Veronika, being a trained knight, wasn''t a surprise. Aries had already noticed Veronika''s light steps. The said princess barely made a sound whenever she walked. But what surprised Aries the most was that Veronika entered the empire under Ismael''s orders.


    It was reckless of Veronika to tell Aries her reasons for entering the empire since she could be considered a spy — even though that wasn''t Veronika''s intention. Still, a part of Aries was d at Ismael''s gesture.


    After Aries and Veronika chatted, the former told thetter to not let others know about it for the princess''s safety. Veronika already knew that. Hence, they parted on a good note.


    With a bright smile stered on her face, Aries returned to her designated room situated in the farthest wing that all the candidates deemed a terrible area. The Hyacinth Pce wasn''t heavily guarded inside hence, there weren''t many people inside the said ce.


    Aries pushed the door open of the chambers, only to freeze right after. She closed it again, looking from left to right cautiously.


    "Good thing I came here before everyone else," she mumbled, knowing there were a couple more rooms in the hallway for the other candidates. A deep exhale slipped past Aries''s lips, opening the door cautiously.


    When she peeked inside, her face contorted. There, inside, were Marse and Abel, grabbing each other''s neck. The two of them were still strangling each other, but their eyes were on the door where she was.


    ''I was really in a good mood,'' Aries told herself as she stepped foot inside, closing the door behind her. Marching towards the two, she darted her eyes between Marse and Abel.


    "Hello, darling." Abel shed her a coquettish smile while gripping Marse''s neck. "I''ll break her neck real quick and join you for a tea."


    Marse chuckled. "Oh, Ram. Don''t worry. I''ll end him so we can have tea together."


    "..."


    Aries''s face contorted, witnessing the two of them look at each other. Her encounter with Veronika put her in a good mood, only for her to return to her room and witness a murder! Between Abel and Marse, she didn''t know who was the psycho and the victim; they were both psychos.


    <o>,m "Wait." Aries cleared her throat, stretching her hands to Abel''s hand on Marse''s neck. Abel and Marse arched a brow as Aries peeled his fingers around his sister''s neck, only to transfer it to the side of Marse''s head to sp her hair. Aries then wordlessly did the same to Marse, moving thetter''s grip to Abel''s hair.</o>


    "???" Both Marse and Abel tilted their heads to the side, puzzlement apparent in their eyes as they looked at Aries.


    "Don''t kill each other, hmm?" Aries smiled, pleased that instead of strangling each other, they were now grabbing each other''s hair. "Just have a cat fight and then have some tea once you released your frustrations."


    Another deep breath slipped past Aries before she waved, sauntering off to the set of divans in the middle of the chamber. As she did, she smiled at Conan, who was also inside the room, standing near the window.


    "Lady Aries, I don''t know if I shouldmend you for it." Conan walked towards the divan where Aries sat down. "I was actually pretending I am alone here. How was your day so far?"


    Aries smiled, staring at Conan, who perched on the armrest. "Sir Conan, did you have a reason you grouped me with the princesses? I had a brief talk with Princess Veronika, and she said Ismael sent her. Did you hear anything about this?"


    "Well, His Majesty Ismael, did mention in his letter of rmendation…" Conan rubbed his chin, recalling thest letter he received from Ismael. "... although he didn''t say it directly, but it is no surprise if that is the case. I don''t think he nned to hurt you — probably, he didn''t want to be forgotten."


    While Conan and Aries were engaged in a conversation, Abel frowned. He looked back at Marse, watching her brows elevate.


    "This isme," he muttered, releasing his sister''s hair and thetter also let go of his hair. "I should''ve killed you before she came."


    "That should be my dialogue," Marse snorted, but Abel waved nonchntly to join Aries on the divan. She crossed her arms under her chest, watching Abel sit beside Aries, pulling thetter by the waist to get her attention.


    "Marse was trying to hurt me, darling. How can you ignore me? Your husband, your friend, your partner-in-crime, and now you''re fiance?" Abelined, resting his chin on Aries''s shoulder. "You break my heart."


    Both Conan and Marse scrunched their nose up in dismay, watching Abel gaslight his wife. Aries, on the other hand, let it slip while staring back at his face.


    "My mentor is not that unreasonable," Aries argued softly, making Marse nod in satisfaction. "Even so, I know if you truly want to kill each other, blood had already painted the floor and the walls would''ve already crumbled."


    Aries blinked twice, staring at the frown stered on his face. Knowing Abel, he was purposely fluttering his eyes ever so tenderly in an attempt to look cute. She noticed Marse marching toward the armchair from the corner of her eye while Conan stood from the armrest.


    "Mhm…" Aries pressed her lips into a thin line, adjusting her seat to face Abel squarely. "I made a friend."


    "A friend?"


    "Mhm! The princess from Chivisea. She was a good friend of Violet and Ismael…" she trailed off when Abel patted hisp, making her brows raise in confusion.


    "Tell me about it." He grinned, wiggling his brows yfully. "You''re too far."


    Conan scrunched his nose up while Marse rolled her eyes. Thetter pushed herself from the seat, casting them a dead look.


    "The next time youe in here unannounced, I''ll set you on fire while you are in your sleep," she warned at Abel before she walked away. "Let''s go dearest Conan. Unless you are a masochist who wants to see what they will doter."


    Conan let out a deep exhale, darting his eyes between the mischievous Abel and then the baffled Aries. "See youter, Lady Aries."


    With that being said, Conan and Marse sauntered off. However, they didn''t walk toward the door. Aries furrowed her brows, watching the two approach the shelf. Conan tipped a book, and to Aries''s surprise, the shelf moved, revealing a secret passage.


    "What is…" she trailed off when Abel spoke.


    "My entrance." Aries looked back at Abel, only to see his triumphant grin. "So I can go in and out of here without worrying my wife that someone will see me."


    "..."