Alicia could smell the scheming in the air. Whatever this snake had planned with her accomplices was not good, and she feared that this time it might be very difficult to get both Ariel and Daniel out of danger.
But she was not going to let them have their way so easily.
Without another word, she stomped toward the palace.
Esmerelda smirked as she watched her walk away, then turned to Catherine with a satisfied smile before following Alicia.
Catherine smirked as well, her gaze shifting back to Monica, who wore a conflicted expression.
She stepped closer, standing beside her. "So… now that we have substantial evidence about Lady Ariel and the Crown Prince's affair, what do you think is going to happen to her now, hmm?"
Monica turned to face her, her piercing gaze filled with disdain. She held it for a moment before turning away and following the royal family members toward the palace.
Catherine smirked again and gestured to the other ladies. "Let's go and see the show, ladies."
She walked ahead, the others following behind.
'Well, well, bitch. This time you're done for', she mused as she led the noble ladies toward the inner palace gardens.
........
"I can't believe the Crown Prince has the audacity to mock our kingdom like this. It's so shameless," a royal official brawled as they walked toward the inner palace gardens, accompanied by other officials and ministers, with the King leading the entourage.
"Why are you surprised? This isn't the first time he's shamed us. What's different or shocking this time?" another, a minister chimed in. "This has gone too far."
"I hope this is enough to finally turn the tides in our favor," one minister whispered to another.
"Indeed… finally, something strong enough for action. This is going to be fun," the other replied.
Reginald heard their whispers echoing behind him.
Shameless bastards. Already thinking about seizing power for themselves. Cowards.
Only Reginald knew his son well enough. Daniel could be many things, but not this foolish. He wasn't so sure about that woman, though. He had already seen how she charmed him—both in those photos and at the ball.
A certain unease crept into his mind. Had she seduced him to the point of recklessness?
Yet she seemed too intelligent to do something so childish. Or had he overestimated her?
Either way, this was bad. He didn't want Daniel to hold onto power, but he hadn't yet trained Eric to become independent—free from the evil influence of his mother and that brute, Damascus. He still needed time. And for that, he still needed Daniel. As for the woman? If she failed, he could always find another.
His thoughts were interrupted as his eyes locked onto his mother, approaching from the other side with an entourage of noble ladies. It was obvious the news had reached them, and they were on their way to witness the spectacle as well.
The two stood face to face. Reginald bowed slightly in greeting before they both turned toward the door leading into the inner palace gardens.
Alicia glanced briefly at her son, then pushed the door open.
They entered the lavish inner garden, but found it empty.
"There's no one here," a minister murmured.
"Where are they?"
"Is this a joke?"
The officials began to murmur in confusion.
Alicia glanced briefly at Reginald before returning her gaze to the silent garden. She was about to turn and dismiss everyone when—
"There! I see shadows behind that pillar!" an official shouted.
Immediately, all heads turned.
There, behind the pillar, two figures huddled together.
The woman wore a pink suit with white heels. Her black wavy hair fell to her shoulders, partly covering her face.
The man had short, silky black hair and was dressed in a red shirt with black slacks. The royal emblem gleamed on his chest.
He was turned slightly, shielding the woman from view.
Alicia's heart dropped into her stomach as she looked at them. Her body trembled with fear and disbelief.
"No… no… it can't be. It can't be. I don't believe this," Alicia whispered, turning to Reginald, who also wore a look of shock.
Esmerelda smirked at Alicia's ashen, defeated expression.
'That's right, old hag. This time I won. And you lost. How does it feel to be utterly defeated? Better make the victory taste sweeter, right?' she mused before stepping closer to the pillar, stopping at a distance.
"Oh my goodness! What a scandal! What a scandal!" she exclaimed, feigning shock. "Lady Ariel, how could you do this to my son? Even if he is interested in you, you didn't have to seduce him to the point of recklessness. How could you? Shame on you!"
Immediately, the frenzy of mockery and insult began.
"Lady Ariel, you are so shameless! How could you do this to the Crown Prince? Now his honor will be questioned because of you! You are such a disgrace. Away with you!"
"Yes, away with you!"
"Away with you!"
The chant rose again, echoing through the garden.
Reginald and Alicia exchanged helpless looks.
This was really bad.
"Your Majesties," a royal minister stepped forward to address Reginald and Alicia. "This scandal is truly shameless and uncouth. It is clear that Lady Ariel is not a good woman, but a schemer and a vixen who only covets the Crown. She cares nothing for the Crown Prince's reputation. She is not fit to be Queen. Please, Your Majesties, we beg you to remove her from the competition and punish her and her household in the harshest way possible. They are treacherous schemers after the Crown. If they are not punished, how will we face the kingdom?"
Immediately, the royal officials and ministers echoed their agreement.
"Please punish the wrongdoers and bring justice to the Crown Prince and the kingdom!"
Reginald clenched his fists, almost tempted to strike the shameless minister for his audacity. To feign allegiance to Daniel and the Crown while clearly fanning the flames to drag both Daniel and Ariel into ruin was beyond insulting.
The bastard.
Esmerelda smirked slightly at the scene before looking at Catherine to fan the flame.
Catherine nodded before approaching the Queen Dowager and the King.
"Your Majesties. We know that Lady Ariel is a pardon of the Crown. We acknowledge that you favoured her. But this....this has gone too far your Majesties. Lady Ariel has just made a mockery out of our Crown Prince and also the members of the court and kingdom who value this tradition a lot. I heard that this tradition is upholded with the highest respect in your kingdom. Are you going to allow a shameless scheming woman to destroy its value and virtue. Please your majesties. Grant us justice. Punish lady Ariel before she destroys the kingdom's honour....please..."
The other noble Ladies started murmuring and agreeing with Catherine.
Alicia saw the vicious woman smirking and basking in the glory of Ariel's defeat. She should've known this was coming but she didn't expect it so soon.
But looking at the situation. She had no choice.
At the moment at least.
She was going to find a solution to the dilemma later.
Taking a deep breath, she stepped forward towards the pillar. She looked Esmerelda who was slightly smirking briefly, she glared at her before turning to face the two at the pillar and commanded. "Lady Ariel Fortmore! Please step forward and come into my presence. Now!"
The woman didn't move but actually coiled into the man even more.
Alicia's eyes dimmed at the refusal. She was already treading on thin ice and needed a way to save her but she wasn't complying but making the situation worse.
She became irritated and was about to open her mouth to scold her...
"At your service, Your Majesty."
A sweet small voice echoed in the space but it didn't come from the woman at the pillar.
Just then, a woman in a sapphire-blue suit emerged from the crowd, walking toward the Queen while holding a brown book rimmed with gold, the kingdom's emblem gleaming upon its cover.
Everyone's eyes widened in shock, jaws dropping in disbelief, as they watched Ariel approach the Queen Dowager with the book in hand.
She stopped before Alicia, who stared at her in ghastly surprise, and curtseyed gracefully.
"I am sorry, Your Majesty. I took too long to find the book containing the bridal selection rules and conduct that you asked me to bring. I did not realize my absence would cause such a commotion. My deepest and sincerest apologies." She bowed low in apology.
The space fell into complete silence, so quiet that one could hear a twig snap.
Ariel briefly looked up at Alicia, who was still staring at her in disbelief, and winked with a tiny smile before quickly lowering her gaze again.
Alicia blinked, then allowed a brief smile to cross her lips before turning to face the crowd. The noble ladies looked on with bewildered expressions—especially Esmerelda and Catherine, whose faces had gone pale, as though all the blood had drained from them.
"Oh… of course. Silly me. Haa! I completely forgot that I had sent you to fetch the bridal selection rule book from my study! How silly and forgetful of me. Oh dear, this is truly a sign that I am getting old." She paused, her eyes narrowing as she fixed her gaze intently on Esmerelda.
"So old… that some people took advantage of me and tried to fool me! Truly seeking death!"
Everyone immediately flinched at her shout.
Esmerelda began to panic. "Impossible…this is impossible. If the Crown Prince isn't with her… then… who…" she stammered.
"What is all this commotion about?"
A deep, husky voice sliced through the air.
Everyone turned their heads to see Daniel standing at the doorway, clad in a black shirt and black slacks, the royal emblem gleaming proudly upon his chest.
His presence made the already tense atmosphere even heavier.
Upon seeing Daniel, Esmerelda nearly collapsed to the ground.
"Impossible… no, it's impossible… truly impossible…" she muttered frantically.
Catherine began to tremble, adrenaline surging through her veins as her gaze darted between Daniel and Ariel. "This… this just can't be… it can't be… if the Crown Prince and Lady Ariel are here… then… who… who are…?" she whimpered.
Upon seeing Daniel, Reginald exhaled a breath of relief before turning to the pair still huddled by the pillar. His voice thundered through the garden:
"Guards! Seize this shameless adulterous pair and bring them before me at once!"
Immediately, the royal guards sprang into action.
They dragged the man and woman forward, forcing them to kneel before everyone.
Gasps rippled through the crowd as the pair were revealed—their features bore a striking resemblance to Lady Ariel and Daniel.
The man broke into a frenzy of panic, kowtowing to the ground in terror. "Your Majesty, please spare me! Spare my life! I didn't mean to! I swear, I didn't mean to!" he pleaded desperately.
The woman, however, only looked around in shock, taking in the faces of those who surrounded her.
Her eyes met Esmerelda's murderous gaze, and she knew instantly she was finished. But how? The last thing she remembered was asking Lady Ariel if she understood her when—
"Haa…" she gasped in disbelief, turning her head toward Ariel, who wore a feigned look of innocence. Yet the tiny smile on Ariel's lips did not escape her notice.
"You… you… you…" she stammered, unable to form the words. She had been double-crossed, and now it was costing her dearly.
She raised her head only to meet the piercing gaze of the supreme monarch, staring down at her with disdain.
She didn't need anyone to tell her—she was done for.
Lowering her gaze, she whimpered, "Haa… Your Majesty… Your Majesty… please spare my life… please spare me."
"What is going on?"
"What is happening?"
"Who are these people?"
"Weren't we supposed to catch the Crown Prince and Lady Ariel in action? So who are they?"
"They even look somewhat like Lady Ariel and the Crown Prince… so was the servant wrong?"
The murmurs began again, rippling through the crowd.
"Who are you? What are you doing here?" Reginald commanded, but the pair remained silent. "Answer me!"
The two flinched but did not reply—whether from fear or because someone was keeping them from speaking.
Their silence irritated Reginald further. He was about to demand an answer again when—
"Your Majesty…" a guard called out, approaching from the hedge near the pillar. He carried a camera with a black device attached to it.
"Please take a look at this," he said, handing the camera to the King.
The King turned it on and saw photos of the pair being intimate in the garden. But when he touched the black device attached to it, the images began to shift—their features morphing to resemble Ariel and Daniel.
His eyes widened in shock before briefly glancing at Ariel, who wore a feigned look of innocence as she averted her gaze, pretending to study the crowd.
He smirked slightly. 'Cunning fox. Well played. Seems I almost underestimated you. You're ruthless.'
Turning back to the guard, he handed the camera to him and then fixed his gaze on the pair. "Take them into custody. Interrogate them thoroughly until they confess who sent them."
Finally, he looked at his mother and gave her a nod before turning his attention to Esmerelda, who now appeared utterly defeated. Like she lost everything. He shook his head, then moved to converse with the ministers and officials were now gripped with fear and shock due to the situation. Mostly because some them exposed themselves too quickly before the matter was truly exposed. And that was going to cost them dearly. Very much.
A confused and bewildered frenzy broke out in the garden as the guards arrested the pair.
Meanwhile—
"What is going on? What happened?" a voice echoed beside Daniel as he watched the scene unfold.
The pair being dragged away, the nobles and court officials in chaos, his sweet venomous stepmother and her foolish niece pale with fear… and then
Her.
His cunning and devious Flamingo.
Nonchalantly standing beside his grandmother, feigning innocence.
But he knew her better now.
He had a feeling her feathers were scattered all over this case. And he was determined to find out how—so he could finally grasp who he was truly dealing with. So he would never underestimate her again.
He smirked as she turned her gaze toward him, and their eyes locked.
They held each other's gaze for a long moment.
Their eyes spoke volumes.
And beneath it all, there was something else.
A yearning.
A pull.
Something that wanted to tie them together.
But neither of them would admit it.
It was there.
And it was going to manifest sooner or later.
"Your Highness…" the voice called out again.
Daniel turned his gaze away from Ariel as she averted her eyes and began speaking to his grandmother. He faced Sam, who was standing beside him.
"A hunt, my dear Sam. A hunt," Daniel replied, his eyes roaming over the chaotic scene. "They thought they were hunting a flamingo… but they found a vulture instead."
Sam raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Your Highness…?"
Daniel chuckled at Sam's bewilderment and tapped his shoulder.
"It's going to be a good show, Sam. A very good show. And I intend to enjoy it to the fullest."
With a smile on his face, he left the garden, leaving Sam even more perplexed.
"Did the Prince… just smile? He smiled?" Sam muttered in disbelief.
"Haa!" He turned to look at the chaos unraveling around him. "This will definitely be… unexpectedly fun."
He smirked before leaving the garden as well.