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 for 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. In the royal's eyes, especially the king, I save the queen. My seat in this estate is unshakable." Tori's right ear was still ringing from the slap she just received while her right cheek was numb from the sudden pain.

Without doing the curtsy, Tori passed by them without even a second glance. She was about to enter the estate's main door when she chose to stop. "By the way, with the stroke of luck I am alive, father. Sorry to disappoint you both."

Tori continued walking with Lily in tow. The original Victoria's life flashed inside her mind and Tori could not help but clenched her fist tightly.

"Lady Tori, I will prepare a cold compress for you." Lily immediately rushed as soon as they were inside the confines of Tori's room. All of her other handmaidens scurried to prepare her bath and her favorite tea. They all wanted to alleviate their mistress' pain even a little.

Tori did not bother to answer Lily. She just silently stared outside the window.

This estate becomes my reality slap, literally.

Aah, I am out of time. The plague will be coming. If only I can tie that rebellious prince to my hip just to stop his death. He's giving me a headache.

"Have some chamomile tea, Lady Tori. And here's some cold compress for your cheek."

Barely glancing at Lily, Tori smiled. "Just leave it there."

Lily hesitated but after witnessing what transpired earlier pushed her to follow what Tori wanted. The moment the door closed, darkness enveloped the room.

The darkness of the night outside matched the somber mood of Tori's room. The original Victoria's reflection mocked Tori. Carefully tracing the mirage before her, Tori's tears started to fall.

How did you survive sixteen years of this wretched plot, Victoria?

Why did you love that awful prince?

Why didn't you defend yourself?

Why did you love those who betrayed you until your bitter end?

Tori knew that it was the original Victoria's love still buried at the depth of her heart that stopped her to fully eliminate her father and half-sister. She could remember the first and last time that Tori met the soul of the original Victoria. The sadness and betrayal in her eyes were so strong.

Why can't this body obey me? If it is me, Duke Luwen Rozenreff along with Sabina Rozenreff would be long gone.

A sudden knock interrupted Tori's sentiments. Wiping her tears gently, Tori wore her most favorite mask again, her sweet smile. "Come in."

Sitting on her favorite chair, Tori served herself a tea and another one for her guest. "His highness told me that you need to talk to me." Wariness laced upon the newly arrived guest's voice.

"Come and sit, Lord Zeno McMillian Larat. Or should I call you Sir Zeno McMillian? Since I heard that you renounced your Larat name. Tea?" Tori offered him a tea which he politely declined with a soft shake of the head, his red hair softly brushing his eyebrows.

"And just call me Zeno, Lady Rozenreff." His wary emerald eyes were friendly but all Tori could see were the eyes of the betrayer, the eyes who prosecuted the original Victoria. Will you prosecute me now like before, Ze-no?

"I called you here because I need you, the empire needs you."

Gone was the wariness in his eyes and was replaced by curiosity for her. Good. Be curious.

"It's been two weeks since the dam started its construction. I want to discuss with you some theories that relate to interventions in the topography of the area." Tori stood up and led her guest to her study table where the capital's map was laid.

A few kilometers north of the capital, the ongoing construction of the new dam was led by Duke Luwen Rozenreff along with the other members of the noble faction. It was shady enough for Tori since not even a single member of the neutral zone nobles or aristocratic faction was invited to join the big project. What are you hiding, Prince Lauren?

Tori could still remember the day they made the deal. It was the day before the banquet.

THE CHILLY night of the Rozenreff estate welcome Tori as soon as her hooded self went out the gates of Duchy. Aside from Lily who acted as the messenger between her and the first prince, Tori could not afford to tell Rowan about this important part of the plan.

A rented carriage waiting at a good distance was the first thing that Tori saw. The knights saw her figure but they pretended that they did not saw her. They were bribed by the first prince.

Tori walked stealthily under the shade of the moonlight towards the dingy carriage in which the first prince was probably waiting for her.

As soon as she opened the carriage, someone is waiting for her. Tori did not bother to greet him as she went inside to properly situate herself in front of the smirking first prince whose sapphire eyes were looking at her like a predator to prey.

"I'm practically salivating with the fact that you're bending your iron will just to make this deal with me. It makes me particularly curious. What do you want from that traitor?" The first prince did not waste any second. His demeanor screamed confidence and authority above her.

Tori knew that as long as she's not on equal footing with the first prince, her impending death was still set in stone. She needed absolute power. That's why she would bend the knee just to fool him. Tori could not let the second prince die.

"Would you believe me if I say I fell for him, your highness?" Tori did not take off her hood which was contrary to what the first prince did. Her swollen cheek could be used by the first prince against her though Tori doubted that Prince Lauren already planted a spy among the Rozenreff estate's servants.

His arctic sapphire eyes glinted in the darkness of the carriage. "You are such a puzzle, Lady Victoria Rozenreff. I will not dwell why you need Lord Zeno. But what I want to know is how will you compensate me?"

Clenching her jaws hidden beneath her hood, Tori relaxed her entire demeanor to put up a façade against the cruel prince.

"I can give you any information, your highness. I will give it to you freely. But I will give it to you after you bring Sir Zeno McMillian to me."

Leaning towards Tori, Prince Lauren crossed the distance between them just to stare right into her emotionless red eyes. He was testing her. The first prince's knowing eyes scanned hers as if she was lying so Tori stared right into him as a response. Tori steeled herself even if her heartbeat was ringing in her ears.

"Why will I need information from you when I can get it myself?"

Tori gave Prince Lauren a sugary smile before she confidently replied. "Yeah. Why will you need the information about the coming Hunt of Elysian Crown from me when you can get it from anyone else, right?"

Tori saw it, even for a split second, a telltale sign of Prince Lauren's shock expression. Using this advantage, Tori continued. "I will tell you a clue to your Hunt."

Tori went out of the carriage leaving Prince Lauren alone in that shady carriage.

ZENO MCMILLIAN'S voice behind Tori snapped her out. "You mean the changes that the dam construction will give to the capital? You know that I am not into politics and power play, Lady Victoria. I am afraid I can't help you with that."

Tori gave way to show the map where she darted the dam's location. "No. What I need from you is your expertise. For me who doesn't know the raw materials that the dam construction is using, this is my estimated range of affected area. But you, you know what they're doing there. I want to use that specific knowledge to know what is the real deal and not just the estimated affected area. I want to know everything. Can you give that to me, Sir Zeno McMillian?"

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 area 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 the construction, there are dried streams that connect to the canals of the capital's plaza. Due to the dam's contraction, the other side of the river will overflow to these dried streams."

Realization dawned upon Tori. "You mean the entire capital city will be affected in terms of water flow. Why are you asking me this?"

Tori did not answer him. Instead, she tiptoed to kiss the side of his lips which stunned Zeno. She then whispered her answer. "Because I know what you're capable of. You created it, right? The illness that is slowly eating this empire and will eat the second prince."

For the nth time this week, Tori was again pushed. She fell to the floor with a thud but the sly smirk she had never faded. "How?"

"How did I know? Will your smart mind believe if I tell you that I know that this would happen, smart sir?"

The coincidence led Tori to deduce that Sabina was used by the first prince to bait Zeno into the noble faction's side just for this large-scale plan. But in your past life, you could not accept the fact that hundreds of thousands died because of your idea so you created the antidote.

Standing up gracefully, Tori stared right into Zeno's emerald eyes. "You didn't realize it yet, did you? Whatever promises the noble faction told you; for once you never considered the deaths of the innocent. Wake up, Zeno."

Tori erased the initial ring she drew and changed it to Zeno's estimated ring that engulfed the entire capital city. She folded the map. "You are just being used for a massacre, poor you. But there's one thing I want to tell you, I will protect Prince Corean no matter what the cost."

Allistair must have secured the second prince, right now.

Walking away from Zeno who was too stunned to move. "W-wait! Where are you going?"

"To that wretched dam."