The King's Rejected Lady

The Sly Second Prince

No one reacted so Tori continued, "The Marquess trusted her too much that he just let her manage it without his supervision."

They seem to catch what she was saying. Lady M was the first one to comment. They were all looking at her funnily. Their eyes were telling her that they were insulting her right which made Tori mentally scoff.

"You do know that the Marquess and Marchioness of House Zoliel are beloved by the people both from high society and commoners because of their love story?"

Grinning like a Cheshire cat, Tori asked Lady M back. "Are they? In love, I mean? If we hold the Marchioness by her neck, she will become a knife that will stab the Marquess from the back. With that, we can switch the power to the aristocratic faction without them knowing."

"Your plan looks great only if the Marchioness will let us hold her neck," Lord Wolfgang countered Tori with doubtful eyes. The others were murmuring by themselves as if they were contemplating the very possibility of her plan.

Tori glanced at the second prince, only to be surprised when she found him looking at her with twinkling golden eyes. A soft and proud smile painted on his lips.

What's your deal, Corean? One time you doubt me, then the next moment you're looking at me like I'm your puppy. Are you daft or something? What a weirdo.

Tori blatantly ignored him and answered Lord Wolfgang instead. "I can hold her neck though. After so many preparations, I can bring you the Marchioness to our next meeting." Her wicked smile evinced her confidence in her claim.

"And how sure are we that you won't waste our time, Lady Rozenreff? This might be a trap from the noble faction for all we know." Lord Harum of the Baron House of Harum asked her in a no-nonsense tone.

It's both relieving and annoying that the aristocratic faction doesn't trust anyone easily, I guess. He's like my friend Gemini from my past life.

Well, I have no choice but to prove my worth to them.

"By the time of my birthday, come and send a spy or an informant. See if the Marchioness will give me the Jewel Eyes of Rhea, after all, that is a rare gem that is given only to show your unyielding support."

The confident pair of red eyes of Tori partially convinced the aristocratic members. Lady M and the second prince, on the other hand, did not need any proof since they experienced firsthand how reliable and cunning Victoria Rozenreff was.

Tori was too late to notice the looming shadow of the amber-eyed prince leaning on her right side. His tickling, fiery breath made her visibly flinch. She twisted to her right just to have a much closer look at the amber eyes of Prince Corean.

"Holy cow," Tori said without realizing she was in front of a lot of prying eyes.

Prince Corean smiled warmly at her. He placed his left arm at the back of her seat like what couples do in her past life.

What the fuck are you doing?

Tori suddenly stood up. She could not take Prince Corean's crazy humor. Tori tried to reason out, but everything that she thought to say would only lead to an unfavorable view from the aristocratic faction. She could not just leave, nor could she take a seat away from the second prince.

Sensing her dilemma, Prince Corean stood up. His soft locks looked so soft to touch, "I have something to discuss with Lady Victoria. Can you all leave us?"

Though his voice was gentle and warm, his amber eyes were sharp and calculating as he looked at them. When no one opposed him, Prince Corean whispered to her. "Let's talk privately."