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    “Oh, my dear child! Come, let your old Nanny Ava look at you!”


    the incident,” the nurse crooned, gripping Ella’s shoulders with clammy hands. Her eyes glistened with counterfeit tears. “This humble servant’s heart aches to see you suffer. That dreadful fall into the pond—such a cruel twist of fate!”


    Fall? Ella nearly laughed. The “accident” had been Amy’s doing—a staged push to humiliate her during the Crown Prince’s visit. But Nanny Ava’s performance was even more grotesque than she’d remembered. The woman’s gaze kept darting to the jade pendant Ella wore, a gift from James Brown in her previous life. Ah, Ella realized. She’s probing for weakness. For a way to resurrect my ‘infatuation.’


    entice His Highness.”


    Nanny Ava’s jowls flushed with manufactured outrage. “Vile lies! My precious girl would never stoop to such brazen schemes!” She leaned closer, reeking of rosewater and treachery. “Though… if you did wish to secure the prince’s favor, this old woman knows a dozen subtler ways. A whispered compliment here, a dropped handkerchief there…”


    There it is. Ella’s nails dug into her palms. The viper wasn’t here to console her—she’d come to reignite the obsession that had doomed Ella’s past self. To make her a pliable puppet for the Second Branch’s ambitions.


    “How insightful,” Ella murmured, widening her eyes in feigned admiration. She let a wistful sigh escape. “If only I’d had your counsel years ago, Nanny. But alas…” Her gaze hardened like frozen steel. “...I’ve since learned to recognize rats who nibble from every hand that feeds them.”


    The slap of leather against stone echoed as Ella tossed a ledger onto the nearby table. Pages fluttered open, revealing meticulous entries in vermillion ink.


    generous donations to the Temple of Mercy… funded by selling Third Branch heirlooms.”


    Nanny Ava staggered back as if struck. “Slander! Who dared—?”You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    I dared.” Ella advanced, her shadow swallowing the trembling woman. “Did you think me blind? That I wouldn’t notice your whispers to Aunt Grace? Your reports on my every move?” She plucked the jade pendant from her neck, dangling it like a corpse on a noose. “This isn’t a trinket—it’s a shackle. And you’ve been paid handsomely to keep it clasped around my throat.”


    You’ll return every stolen coin by week’s end. Fail, and your thievery reaches the magistrate’s ears.” She crouched, gripping Nanny Ava’s chin with bruising force. “As for your salary… consider the next three months donated to the servants you swindled.”


    The Viper’s Nest


    “The ungrateful wretch humiliated me!” she screeched, smearing snot across the carpet.


    “Accused me of theft! Punished me for loyalty!”


    did uncover… irregularities in your accounts.”


    “B-But you promised protection!”


    indifferent to Prince James. A setback for her marriage prospects—and our leverage.”


    Old Madam Smith’s cane struck the floor like a judge’s gavel. “Enough! The girl defies me at every turn. First, refusing to kneel—now alienating the Crown Prince? Grace. Put your scheming to use. If Ella won’t secure a royal alliance, we’ll bind her to Lord Chen’s lecherous nephew. That’ll curb her insolence.”


    Grace’s laughter was a razor’s edge. “Oh, you’ve helped quite enough.” She nodded to a hulking guard. “Escort our… faithful servant to the magistrate. We’ve evidence of embezzlement to deliver.”


    Wolf in Lamb’s Skin


    “T-They’ve turned on her!”


    you’d do well to remember.”


    “The Second Branch has infiltrated your sister’s household,” Ella said mildly, tucking the bloom into the maid’s hair. “They’ve promised her son a scholar’s position in exchange for reports on my activities.”