Chapter 20: A Warning in the Gardens

A Stroll Turned Confrontation

The palace gardens of Aurelia were a breathtaking sight, filled with vibrant flowers, towering hedges, and golden statues that glowed under the midday sun. Princess Amara and Prince Zayid walked side by side, their conversation light but laced with amusement.

"It's been an entertaining visit so far," Zayid mused, smirking. "Your future husband looks like he doesn't know whether to admire you or fear you."

Amara scoffed, adjusting the sheer fabric of her golden sleeves. "Good. He should feel both."

Zayid chuckled but then halted, his sharp eyes catching something ahead. Amara followed his gaze, her expression darkening instantly.

A few paces away, a group of noblewomen stood in a semi-circle, their soft laughter carried by the breeze. Among them was her.

Prince Cassius's mistress.

The woman was dressed in a gown too fine for a common courtier, her hair pinned in elaborate curls, her painted lips twisted into a smirk as she whispered to the others.

"She thinks she's worthy of him?" the mistress scoffed. "A foreigner with dark skin, thinking she can sit beside our prince? She doesn't belong here."

The others tittered in agreement.

Zayid's face darkened. "She's playing a dangerous game."

But before he could react, Amara had already stepped forward.

A Dangerous Warning

The laughter died the moment the mistress realized Amara was standing before her. The princess's posture was regal, her dark eyes sharp as daggers.

"Say it again," Amara said coolly.

The mistress blinked. "P-Princess Amara—"

"I said," Amara took another step closer, "say it again."

The woman swallowed hard, her confidence faltering under Amara's unwavering stare.

The entire garden had gone still.

Across the courtyard, both Prince Cassius and Prince Darius had been speaking privately when they turned to witness the commotion. The sight of Amara standing so boldly before Cassius's mistress made both men pause.

Then Amara smiled—a slow, dangerous smile.

"If I ever catch you speaking ill of me again," she said, her voice light yet laced with steel, "I will cut off your tongue myself."

Gasps echoed through the garden.

Zayid smirked in amusement, folding his arms as he watched.

The mistress paled, her hands trembling as she stepped back. "Y-You wouldn't—"

Amara leaned in slightly, lowering her voice so only the woman could hear. "Try me."

The mistress took another step back, then turned on her heel and fled, her ladies scrambling after her.

The garden remained silent.

Then—"Damn," Zayid chuckled. "I forgot how ruthless you can be."

Amara simply turned to him. "I don't tolerate disrespect."

Cassius and Darius's Reactions

From a short distance, Prince Cassius watched the entire exchange, his lips slightly parted in shock.

He had known Amara was fierce, but this…

There was no hesitation in her, no fear. She had just openly threatened a noblewoman in his court—his mistress, no less—and she didn't even flinch.

Cassius didn't know whether to be furious or impressed.

Beside him, Prince Darius let out a low whistle.

"Your future wife is terrifying," Darius muttered. "I like her."

Cassius shot him a glare, but his cousin only smirked.

Cassius's mind, however, was elsewhere.

He had never met a woman who dared to challenge him, to challenge his court, to challenge anyone the way Amara did.

And gods help him—he found it irresistible.