"YOU WANT everything, you said. You want the throne. Tell me, should I look after my back once you obtain the throne?"

Tori walked closer to the second prince. When Prince Corean saw that she did not have any intention to stop charging, he started to walk backward until he was stopped and trapped by the wall. Tori bit back her grin upon seeing Prince Corean's scared expression. His forehead glistened with sweat as he leaned back his body away from her which was very futile.

Cornering the flushed second prince to the wall with her both hands and her right knee in between his knees, Tori pinned her body to his as she traced his neck down to his chest using her right hand's nails. They were in a compromising position but no one dared to interrupt them even the lurking royal knights around them. Tori's breath tickled his neck which earned her a shiver from him. "Yes, I want all. But the throne is not everything, your highness."

His looming golden eyes looked down at her as his uneven breathing lulled Tori to lean down on him more. "What more do you want?"

"I want the throne but I also want you, Prince Corean Shuia Eckrett." I want you to crown me Queen Regent so no one will have the power to execute me. Tori's sly red eyes met his flustered golden ones as she whispered those words at the corner of his lips.

THE NEXT days that followed became a nightmare for Tori. She wanted to shout with her pent-up frustrations but she opted to stay cool. Tori turned the northern castle her second home other than the Trifecta Academy. Strangling the second prince was becoming a nice option for her as days stretched.

On her first day, Prince Corean ordered her to wait in front of his throne room. Tori waited for hours and hours. She even skipped her lunch much to Lily's dismay that was with her the whole time. But the blasted prince did not even have the decency to say no to her face instead he ordered just someone from his knight to tell her to leave.

The next day, Prince Corean made Tori served him his breakfast which was a handmaiden's job. Gritting her teeth, Tori obeyed with a smiling face but it only ticked him off so he did not eat what she served, leaving her humiliated in front of his servants. Tori knew how the high society talked about her behind her back but she chose to ignore it. She had more pressing matters to attend to.

And now was her third day prancing inside the castle walls but the second prince had yet to open his throne room to meet her. He denied her even the slightest respect she deserved, not as Lady Victoria Rozenreff, but as a lady alone.

But I am Victoria Rozenreff, losing is not in my vocabulary.

Tori walked with her head held high towards the second prince's chambers. Behind her was a sullen-looking Lily, who was not happy with the train of events these past few days.

The familiar double doors of Prince Corean's chamber guarded by two royal knights welcomed Tori as she pivoted to the corner. She hated the sympathy she saw in the knights' eyes as they glanced at her briefly. How dare you.

"Lady Rozenreff, His Highness is about to eat his breakfast." Just as Tori was about to push open the doors, a newly arrived knight appeared together with a handmaiden who was holding the tray for the second prince. On the tray were a Chamomile tea and a typical noble breakfast which consists of ham, eggs, and éclair.

Raising her eyebrows, Tori spun towards the handmaiden and she snatched the tray from the handmaiden's grasp. "My lady!" the handmaiden protested with worry laced upon her voice.

"I will take this to Prince Corean," said Tori without looking back at the protesting knights. Tori already deduced that the second prince maybe gave them a specific instruction not to let her in. Too bad. "Lily, stay here please."

Lily nodded, but the two royal knights stopped Tori. "Move," Tori stated with her no-nonsense voice. She saw the two royal knights faltered but remained still in front of her, obscuring her passage to the blasted chamber.

She was giving the royal knights a deadly stare when a gruff voice behind her stopped Tori. "Let her in."

Tori, for a second, stiffened upon hearing a familiar voice. Why now?

"But–"

"Are you defying me?"

"N-No, your highness." The royal knight surrendered. They were not that dumb to defy the first prince. Tori felt cold when Prince Lauren guided her by holding her waist as they entered Prince Corean's chamber. He looked down upon her as he opened the door while guiding her.

"After you," Price Lauren said. His entertained smile irritated Tori to no end. She smiled sweetly at him and bowed her head slightly before walking ahead of the first prince.

The enormous golden drapes that surrounded the bed's canopy welcomed Tori. The royal chamber of the second prince was thrice the size of Tori's room but the furniture was very minimal which consists of a study table, a wall of books, and a receiving area for visitors.

Tori walked towards the bed but was stopped midway when Prince Corean's voice boomed behind her. "What are you doing here, Lady Victoria?"

She spun to see a freshly showered Prince Corean with nothing but a robe covering his well-defined body. His magnificent beauty contradicted his cruel golden eyes as he regarded her like she was some kind of pest. Behind him was the smiling Prince Lauren who only wanted a sick sort of entertainment from her.

Offering her sugary smile to the princes, Tori showed the tray she was holding. "Breakfast in bed for my beloved fiancé."

"How sweet of you, Lady Victoria. It makes me jealous, brother." Prince Lauren playfully nudged Prince Corean but the latter just scoffed before walking towards his bed to pull the drapes together as if he's covering something. "You can have her then, brother."

Though covered with thick drapes, Tori could still see that someone was sleeping on his bed. Clenching her hands as she gripped the tray with an iron fist, Tori walked to the study table to place the tray down.

"Too bad, Prince Corean. I have my eyes set only at you," teased Tori while smiling sweetly. Inside her, a storm was raging. Instead of lashing out, she busied herself by serving his teacup with her favorite Chamomile Tea.

"Save yourself from the humiliation and leave us, Lady Victoria. Go and I'll spare you."

With her back on the princes, Tori bit her tongue to stop her treacherous tears from falling. She chanted words of encouragement inside her mind.

This won't break me. I've been through worse. I am just stressed from the pent-up frustrations I am keeping inside me.

Steeling herself like she always did, Tori turned around. She found them sitting and talking in the room's receiving area. Holding the tray with three teacups, Tori gracefully walked towards them with her radiant smile that could match with the sunlight.

She calmly placed the tray on the center table before she sat next to the second prince who stopped talking after she took the seat. "What?" asked Tori who pretended not to know why Prince Corean stopped to look at her with his icy glare.

"Leave or do you want me to call my knights to drag you away from my sight?"

Prince Lauren interrupted, "Brother, give Lady Victoria a chance. It is our task to observe them."

"Trust me. I did my fair share of observing Lady Victoria Rozenreff. Stay out of this, brother. And please, Lady Victoria. Go save some dignity and leave me alone."

Tori stood quite calmly while holding her teacup. Her smile never faltered as she faced the second prince who was now looking up at her. She gracefully bowed her head to Prince Lauren, who gave her a sympathetic smile even if his eyes said the opposite. This bastard is enjoying this, huh.

Tori's smile became even sweeter when she faced Prince Corean who was following her every move. You should be.

"Lady Victoria!"

"You!"

The two princes exclaimed when Tori poured her tea to Prince Corean's head. She did not splash the teacup's content, no, she poured it gracefully on his head. "I sensed that you need to freshen up, Prince Corean, my dearest fiancé."

Don't push me to my limit.

"Excuse me, your highnesses." Tori walked out of the scene. She walked out of the room, not even glancing back even with the chaos she left.

"Lady Tori, what happened?" Lily was keeping up with her strides.

"Call the coachman, Lily. We're leaving." Tori abruptly stopped walking as she faced a flustered Lily. "Dispose of this, too." She handed Lily the teacup that she was still holding tight.

Lily gawked at the teacup as she realized the situation but before she could inquire her mistress, Tori already left. She was not able to see the unshed tears of her mistress.

CROWN PRINCE Allistair's eerie cerulean eyes crashed into the glistening red eyes of Tori right after she turned to the corner of the King's palace, where her feet led her. Tori's falling body was immediately grasped by the crown prince. "Lady Tori? What are you doing here? I thought you are with that arrogant prince?"

"Hey, what's wrong? Damn! Did that bastard do something?"

His firm hands cupped her cheeks. Prince Allistair's cool eyes like the calm sea darkened when he saw her tear-stricken eyes. "How dare he!" He tried to leave her for a goddess –knows-where, maybe to commit treason against a fellow royal, but Tori immediately stopped his arm before he could leave her.

"Don't. I need to talk with Yei Lin. Take me to him, Alice." Tori disregarded all etiquettes since the man before her did not give a two-fucks about it after seeing her state. But her state was the last thing for Tori. She wanted to confirm something.

Her desperate plea shook the proud crown prince of the Kingdom of Monakre. He nodded his head as he clasped Tori's right hand. "Let's go." Their strides were fast as they took every turn of the King's palace. And when they arrived at the guest room that was for any foreign royalties, Crown Prince Allistair opened the door without knocking which astounded Tori. "Shouldn't we knock first?"

"Screw knocking. Yei Lin is just reading or writing."

Crown Prince Allistair was right. The crown prince of Ming Country was just reading at his study table. His eyebrows knotted when they did not even knock. But when his eyes glanced at their connected hands, a frown formed in his thin lips which made Tori pried her hands from the prince of Monakre Kingdom.

"What's with all the fuss?" Crown Prince Yei Lin set his book down and closed it. He also set his eyeglass down before standing up to welcome them.

"I saw her crying. That fucker needed some serious lesson, let's go, Yei Lin!"

Tori rolled her eyes with how Crown Prince Allistair acted like a common criminal from the capital's back alley than a graceful prince charming. "I did not cry. You were just imagining it, Alice."

Gone was the caste system. In this room, where no one else was looking, the two future kings of the Monakre Kingdom and Ming Country bowed to one person, Lady Victoria Rozenreff.

Tori looked dead straight on Crown Prince Yei Lin. "You failed. I saw Tessa on his bed."

"We were ambushed. Someone leaked the information. Prince Corean's knights attacked the envoy. My greatest apologies, Lady Tori."

I knew it. That silhouette belongs to Tessa.

"But I got some good news for you. I was able to build a connection to the Arin Tribe's chieftain."