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The rules of the hunt were simple. Each class of animal released in the thick forest situated behind the imperial palace had points; ten points for each boar, fifteen for a deer, twenty for birds, and anything that was considered harmless — or something that could be taken down easily.

The person who gained the most points would be the season\'s winner. Although the prize for the hunting competition was handsome, everyone was mostly taking part for their pride and honor. No one entered for fun — except Ismael.

But this season\'s hunting competition, there were more people who took part for fun. One of them was the crown princess and, for reasons people couldn\'t understand, they saw this as an act of empowerment instead of an insult.

"Was the attire of the crown princess a new design for women who want to hunt?"

"She looks very lovely, even in a hunting suit!"

"I saw ladies who gifted her trinkets, and she really kept it around her!"

"Wasn\'t she amazing? I would\'ve joined if I knew she would join!"

The conversation in the outdoor banquet, held in the clearing, under the large tent for noble ladies to enjoy while men were out there hunting, was mostly about the crown princess. There were a few ladies who participated in the hunt but compare to the numbers of men, they were few.

So Aries truly stood out. She looked even more elegant and awe-inspiring than the ninth princess, who was a regular participant. No one voiced that out, though.

"Tch. These ladies just doesn —"

"They were correct." Inez, who was sitting at one of the tables and overhearing everyone\'s conversation, smiled. She set her eyes on one of the noble ladies around the table with her.

"The crown princess is not only the future empress in our Empire but also a fashion icon. Everyone had seen her fashion sense in the opening banquet and how she could make an average-looking woman into a star of the night."

"Your Highness, haha… what are you…?"

Inez arched a brow as her eyes glossed over the faces looking back at her. "What I\'m saying is, since the crown princess had been participating in the hunt, ladies should also start considering taking part in such an event." She bent over to pick up the teacup, curling up her lips as she leaned back.

"Even if it means not winning, but just to understand men better. The crown princess and the crown prince had a good relationship because Her Highness understands the crown prince," she added with a shrug, staring at the ladies over the rim of the teacup.

The ladies looked at each other with the same confusion in their eyes before setting their gaze back to Inez. They couldn\'t believe Inez was singing praises about the crown princess. Everyone was aware Inez liked the attention, and these ladies\' priorities were to boost her ego and make her happy.

Never in their life had they expected Inez to praise someone else. Therefore, it rendered them speechless.

"Ahem! Your Highness. Ladies such as myself didn\'t take part in this year\'s hunting because you weren\'t," said one of the ladies awkwardly. "I mean, many ladies in here looked up to you and…"

"And I looked up to the crown princess." Inez continued sternly, keeping a straight face as she studied everyone\'s expression. She couldn\'t blame these ladies since she trained them to only speak things Inez wanted to hear.

"The crown princess is different," she added with a louder voice so everyone around could hear and pass it to another. "Not only she is elegantly beautiful, but she is also a model of proper decorum that everyone should take after. Countess Lloyd can attest to that."

Inez turned her head to her left and her eyes fell on Cherry, who was sitting around the table three tables from Inez\'s spot. The latter, who had been trying to hide her presence, awkwardly smiled as she turned in Inez\'s direction.

"Her Highness is right. The crown princess is not only beautiful, but she is kind, smart, and compassionate as well. She is a woman worthy of admiration."

"See?" Inez smiled in satisfaction as she faced everyone once again. "The crown princess is so kind and perfect that there were a few who takes advantage of that."

"Your Highness, what do you mean by that?" asked one of the noble ladies as more and more ladies shifted their attention to Inez\'s table.

"Well, nothing in particular. I\'m simply saying this since snakes often take advantage of kind people." Inez shrugged with a smile before she cast one lady a knowing look, and as if on cue, the lady cleared her throat to change the subject.

"Right. Speaking of snakes, I heard about this strange rumor regarding a married woman who was seducing another married man."

"What?" the ladies gasped, and it didn\'t take long when the subject from Aries shifted quickly to a more interesting tea.

"Yes, and it was said the gentleman refused her even if she already stripped her clothes!"

"My goodness! Does this woman have no dignity or shame to throw herself at another man?"

"She should be stoned to death! How dare she covet another woman\'s husband? Disgusting!"

Inez listened to everyone\'s comments as the voices grew louder. Her lips curled up into a sneer, glancing in Cherry\'s direction only to see the countess hanging her head low. Even the ladies Cherry was with were talking about this rumor and were spitting nasty remarks, not knowing the person was just sitting with them.

\'Since Circe wouldn\'t deal with you, I\'ll give the justice she deserves.\' Her eyes glinted with malice. \'This is just the beginning, and this is still nothing to what is coming, Countess Lloyd. I had many… many methods to make your life a living hell.\'

A chuckle slipped past her lips, which didn\'t catch anyone\'s attention, as everyone was busy. It didn\'t take long when she saw Cherry excuse herself when she could no longer stomach the awful remarks thrown indirectly at her.

\'Goodbye, Countess Lloyd. I\'ll give you all the attention you were seeking.\'

<strong>******</strong>

Meanwhile…

\'In an affair, the woman always gets the short end of the stick.\'

,m Aries\' words were stuck in Cherry\'s head and were repeating in her mind on repeat as she rushed outside the tent of the outdoor banquet. Clutching her chest, she panted for air as she glanced back at the exit of the tent.

\'The ninth princess also knew and… is siding with the crown princess,\' she thought in panic, biting her thumb. \'She\'s probably using me to get the crown princess\'s trust. I should do something before she uses me as her stepping stone.\'

Cherry didn\'t think further of what could be Inez\'s intention for siding with Aries when the former was a narcissist. But what was certain was that Cherry was on the brink of being someone else\'s stepping stone, and she knew the consequences. She had seen people who had become the royalties\' and noble\'s fodder. She couldn\'t be one of them after everything she had done.

Cherry had reached this far on her own and she couldn\'t fall that easily just because of one mistake.

\'I should do something…\' she suddenly paused as she raised her gaze. \'Right…\'

Without a second hesitation, Cherry hurriedly walked away and headed to the crown princess\'s tent.