Chapter 1
Silver spoons clashed against porcelain plates amidst a suffocating, eerie silence. Despite the rich, savory aroma of the feast that filled the vast, gold-laden hall, a palpable tension consumed the imperial guards stationed at every corner and the servants standing frozen behind the chairs.
Suddenly, the silence was violently shattered by a harsh, convulsing cough.
A heavy wooden chair screeched backward against the rough stone floor, tumbling over as its owner collapsed, writhing in agony. Crimson blood erupted from their lips, staining their hands and tearing through the pristine fabric of their silk robe.
Everyone froze.
A collective, terrified gasp hung suspended in the air for two agonizing seconds before the Emperor rose from his throne. With eyes as cold and piercing as a blade, he roared, "An assassination by poison? In my very presence?! Who is this coward?!"
An absolute, deathly hush fell over the hall. Heads dropped in sheer terror, and beads of cold sweat broke out on the forehead of the eldest sibling, while the youngest struggled to choke back her tears. Someone in the crowd gagged at the gruesome sight. The poisoned corpse had already grown cold, yet no one dared to step forward. The paralyzing fear of being falsely accused held everyone in a vice-like grip.
Amidst this chaotic nightmare, I opened my eyes...
I was a princess. Weak. Stranded in a place I did not recognize, surrounded by people I did not know!
Then, memories flooded my mind like a violent strike of lightning. I was Long Ziwan, the Tenth Princess of the Great Empire of Long. And among twenty-three brothers and sisters who breathed nothing but treachery and malice, I had to survive in a world entirely foreign to my soul.
The Emperor shifted his piercing gaze toward his chief eunuch, his voice as dry as death itself. "Summon the Imperial Physician."
His razor-sharp glare swept across every single soul in the room before he delivered his ruthless command: "Search everyone. Leave no one untested."
The guards moved in a flash, the clanking of their iron armor echoing deafeningly through the halls. Hands were pinned back brutally. I felt the rough, callous grip of a guard grasping my arms, searching my body and clothes for any trace of a vial or incriminating evidence.
The massive doors burst open as the Imperial Physician rushed in, throwing himself to his knees, his body trembling violently before the Emperor’s throne.
"Examine the corpse!" the Emperor bellowed, gesturing toward the body. "Let us see what kind of venom this coward dared to use!"
Frantic and consumed by terror, the physician rushed to obey. He knelt over the body with shaking fingers, pulling out his testing kits and silver needles, searching the pale face and darkened lips for the secret of this sudden demise.
My eyes darted in pure panic as I tracked the towering guard before me. 'Damn it, where am I?!' I hissed in my mind, pinching the back of my hand over and over, desperate to wake up. But the sharp sting only confirmed the grim reality... This was no dream.
Looking around in horror, I watched another guard ruthlessly bind the young man next to me. I swallowed hard as those rough, monstrous hands reached for my own wrists. A towering guard stood before me like a beast ready to tear me apart.
I paralyzed completely, my mind screaming in utter disorientation: 'Where am I? Who are these people?!'
A wave of intense nausea hit my stomach, and tears began to stream down my face without warning. I wanted to scream, I wanted to beg for help, but my tongue was utterly tied. My heart was hammering against my ribs like a war drum, every fiber of my being crying out: I want to escape this gilded hell!
But the rough, unforgiving hand of the guard gripping my arm to search me dragged me back to reality with a vengeance. And in that very split second... a bone-chilling cold swept through my entire being.
It wasn't because of the guard.
It was because, beneath the heavy layers of my luxurious silk gown, pressed right against my chest... I felt something small, hard, and cylindrical hidden in the fabric.
Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!
Was I the assassin?
