The meal was uneventful for the most part. Neither broached the main subject, as discussing this at the dinner table would seem uncouth. They both had their own reputations to maintain. Noble dealings were all about face and prestige, after all.

While most of the Duke's children kept silent, feeling the tension in the air, some were bolder than others. While they were nobles by birth, most had never left the confines of this gated community, much less interacted with the Princess. As such, they were quite curious.

While Christina couldn't answer some of the more sensitive questions she was asked, she did answer what she could. She saw no reason to antagonize these noble children, as they were the future leaders of her country. They were bound to serve under her rule.

Christina was surprised at their enthusiasm; she hadn’t expected them to be so friendly. Were they unaware of the motives of this visit? It wouldn’t surprise her. She very much doubted the Duke was careless enough to trust these children with such sensitive information.

Still, one thing plagued her mind for the whole duration of this meal. Their fourth brother—her prisoner—was missing from his seat. While she didn't notice anything wrong looking at his siblings' expressions, she couldn't help but feel something was amiss.

She doubted the Duke put him under house arrest as all his other siblings were present. Still, she didn't mention it. She didn't want to sour the mood and doubted she would get a straight answer. It wasn't time to get in the thick of it. Not in front of this audience.

With the meal coming to a close, Christina's gaze rested on the Duke. For most of the time, he had remained silent, letting his children do most of the talking. While their talks seemed benign initially, some topics glanced around sensitive subjects, which she refused to answer.

All this time, the Duke's gaze was riveted on her as if trying to scope out her bottom line. Christina was aware of this and had done her best to answer their every question respectfully but non-committally, trying to divulge the least information possible. Still, this silence from the Duke was unnerving. She would have much preferred for him to be angry instead of that slight indifferent smile.

With nothing else to discuss, Christina was about to rise and return to her room when the Duke prompted her to stop. Her eyes narrowed slightly as a faint smile crept up her lips. They were finally getting to the real reason for this meal.

“Princess,” the Duke said with a voice devoid of emotion. “In the time I haven’t seen you, you have become much more beautiful.

Christina felt her mouth twitch slightly, disturbing her smile. While it was customary for nobles to offer pointless praise, doing so in such a deadpan voice, only felt grating to her ears. It was as if he was mocking her. While she wouldn't take it to heart, as expected, hearing it still put her in a bad mood. Still, her gentle smile would remain as long as needed. She was a professional, after all.

“Thank you, my Duke,” she replied just as emotionless. “I’m happy to see you in good health.”

Two could play at that game. While she wondered what his purpose was, she simply had to play along to find out.

“While I know you have been busy in recent weeks, the fact that Her Highness has taken the time to visit our small territory is a great honour and brings me unending joy."

The man's voice and expression were peaceful and serene. Not a ripple of lies could be gleaned as if everything came from the bottom of his heart. If not for Christina's inherent distrust of the four Dukes, she would be inclined to believe him. Still, such empty words threatened to bring a grimace to her face. Without powerful self-control, Christina would have risen and slapped him with all her strength.

"Given this momentous occasion, I took the opportunity to prove my loyalty with a gift. I hope the Princess will appreciate my good intentions," the Duke added, with the same emotionless mask while motioning the messenger to bring an object forward.

The man approached the Princess, but Claire had already cut him off before he could get close. She wouldn't allow anyone near Christina, not at this critical juncture. Intimidated by Claire's aura, the man stopped dead in his tracks, sweating slightly. Everyone at the table held their breaths, anticipating the Duke's reaction, yet nothing came of it. The Duke was still emotionless, as if uninterested in their opinions.

Still, Christina couldn't refuse this gift however much she wanted to. To do so would be slapping the face of every member of the White Tiger Clan, as the Duke was the face of the clan itself. She motioned for Claire to let the man through, which Claire did with reluctance. Her gaze, however, remained riveted on the messenger, watching his every move like a hawk.

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She felt regretful not having brought her sword with her. However, Christina had warned her that doing so would be seen as an insult and could impede the following negotiations. While irritating him by making him wait was fine, insinuating that he harboured treasonous thoughts would be much too insulting for someone of his status.

The Duke's present was a crude wooden box, which the messenger respectfully placed before her on the table before quickly retreating. The man wanted nothing to do with any of this, but his work compelled him to do so. He could only leave as fast as possible, not even intending to find out what was contained inside. The less he knew, the longer he would remain alive.

With the box before her, Christina frowned deeply. While she didn't know what it contained, she had a guess in her heart. The scent emanating from it was unmistakable. She raised her gaze, meeting the Duke's, but the man was still as unfathomable as ever. The only way to make sure was to open it.

As if knowing her thoughts, Claire approached the box and opened its shabby lid. While peeking inside, her expression grew extremely ugly. She glared at the Duke and opened her mouth to speak, but Christina held her arm, restraining her. Although Christina had a guess about its content, seeing it revealed in such a way left a bad taste in her mouth. Her expression was frozen while her eyes couldn't be colder. Everyone grew curious about what was in the box, yet they weren't brave enough to meet her gaze.

While silence hung over the room, Christina rose and walked away, prompting Claire to follow her. As she passed the door's threshold, she spoke in a low and deliberate voice.

“The Crown accepts your apology," she said in a glacial tone without so much as an ounce of emotion on her beautiful face. "but be warned, the same won't always work, or you'll soon run out of heirs."

With those words said, she left without looking back. Everyone around the table was taken aback by her sudden departure while the Duke flashed a slight smile that soon disappeared. He rose and left without so much as addressing his children. He only motioned for the servants to clean it all up.

Curious, one of the Duke's numerous daughters approached the box, seeking an answer to its content. Unfortunately, what she saw would become a scars that would never fade. Tears welled up in her eyes while the scent made her gag. She vomited the content of her stomach on the floor and then fainted.

One of her siblings, a young man slightly younger than her, caught her as she fell. Curious about her reaction, he looked into the box, and his expression became grim. If not for the training he had received as a member of the White Tiger Clan, he, too, would probably have fainted.

Inside the crude wooden box was a freshly severed head. The inner walls were caked in blood and fat while a strong scent of rust and rot wafted from it. The head's eyes were dull but wide open as if in disbelief of its demise. The wound on its neck was jagged and rough as if it had been ripped out instead of cut. Worse still was that the siblings recognized its owner; it was their fourth brother who had only just returned home.

A solemn atmosphere hung over the room, and no one dared speak. Some trembled as they couldn't overcome the shock of this discovery, while others speculated in silence about what events would have led to this. Still, all knew who was responsible for this, but they couldn't do anything about it. The Duke had their lives firmly in his hands. Were any of them to disappoint him, they held no doubts this would also be their fate.

Still, some remembered the Princess's parting words. Run out of heirs... Those who realized the implications trembled at the thought. While some rejoiced at this sudden shift in the balance of power, others dreaded what was to come. Their fourth brother was the favourite to become the next Duke. With him gone, the fight to become heir would be ruthless and bloody; no one would be spared. The smartest of them also realized that this was what their father intended. Only the strongest would rule; death awaited them if they failed their duties.

A while later, while the servants were busy tidying up the room, all the Duke's children had already left except for one. She wasn't the smartest, neither was she the prettiest. She was far from the strongest. Many speculated that she would be among the first to drop out of the race, yet she was the only one to mourn the loss of her brother.

Leila stood over where the box containing her late brother’s head once stood with grief in her heart. Although she wasn’t particularly close to him, seeing someone of her blood dead made her depressed. She knew her time would come eventually, yet she couldn’t muster the urge to resist. It all seemed so futile. They were only pawns in their father’s game of power. She shook her head and walked away. She only had one chance to turn this around. There was only one person who could help her. Only one who held her path to survival.

Christina silently walked back to her room and dismissed the maid waiting for her. She removed the luxurious hairpin that held her hair in place before throwing it to the wall on the opposite side of the room. The delicate hairpin collided with the hard surface before it shattered into pieces and dropped on the floor.

Christina slumped onto the soft couch, tilting her head backwards, and sighed. Things didn't go as planned. The Duke was much more ruthless than she anticipated. She hoped to obtain leverage over him, but the man wouldn't hesitate to discard anything detrimental to him. All her careful considerations had gone up in smoke.

Still, her dejection was fleeting, and she soon returned to indifference. While this plan would need to be scrapped, she still had other means up her sleeves. It was too soon to just get up and leave. The Duke wasn't the only one possessing power; the White Tiger Clan was far too prominent for that. Besides, she wouldn't rest until she obtained the answers she sought.

Claire watched while Christina was deep in thought. She had rarely seen her with such a cold expression, not since their encounters with those shades a while ago. Back then, they were at the end of their ropes. If not for that stranger's timely arrival, they would have been prepared to face their deaths.

Before she could comfort the Princess, however, a subtle knock was heard on the door. Claire frowned; they had instructed the servant not to be disturbed under any circumstances. Who would dare not heed their words?

Claire wasted no time reaching for her blade before unsheathing it in one swift motion. With the events she had witnessed today, she wouldn't take any chances.

“Lower your blade,” a man said as he entered the room uninvited. “I mean you no harm. Better yet, I bring you an opportunity to get back at the Duke for what he did to you.”

The man spoke in a confidant tone, even sporting a slight derisive smile. He was dressed in black with a mask covering his eyes. To Claire, the man looked more like an assassin than a messenger. She wished to strike the man down for his disrespect, but Christina motioned her to stop.

Christina’s eyes narrowed slightly at the sight of this mysterious man, then a slight smile graced her lips. This man may be just what she was waiting for.