Chapter 3 Chapter 3: Do not embarrass the crown.

~Raven's POV~

A perfume bottle shattered against the wall beside me, shards of glass spraying across the floor and slicing my hand.

I flinched but didn’t move. She stood in the middle of the room, her hands clenched, her emerald dress wrinkled as if she had been pacing around for hours. Her chest rose and fell with quick, angry breaths.

Then, her gaze snapped to me. “You,” she spat. “What did you do?”

I stiffened. “Your Highness?”

She whirled towards me. “My father has summoned me,” she hissed. “Not Celeste. Me.”

I lowered my gaze, my mind racing. “That is… unexpected,” I murmured cautiously.

Her bitter laugh rang through the chamber. “Unexpected? No. It’s humiliating.” She walked toward her mirror table gripping the edge so tightly her knuckles turned white.

“He’s ignored me my entire life. And now, with war at our doorstep, suddenly I’m useful?”

War! I wasn’t sure if she wanted an answer and honestly, I didn’t know what to say, but when I remained quiet, she turned on me.

“Do you know what they say about him?” she turned sharply.

I swallowed hard, finally realizing what she was talking about. The king of Grok! The news of his being at the border had gotten everyone on edge.

“They say he leaves nothing but blood in his wake,” she continued, her voice shaking. “That his enemies don’t just die, they disappear.” Her hands trembled before she clenched them into fists. “And now I’m supposed to face him?”

I hesitated. “Perhaps the king trusts you…”

The slap came before I could finish. Pain exploded across my cheek. My head snapped to the side, the sting turning into a sharp ache.

“…Celeste is to be married,” she muttered bitterly. “My father won’t risk sending her. I am… expendable.”

The words hung heavy in the air. I didn’t respond. I couldn’t. She exhaled sharply, then, as if something inside her amused her, a slow smirk curled her lips.

Her expression was different and suddenly calculated. “If I am to meet a monster,” she murmured, turning towards her wardrobe, “then I will not go looking like a lamb.”

She glanced over her shoulder, her eyes gleaming with hatred and mischievousness.

“Dress me in gold,” she commanded.

I hesitated. “Your Highness?” She smiled.

“If I’m going down, it’s better I go down in style.”

I tightened the gold clasp around Princess Ellie’s wrist, ensuring the delicate chain fell perfectly over her hand.

She shivered as the metal touched her skin, but I knew it wasn’t just the jewelry that made her shiver, it was fear.

She stared at her reflection in the gold-framed mirror, her golden eyes dark with unease.

She kept grumbling and murmuring as I dressed her. “Can’t you do it properly?” She pushed me and I stumbled but caught myself before I could fall.

I clenched my jaw, inhaling deeply before murmuring, “Apologies, Your Highness.”

My fingers worked quickly to lace her corset, tightening it with practiced efficiency.

Suddenly, she let out a deep sigh. “I hate it here!”

I met her gaze in the mirror, but I didn’t dare say anything. What was there to say? This place had never been kind to either of us, but unlike her, I didn’t have the luxury of complaint.

The entire court knew the truth behind this arrangement. Princess Celeste, the kingdom’s beloved heir, should have been the one to receive the visiting King.

It was tradition. It was a duty. But now, under the guise of Celeste’s grand engagement, the burden had been thrown onto Ellie instead. A substitute. An afterthought.

Her fingers curled into fists, her nails digging into her palms. “This is their way of reminding me of my place,” she whispered. “They will never see me as anything more than a discarded pawn.”

She had every right to be resentful. From birth, she had carried the mark of misfortune. The second princess had been born with a birthmark on her leg, a twisting, dark blemish that the great seer called an omen. A cursed symbol.

That mark had followed her every step, gnawed at her pride, poisoned her self-esteem. Every harsh word, every comparison to Celeste, every rejection only deepened her fury.

Her resentment was justified, yes, but it was not mine to bear. I had enough battles of my own. Passing the female official examination. That was my only way out of this hell.

If I succeeded, I would win not only my freedom but also the chance to take my mother away from here. I spent every spare moment learning herbal medicine, studying under candlelight even when my fingers ached from scrubbing floors. I refused to rot away as a mere servant.

And I would not waste my pity on the princess who took her misery out on me. I pressed my lips together as I fixed the final knot on her corset. Something in the mirror caught my attention.

“Raven!”

Princess Ellie’s shriek snapped me back to reality.

Slap!

Pain flared across my cheek as I stumbled, nearly falling to the ground again. I understood why I hated and never felt any remorse or pity for her suffering.

“I was talking to you!” she spat. “You dare ignore me, you filthy bitch?”

I straightened, swallowing the sharp sting in my face. “I’m sorry, Your Highness.”

“Fucking idiot.” She snatched a hairpin from the vanity and hurled it at me. The sharp tip grazed my hand causing another injury.

I did not flinch. I had endured worse. I crouched down to retrieve it, fingers tightening around the cold metal. Breathe. Just endure it a little longer.

“Hurry up, you fool!”

I rose and resumed pinning up her golden locks with steady hands. “You look very majestic, Your Highness.”

She stilled for a moment, then lifted her chin. A slow smirk curled her lips. “If I must be their pawn,” she murmured, “then I’ll be one they regret underestimating.”

The doors swung open, and a royal attendant stepped inside, bowing deeply. “Your Highness, the council awaits. His Majesty has made the announcement.”

Her face paled slightly, but she squared her shoulders. Without another word, she strode out of the chamber. I followed, my fingers curling into the fabric of my skirt to hide my shaking hands.

The council chamber was alive with murmurs when we arrived. Courtiers, lords, and advisors filled the room, their expressions ranging from curiosity to thinly veiled disdain.

At the head of the grand table, King Alaric sat with his usual air of cold detachment, his sharp eyes flicking to the princess as she entered.

Beside him sat Queen Eliza, the picture of pure elegance. Like Princess Celeste, she had very dark hair that fell just below her hip.

She hadn’t so much as lifted a finger in Ellie’s upbringing, but she had always been the first to remind her of her place.

“Ah, Ellie,” the King said, his voice carrying across the hall. “You are late, the entire court has been waiting for you.”

The princess curtsied stiffly. “I’m sorry, father,” she turned to me. “My personal maid is slow-witted; she kept making mistakes.”

I swallowed hard.

“This is your last warning, Princess Ellie,” the king said stiffly, and then a pause before he continued. “You will greet the savage king when he arrives tomorrow. He has made no demands for formalities, but you are to extend our hospitality regardless. He wants peace and you’ll show him that we’re peaceful people.”

A muscle in her jaw tightened. “As you command, father.”

There was no mistaking the bitterness in her voice, but the King ignored it.

“Do not embarrass the crown.”

The dismissal was clear. She gave a shallow nod and turned on her heel, exiting the hall without waiting for another word. I rushed to keep up with her as she strode down the marble corridors, her expression thunderous.

“This is punishment,” she seethed. “Celeste gets a grand wedding, and I get thrown to a beast.”

I hesitated. Saying nothing would only provoke her temper further, but saying the wrong thing would do the same. Still, I was not her confidant.

I had learned the hard way that kindness meant nothing in this palace.

“Please be open-minded, Your Highness. This could be an opportunity.” She halted, turning sharply.

“Enough, Raven. I don’t want to hear your nonsense.”

I dipped my head, hiding the flicker of satisfaction in my expression.

“I’ll need to prepare,” she muttered, resuming her pace. “And so will you. You’ll be by my side.”

My stomach twisted. I had expected this, but it didn’t lessen my dread.

I was to be there when she faced him.