|3rd Person POV|

"Your Majesty" Davut Pasha said, standing before Mustafa "You wanted to meet me"

"Yes" Mustafa replied, sitting in his desk ..He lifted his gaze to look at him "Give me this week's documents"

"When I finish the divan shortly, I will bring you the papers" Davut replied, glancing at Mustafa with some unease.

Recently, he found himself needing to show much more respect.. He was now dealing with someone different, not the crazy Mustafa he once knew.. All he hoped for was that Halime Sultan's liquid would take effect soon.

"No, Davut" Mustafa said, standing with his hands clasped behind his back "I will preside over the divan today"

Davut felt a wave of shock wash over him; this was precisely what he and Halime Sultan had feared.

"But, Your Majesty..." he began, but Mustafa raised a hand to silence him "Okay your majesty"

He took a deep breath and looked at Mustafa "If you don't mind, Your Majesty, I would like to get those documents that Princess Victoria gave you.. I want to take a look at them"

"There's no need for that, Davut" Mustafa replied, then headed toward the door to go to the divan.

-------

Halime paced angrily in her chamber, furious upon learning that Mustafa was now leading the divan... She felt everything was slipping from her grasp.

"Menekşe, call that stupid girl, Zeynep" she snapped, prompting Menekşe to spring into action, seeking the girl tasked with adding the mixture to Mustafa's food.

Moments later, Menekşe entered, followed by Zeynep, who looked pale and terrified.

"You!" Halime lunged at her, gripping her arm tightly "Are you certain you are following my orders?!"

"I swear, Sultana, I am doing exactly as you instructed" Zeynep replied quickly, her voice trembling with fear.

"You will double the amount you add" Halime said, stepping back and signaling Menekşe to hand her another vial.

"Of course, Sultana" Zeynep took the vial, bowed before Halime, and hurried away.

Another girl entered the room and bowed to Halime "Valide sultan... Sultan Mustafa has returned to his chambers"

"Finally! Darkness is about to cover everything... I don't understand what he has been doing for four hours in that divan" she said in annoyance as she left for her son's chambers.

---

|Victoria's POV|

I sat in my room next to my aunt, feeling bored as she insisted on teaching me the embroidery skills she had learned over the weeks.

I wasn't enjoying it at all... The door opened, and when I looked up, I saw Nisa, looking pale.

"What's wrong?" I asked quickly, dropping what I was holding and standing up.

"It's urgent, Your Highness" she approached me nervously "Mahmud sent me... He says Halime Sultan spent about an hour with Sultan Mustafa discussing the divan he presided over today, and it seems she will be dining with him"

"So?" I raised my eyebrow but quickly grasped what was about to happen... Mahmud wouldn't have a chance to change the Sultan's plate.

"What are we going to do?" she asked anxiously, wringing her fingers.

"I'll act quickly" I sighed, then pulled out another vial of the medicine from my closet and left the room.

I headed to the kitchen, standing quietly behind a wall until I saw Zeynep leave in a fluster, obviously having added the liquid to Mustafa's food.

I entered the kitchen and found everyone busy preparing the desserts.

"Good evening, everyone" I said with a smile as I strolled slowly, pretending to catch the delicious aromas "I'm so hungry"

"The food will be ready shortly, Your Highness" the cook replied with a broad smile, looking quite busy.

My eyes landed on a tray and I recognized it as the one meant for Mustafa and Halime... Next to it was a similar tray for my aunt and me, the only difference being that Mustafa's had a dish of vegetables, while ours did not, as we weren't fond of many veggies.

"I can't wait" I said, trying to sound cheerful as I moved closer to where the two trays were placed.

I began to distract the cook with questions... Moments later, I started coughing and asked for water.

When he turned to fetch me a glass, I quickly swapped the trays, putting the vegetable dish on the other tray and pouring the medicine into Mustafa's plate.

By the time he turned back, I had finished... I took the glass of water, forced a smile, and left.

When I returned to my room, I told my aunt and Nisa that everything went well, and I believed no one noticed what I had done... Moments later, the dinner table was set, and when I glanced at the tray, I confirmed that they hadn't noticed anything.. That was the food containing the poisoned mixture.

"I guess we'll be skipping dinner tonight" my aunt said, looking at the food placed in front of us.

"But we have to get rid of it" I laughed, glancing at Nisa, who looked more at ease.

-A Few Hours Later-

I was walking slowly and feeling nervous, wearing a beautiful red and gold dress that I had never seen before.

Noblemen stood on both sides, looking very happy to see me.. I looked up and saw a big throne; it was the throne of Scotland, and in front of it stood an old man, Priest Edward, with a big smile.

I kept walking, feeling tense, and when I reached the first two steps, I bowed gracefully as he placed a golden crown on my head.. It felt magical and unreal.

I walked slowly and carefully, just like the rules said, then turned and sat on the throne.. I felt anxious as I heard the priest say "Victoria... Queen of Scots"

Behind him, the crowd began to say "Long may she reign!"

I watched in silence, thinking about the responsibilities ahead of me... Suddenly, I saw a Cupid standing in front of me... yes, it was him, just like in the stories, holding a bow and arrow.. I quickly stood up, and before I could react, he aimed the arrow at me with a lovely smile.

When the arrow hit me, I didn't feel anything.. It wasn't painful; instead, I felt calm.. I looked down and saw my red dress catch fire, the flames spreading around me... again, it didn't hurt.

It felt like a phoenix rising from the ashes.. When the flames disappeared, I found myself standing on the other side of the hall.. Looking up at the throne, I saw it covered in beautiful flowers.

I woke up suddenly and looked around the room, feeling relieved that it had all been a dream.. My mind had been so full of responsibilities that I started having dreams like this every day.