[Host, there are two black objects in your truck, which are vibrating.] The system urgent voice stirred Chloe from her sleep.
How could that be possible? Those objects had been with her since young. She had tried opening them, even breaking them apart but they wouldn't budge.
They were always heavy to begin with,she always travel with them searching for ways to open them.
The dimensions were 10m by 15 m and 6m by 7 m respectively.
She retracted the box from her space, and with a loud boom, they hit the floor.
She looked at the wooden box with black phoenix pattern which looked like burned marks.
The two boxes had number nine engraved on it. The box we're vibrating too much.
With a loud click, the boxes were opened. She looked at the larger box, there she saw a cloth- like material.
With curiosity, she took the one in the middle part because of it bright colour.
Unraveling it, she saw that, it was a red velvet gown with red phoenix earrings and a phoenix jade pendant.
The gown mesmerized her, she took another cloth which was men's cloth.
The clothes were in different colours.
Looking at the remaining male clothes, she retrieved them all, but discovered that, after taking the one dress and five men clothes, she couldn't retrieve the remaining clothes.
Looking at the number nine reduced to three, she realized something. Because she had retrieved six clothes from the box, the remaining three can't be retrieved, maybe waiting for their owners.
Opening her curtains, she realise that, it was still dark or maybe early morning.
Still yawning, she retrieved her phone from the bedside, looking at the time, it was at four in the morning.
Her stomach felt empty. Yesterday events had killed her appetite.
The unfairness of the heavens and the responsibility of saving the other characters exhausted her to the bone.
She went to the bathroom to wash up before going to prepare breakfast and while at it wake her mer husbands because today was the big banquet day.
Her mood was still law and with her already bad reputation she can imagine how the banquet will be.
She went to the room next to hers, which belonged to her third husband, Lenox.
Even before knocking, the room was opened from inside. She looked bewildered at her third husband who was still in his pajamas.
His eyes were misty and the hair looked rugged.
She saw one of his chest peeking from his unbuttoned pajamas and gulped hard.
Eyes stay focused. She chanted those words inwardly only to see him smirking.
"Ummh, can you wake up the others, am going to prepare breakfast. Ohh and don't bother with your banquet clothes I already have them prepared." She told him sheepishly while avoiding eye contact.
There is no way she is going to wake up the other mers, what if she discover one of them half naked?
As she turned to leave, her wrist was grabbed. She looked at him in puzzlement.
He moved to where she was, she could feel his heat and the his scent. Just like Dylan and Cassen, his scent was mint but cold and comfortable.
Without her realizing it, she had already reduced the remaining space between them.
She breathed in his scent greedly, he raised his thumb and brushed her lips, he moved his head and thinking of the expected kiss, Chloe closed her eyes.
"Mistress, you need to greet your men first before telling them what to do." His cool lazy voice was heard on her ears.
She opened her eyes to see him looking at her wrist thoughtfully before releasing it.
"I will wake them up for you." He said before closing the door.
She stood there motionless for sometime before the embarrassment kicked in.
She can't grasp her emotions clearly. Doesn't she hate them for what they did to her in the book, but she had always felt drawn to them though not that strong.
She can't say it is love, to her love is hard to grasp. Love comes with emotions and emotions needs to be taken care of.
She had always been proud of her emotionless state but now, she can't even know what she is feeling.
After eating breakfast which she had prepare, it was light, she went to her bedroom to retrieve their clothes and shoes.
The clothes were unique, one could wish for a different colour and design.
She laid the clothes on the sofa, there in the living room, so that each one can choose.
After handing them their clothes, she went to prepare herself.
She looked in the mirror and she was happy at how she looked.
The red gown with red high heels paired with red phoenix earrings and necklace. It was dupe.
Living her room and descending the stairs to the living room, she saw five pairs of eyes looking at her greedly.
"What is with the situation system?" She asked the system but it didn't reply.
The system seems to be sulking without reason.
Before she could take another step, she saw all of them removing their jackets but Nathan was faster by wrapping it around her.
She looked at them speechlessly. There in their garage there were three cars, all of them were minibus.
In this world, every woman with status is gifted a minibus when they are married.
She looked at the car which looked no different from one on Earth.
After sitting in the car, her fourth husband who was always silent, took the drivers position.
Fastening their seatbelts, she noticed there in the corner of the car were four crystals, which are to replenish the car energy if it is depleted along the way.
As they drove off from their compound, she looked at the scenery outside, different minibus passed them heading in the same direction.
After two hours of travel, they reached the palace gate, which was curved in gold patterns. Women statues were placed on either side of them.
The women guards looked at them disdainfully before letting them to pass.
The road that led to the palace hall was in gold.
They drove to the royal garage, packed their car before heading to the banquet.
So far, they haven't met any princess or prince and the nobles they met, they just looked at them with contempt.
They stood outside the hall that hosted the banquet in owe, the place looked busy. Women flocked by ten or more mers passed them. She looked odd with five mers.
When the gurds saw them, they saluted before announcing their arrival in a mic like thing suspended in the air above their heads.
The hall quietened at the announcement.
Her husbands took one hand each while others carried the extra clothes that flailed downwards.
She entered the hall, people started murmuring.
"I had that she is unwanted."
"Speek quitly, she is an unwanted seed since young."
"Don't you know, she is a bane, her father was hospitalized when she was young ."
"She hates her sister for marrying the real nobles while she married the illegitimate."
"I heard that, she wanted to snatch her sisters husbands, how hateful."
She scanned the crowd calmly while remembering the ones who are talking. Looking at their twisted face, she felt like laughing.
She looked at the queen who was sitting in the highest place with her family members. She was sipping a red drink calmly, ignoring the people who were talking.
Chloe closed her eyes to hide the emotions in them, fluidly they move to where the queen was, with her eyes still on the queen.
"Greetings to the extremed high and the leader of our nation." They bowed while greeting her.
"Rise." The woman in the throne spoke, her voice serene and commanding.
Chloe raised her eyes to look at the queen, she looked exactly like her but her hair and eyes were black.
So why did she hate her?
She turned to sit on her place and just like in the novel, the place was taken.
She locked eyes with the heroine. The woman looked at the age of twenty, she had blue eyes and blue hair.
Her face was oval with big eyes and pink lips, her skin was fair.
She looked refrashing and innocent. Too innocent.
She looked at her eyes, she saw the hatred in her eyes but her face showed fear.
Interesting, she smiled, maybe, something is going to change
.
"System, your heroine is reborn!" She chuckled darkly.
The hatred she saw was not new but something engraved forever.
Without talking, she moved to where the heroine was, sized her up before lazily taking her hand forcefully in hers and making her stand up.
She moved the heroine to the place she is supposed to be sitting and helped her sit.
When her six husbands saw their woman standing, they followed her.
Chloe returned to her place as the first princess, to sit.
Talking to the heroine will lead to a banter she knows she won't win.
She ain't good with words so she will use actions.