|Victoria's POV|

-The next day-

I was standing by the window, watching the weather outside. Snow began to fall, making the atmosphere even colder... I smiled a little, wishing that next winter would find me in Scotland, as the Queen of Scots.

I jumped slightly when the door swung open forcefully, and I saw Halime Sultan storming into the room, her eyes ablaze with anger.

"Do you really think you achieved what you wanted this way?!" she said angrily, standing in front of me "You've been lurking around Mustafa until you convinced him to do what you want!"

Oh, now I understand why she is so angry. She must have learned about my conversation with Mustafa last night. After I told him what I wanted, it turned out he agreed, and what excited him the most was the brilliant plan that would enable us to overthrow my brother and take the throne instead.

"Halime Sultan" I said in a calm tone "the Sultan opened this topic with me, and he is the one who saw that he was willing to help me"

"I am the one who makes the final decisions!" she said quickly, pointing to herself "I will decide, so stop trying to play with the Sultan's mind"

"You haven't given me a clear answer" I raised an eyebrow "Do you think I'm foolish? I know very well that the documents I possess tempt you, but you are not willing to help me"

"You will regret this, Princess Victoria" she raised an eyebrow and gave me a challenging look "If you are indeed a princess, after all, you are an illegitimate child, and we don't know your true origins"

Before I could respond, one of Halime Sultan's maids rushed in with a big smile on her face.

"Sultana, I finally found you!" she said as if she didn't care at all about my presence.

"What is it?" Halime said, turning to her, and after the maid held her silence, Halime added angrily "Speak up! I don't have time for hints!"

"Sultana" the maid gave me an evil look, then turned back to her with a smile "one of the concubines who spent the night with the Sultan... Sedef Hatun... she is pregnant"

After she left, I sat down, resting my head in my hands, processing what's going on...Being questioned about my origins and being called an illegitimate daughter does not hurt me, to be clear... I've lived with it, and it no longer matters. But what worries me is Halime Sultan's presence and her hatred for me.

She must feel that I pose a threat to her and to the state... From what I've learned, she is a strategic person who relies on planning and solving problems without any issues or losses, and my request will cost her a lot. Therefore, she will not agree to stand by my side to take the throne.

My auntie entered, and we exchanged a small talk... After a few hours, I decided to go meet Sultan Mustafa and see if he was still steadfast in his decision or if they had turned him against me.

Fortunately, I found him just about to enter his chambers, and as soon as he saw me, he agreed to meet. If I had relied on that man in charge of his room, he wouldn't have let me see the Sultan.

"It's good to see you, Princess Victoria" he said, moving eagerly to his desk "Do you know what happened?" He raised his eyes dramatically and then whispered as if someone could hear us "I've been told that a new prince will soon be born" He shook his head sadly "I feel so sorry for him because the most cursed people are those born into royal families"

I can't deny that I agree with him on this... I mean, look at me.

"Yes, Your Majesty, congratulations" I said with a small smile "I heard the news this morning"

He didn't respond because he was holding some papers in his hand, but after a short while, he said "I didn't know being a Sultan was this easy... All I do is give orders and pretend to read some papers while my mother and Davyt Pasha do everything else"

Trust me, Sultan, if you had even a tiny bit of sense, you wouldn't be pleased with their interference in your rule.

"Your Majesty" I hesitated a bit, then moved closer to his desk "Is our agreement still in place?"

He didn't seem to pay attention to my words; he was likely lost in his thoughts... Then suddenly, he stood up and came closer to me.

"Victoria!" he exclaimed, his eyes wide with a mix of fear and excitement "What do you think will happen? When the prince is born, will he want my throne like a hungry wolf? Or maybe he'll try to kill me?" He ran his hand through his hair, as if all these crazy thoughts were swirling in his mind "Look... I'd happily give him the throne if it means I can have peace"

He started pacing the room, waving his arms around "Can you imagine? A new heir, a fresh danger! I can already hear the whispers in the palace... all the plotting! I'd rather give him the crown than face a knife in the night...Just let me enjoy my days without worrying about a young prince trying to take me down"

"Your Majesty" I placed my hand on his shoulder, trying to calm him down "No one will take your throne"

"It's better if that they don't because we are about to plan to take the throne of..." He paused, trying to remember the right word "Remind me, which throne did you say you wanted?"

"Scotland" I said, my happiness hidden... He must still be determined to help me.

I don't care if others are against this decision; what matters is that the one with the greatest authority in this empire agrees.

After exchanging some short and crazy talks with the Sultan, I turned to leave, but something caught my attention outside on the balcony.

My feet led me outside, and I stood there watching the snow fall...Everything below had turned white.

I turned to see Sultan Mustafa holding a chess piece, polishing it as usual, taking care of his chess table.

Meanwhile, an idea sparked in my mind that I thought would be enjoyable. I need to strengthen my friendship with the Sultan and make him unable to refuse what I ask.

"Your Majesty" I said in a sweet voice with a wide smile "what do you think about enjoying the snow?"

"Wait a minute" he said, thinking, then raised his eyebrows "That will anger my mother, right?"

My smile faded, thinking he would refuse, but I had overlooked the Sultan's favorite hobby, which he reminded me of as he continued.

"So, let's do it!" He raised his hands excitedly "Halimz Sultan will be very angry"

After I quickly returned to my room, I dressed appropriately for the freezing winter weather and headed to the garden where the Sultan had told me to meet him.

I was a bit worried that they had stopped him from coming, but my concern faded when I saw him wearing his black winter coat, joy filling his eyes as he looked at the snow, while his two guards stood a few steps away from him.

Before he could see me, I bent down and gathered a snowball in my hands, then called out excitedly "Your Majesty!" As soon as he turned slightly, and before he could comprehend, I threw the snowball at him with all my might.

Before my laughter escaped, I found the guards pointing their weapons at me while Sultan Mustafa stood still, his expression cold... I think I just signed my death warrant in the dumbest way possible.

"That was crazy!" Mustafa finally shouted with joy, which made the guards relax...Then he bent down and threw some snow back at me, leading us into a snowball fight while our laughter filled the air, of course with Mustafa's crazy comments every now and then.

The garden looked beautiful, covered in a thick layer of snow...It felt like we were in a magical winter fairytale... I laughed as I dodged his snowball, then quickly made my own and tossed it back at him.

"Ha! You missed!" I teased, a smile spreading across my face.

"Just wait! I'm a master of snowball fighting!" he declared dramatically, pretending to pose like a warrior.

"Is that so? Then prepare to be defeated, Your Majesty!" I replied, giggling as I threw another snowball.

He ducked, laughing "I won't go easy on you!"

We exchanged playful throws, our laughter filling the air...In between snowballs, he said "You know, this is much better than sitting in the palace, worrying about the throne"

"I agree! Who knew the Sultan could have so much fun?" I replied with a big smile.