The Wicked Mistress' Pets

"Your highness, I have secured the carriage you wanted," Riza informed Yuri while handing her a pouch that contained the latter's desired herbs.

Smiling sweetly at her well-behaved pet, Yuri safely stored the small pouch inside the compartment of her dress—the space between her blasted corset and her bosoms. Her newly polished long nails glistened like freshly poured blood; they could easily hide the color of poison and were easy to handle on any occasion.

A cold sweat resurfaced again, and a cough emerged from her blood-red lips.

"Your Highness!" Riza was about to reach her when Yuri raised her left hand, her right hand covering her lips as if to signal her servant to mind her business. Behind her palm, Yuri spoke weakly. "It is okay. Prepare an outdoor dress. I have to visit my dear family."

"Yes, Your Highness." Though hesitant, Riza could not do anything if her mistress insisted otherwise. The former was about to turn around and prepare her dresses when her mistress called her again.

"Oh right, Riza dear, prepare me a coat for our later trip."

"Yes, Your Highness." With that, Riza left Yuri alone in her room – sitting at her receiving area while enjoying her favorite Oolong Tea. But the moment that the crown princess' chambers closed, Yuri started to have a fit of coughs.

Crimson droplets leaked behind her closed fingers. The gentle breeze from the opened windows felt like piercing glazers on her skin. Yuri thought she would not experience this pain again – she felt this kind of pain back when she was still a wanted criminal in her past life. And now, she was experiencing this a day after her scandal broke out. Someone dared to play cutesy with her, poisoning the crown princess.

'That freckled redhead, she's the one who was sent to poison me. She's probably been disposed of, or she is still acting as someone's spy. Either way, the poison they used is not that lethal. Then the only one who is openly threatening me is the pompous fourth prince. After my subtle threat about his growing affection for the concubine Amina, he warns me what will happen if I cross him. Ha! Bring it on!' Yuri calmly thought as she mixed the herb from the pouch with the Oolong Tea.

She knew she was being poisoned, but Yuri decided to play their trick. She wanted to test his intent. After all, he could not kill her even if he gave her poison from Wolf's bane flower – this supposed Oolong Tea could play wonders. Yuri concocted a small portion of Wolfsbane flower inside the Oolong Tea, the deadliest flower of all. She started taking them since she had Riza as her hands and legs. Yuri knew how petty the enemies could act, assassination or poison. One way after another, her enemies were bound to kill her. So secretly, she was building a poison resistance that even Riza did not know – with this, she would have one less problem.

"That brat dares to poison me because of that bitch." Yuri gritted her teeth while wiping the remnants of the poison. Staggering as she stood up, Yuri opened the door to her balcony – not minding the stinging pain she felt. Grinning like a Cheshire cat, Yuri mumbled to herself as she watched the Rose Garden. "Aah, I want to uproot all those ghastly roses and replace them with the beautiful shade of purple from the Wolf's Bane flower."

YURI AND RIZA used the official carriage of the royal family as they rode to the Rosehil Territory. Naturally, it would take them five to six hours to travel. Still, their carriage was infused with mana stones that could fasten the horses' strides without discomfort for the passengers – a genuinely fair ride for royalty. After two hours, Yuri could see the Rosehil Manor, and by the sight of it, her heart – no – Ivynia's heart throbbed with fear and melancholy. As if the original owner never felt the slightest happiness in this supposed home, Yuri could relate to the original Ivynia. She, too, abandoned her homeland after being driven away for a crime she did not do.

Shrugging her memories and Ivynia's memories, Yuri decided to admire the hundred years of prestige reflected on the estate. The grand gates opened, but no house lords welcomed her, which was supposed to be customary upon receiving a royal family member. Though she was yet to marry, she was already announced as a crown princess, officially making her a royal member. Lifting her curtain, Yuri saw how deserted the mansion's entrance was.

"Ha! To think they will blatantly impose dominance on me even after receiving the letter yesterday. How foolish," Yuri mumbled. Her chin was placed atop her palm, and her amber eyes were like the pit of fires.

Riza unknowingly gulped. She was also nervous about meeting with the young miss of the Rosehil Duchy. After all, she betrayed her by siding with the crown princess – all for her mother. She did not have any regrets. It was a shame to see the siblings turn daggers against each other. Riza thought that Lady Charlotte was the spoiled miss of the Rosehil Duchy, but she never thought that the rumored meek eldest miss was the wicked one. For Riza, the crown princess was the type of person who could kill someone while smiling sweetly. Just thinking about made her shiver.

"What's wrong with you, dearie?" Yuri asked her handmaiden, who was turning pale. "Are you afraid of my dearest sister Charlotte? No need to fret. I won't stay for long. I am only here for my beloved pets."

Yuri recently found out about the pets that Ivynia treasured secretly. And just her luck, she longed to have those kinds of pets in her past life.

Yuri knew that Riza was wondering about her secret pets, but the former had already opened the carriage when no one, not even a butler, welcomed them.

"This is too much, Your Highness! Should we tell the crown prince about this?" Riza grumbled as she could not take the insults anymore. Princess Ivynia would be the future empress, yet they were showing this discourtesy!

'Tell the crown prince? No way. He will only use this to control me. Everyone in the Imperial Palace is fighting for my loyalty – something they will never have. They wanted the support of the empress once I entered the Imperial Court. Though the dowager empress is yet to move, I know she will be one of my obstacles.' Yuri pondered at the back of her mind.

"Enough, Riza dear. We are not here for them, and even if they welcomed us, nothing would change—hostility and disrespect will still welcome us."

The truth about the prestigious Rosehil Dukedom, which held the greatest army in the empire, was full of thorns and despair for the young Ivynia. Growing up, her family loathed her. As the eldest, as per tradition, she became the sacrifice for her younger sister under the pretext of being kicked out—according to the original plot. But Yuri would not let that happen. This time, no one would fool her, and no one would take advantage of her. She would become the empress through Crown Prince Leonedas to avoid her death flag, Prince Hyan Rezenia Bezarius.

A single servant opened the main doors of the mansion. Riza huffed and puffed but was amazed at how her mistress could remain so calm, as if the display was not a big deal for her. Calming herself, Riza followed her young mistress towards the desolate part of the estate – the crown princess' previous place.

Unlike the grand house, where luxury could be found anywhere, and sparkling treasures were treated like decors, the journey to the annex of the mansion was dreary and lacking in lavish things fit for the eldest lady of the Rosehil Duchy. Riza knew that the eldest miss was mistreated, but she did not dare to venture into this part, or Charlotte would throw a tantrum at them, resulting in a stinging cheek for the latter's handmaidens. But looking at the proud strides of her mistress, she could not help but conclude that all of her meeknesses in the past were for her to be sent to the Imperial Palace.

Yuri opened the unkept Ivy Greenhouse after seeing the chains released forcibly. "Stay there and don't come in no matter what you hear, or you'll get devoured, Riza dear." Yuri winked before walking away, closing the clanking doors behind her.

'Devour? Just what kind of pet is my mistress keeping from that shabby greenhouse?' Riza thought fear painted her face.

Behind the broken door, the eerie feeling of being watched welcomed Yuri. It was a look of a predator to its prey. Yuri had to remind herself that the body was still Ivynia's, and her pets would still recognize her scent.

After taking three steps, Yuri was welcomed by a flock of black butterflies. Yuri grinned, realizing they were merely welcoming their master after starving for many days. "Hush now, my darlings. This master will take you away. And from now on, I will provide you a nesting ground to feast on."

The slaughter butterflies seemed to understand Yuri as they flew around her happily. Their number could kill a dragon in a matter of minutes if they were starving. But Yuri had another thing on her mind. "Do not worry, my darlings. I have prepared a meal for you in the Imperial Palace." The wicked grin grew wider under the darkness of the greenhouse. Tall grasses almost covered the place, making it look like an abandoned place. No one dared to come in here, too afraid to be infected by her dragon scales.

A hissing sound interrupted her playtime with her darling slaughter butterflies. Looking at the darkest part of the greenhouse, a colossal shadow crawled toward her. Yuri's smile could light the entire Imperial Palace upon seeing her lovely pet.

A beautiful dark olive-brown with large alternating black spots running down its back and smaller oval spots with yellow centers along its sides, a giant green anaconda hissed towards her. Its length and width could kill a horse in one meal.

'This is Ivynia's only companion in her lonely times as she grew up.' Yuri excitedly thought, crouching down to pet its large head.

"Come here, lovely Kiki. This master missed you so much."