relatable, and she didn't trust her one jot. On the other hand, Ederra would have been on her guard had she really sensed dangerous intentions from the other woman.

"I don't suppose you've rifled through the mortal remains of an unfortunate person named Kade?" she asked, somewhat dreading the answer.

"I'm sure some people have," said Reyoma. "Gut reading is a popular form of fortune-telling in the eastern provinces of Iskaria."

"Kade is the abbreviation for Kassinem's Age of Due Enlightenment," explained Ederra, "and is a twenty-five-volume work with limited practical use outside of academia and crusty noble's gatherings where every member's sole purpose is appearing more culturally aware than the rest. The appendices are a full three volumes of the whole thing."

"And the only bit of fun there is to have," added Reyoma, "considering that the authors saw fit to cram all the myths and legends as applications of endemic superstitions and outdated mindsets."

"I suppose those are the only ones normal people bother to read?"

The other two nodded their assent, and would have no doubt continued gushing over the debatable merits of the literary work in question if they hadn't been jolted out of their little abstract haven by a pointed cough.

The discussion ceased and the three of them turned to regard the fourth woman they had almost forgotten about.

"I don't suppose you've noticed that we've been left to our own designs for quite a while," said Druelle Odarsi. "I, for one, am starting to wonder whether that has been the intention all along."

As they stood in silence for the next few seconds, Tahni took the opportunity to better analyze this paragon of bravery, the so-called low-born that had somehow struck fear of failure into the hearts of her competitors - apart from Tahni, of course, who sometimes forgot what they were even competing for.

She was of medium height and fair complexion, with a thin nose and pointed chin. Her cheeks might have been considered too angular by supporters of imported beauty standards and most fashionable people would have disapproved of her refusal to paint her eyes, or to do her hair in a style more elaborate than a mere updo. Tahni, however, appreciated the openness of her features, distinguishing in them the stubbornness of rejecting the norm that she herself embraced on a regular basis. Under different circumstances, they might have even been friends, but she was perfectly aware that at court, it was every woman for herself.

"Are you saying it's too quiet?" asked Reyoma with a frown that somehow barely brought any wrinkles to her forehead.

"That is obviously not the case, considering how well you seem to be entertaining yourselves. I am simply referring to the fact that there are only four of us in a place obviously designed for more. Have you seen any of the others?"

"As a matter of fact, I have. They were at the gates, arguing with the guards about the number of ladies-in-waiting they were allowed to bring in."

"And you think they're still at it?"

"Let's find out."

Without hesitation, Reyoma sprinted to the pavilion railing closest to the path all servants seemed to be taking on their way to the back gate, and hailed a hurried butler carrying an upholstered chair.

"You, there, the handsome man in the green-striped livery! Could you come here for a second, please?"

The butler slowed down and turned around in disbelief, still holding on to the chair. He was middle-aged and balding, but Reyoma's wide smile and emphatic gestures finally convinced him that she had indeed meant to address him. He put the chair down and advanced hesitantly.

Tahni, Ederra, and Druelle reached the railing and watched curiously as the man approached.

"Do you know where the other ladies are?" demanded Reyoma before he even got a chance to bow in formal greeting.

"I am not certain, my lady," he replied carefully. "Perhaps I should go back to the mansion and inquire?"

"But you've just come from there! Haven't you seen them?"

The butler shook his head.

"What about the king?" asked Druelle.

The butler blinked, shifting his gaze uncertainly from one woman to the other, clearly uncomfortable with the questioning.

"The king has just arrived, my lady. He will be heading for the hunting grounds to meet with the guests."

Druelle took a sharp breath while Reyoma slammed her hands onto the wooden banister.

"Those gutless serpents," she hissed through gritted teeth.

The butler recoiled, having caught on to her suddenly shifting mood if not her actual words.

"Which way would he be taking to reach the hunting grounds?" asked Druelle.

"The Royal Road, my lady. It leads out from the eastern gate."

"They've just lingered around the main gate until he arrived and then found some excuse to accompany him," muttered Reyoma with obvious repugnance. Suddenly, however, she was all smiles again and Tahni wondered how the poor man had yet to run away screaming from her mercurial moods.

"You wouldn't happen to know whether there are any refreshments for the ladies at the hunting grounds?" she asked sweetly.

"I am not certain, my lady. To my knowledge, the very pavilion you now occupy has been intended to house your ladyships for the majority of the event."

"I see. Thank you for your communication, I will not detain you any longer." She then leaned farther over the banister and whispered huskily at the startled man: "And I meant what I said; you are handsome."

Tahni's initial thought was that she must have been seeing things when the butler almost fell over himself in his haste to return to his duties - or maybe Reyoma had indeed winked at him.

Following his departure, Ederra was the first to speak:

"I thought that since ladies were rarely invited to this event, their entrance should be more impactful and they could only be accompanied by the most distinguished hunters."

"You're right there," replied Druelle, picking up a heavy duty saddlebag and settling it across her shoulders. "And that should have been the case for today as well, if our fellow so-called <<ladies>> weren't a bunch of spineless sycophants that bring us all down with their desperation."

"The hunters accompanying the women is a ritual in and of itself," added Reyoma. "Usually the best ones are selected to do the job, and if things don't work out with the king, I would have loved to have an alternative."

"Does the king even take part in the hunt?" asked Tahni, finding it difficult to remember what the man even looked like. She'd only ever caught sight of him at the endless ceremonies surrounding his coronation day, but the impression she'd been left with was that of a lean figure appearing overburdened by the paraphernalia of the royal crown jewels and attire. Naturally, she had difficulties picturing him braving the Tzeru forest in search of today's prize.

"He's going to fall prey to Amster and Chinchalla and their ilk," said Druelle bitterly.

"But he's properly guarded at all times, isn't he?" asked Ederra.

"His person maybe. But his ego is bound to be as vulnerable as any man's."

Reyoma spun around suddenly and dashed back to the refreshment table, where she gulped down the rest of her tea, then started piling cookies and biscuits onto a large dessert platter.

"We need to hurry," called Druelle, already stepping off the platform and onto the lawn.

"I know," yelled Reyoma, grabbing a handful of glazed raisins. "But you heard the man, there's no food there for us!"

"Isn't there supposed to be a feast after the hunt?" asked Ederra, still lingering by the railing.

"Of course there is, but that will take hours. I'm hungry now."

"Are we going to the hunting grounds?" asked Tahni, a glimmer of excitement reanimating her entire being.

"Going would imply a somewhat leisurely stroll," replied Reyoma, finally stepping away from the sweets on display, "while we might be forced to pick up the pace. And since the Royal Road is quite far away and tainted by association with the others, I suggest taking after Druelle and following the help."

Tahni had a difficult time masking her grin as she almost sprinted down onto the lawn. She kept telling herself that she wasn't truly desperate, only dangerously eager to succeed where other would-be thieves hadn't even bothered to try.