The room was so silent one could hear a pin drop. An icy, bone-chilling aura hung thick in the air, viscous as liquid, stifling every breath. Lizzie fixed Athena with a cold, murderous stare, but as she watched her, the hostility in her eyes slowly faded.

Lizzie let out a light chuckle before breaking into hysterical laughter. With manic glee, she declared, “I’ll give you one chance. If you can cure my migraines, you may keep your head.”

Athena bowed her head slightly and responded respectfully, “As you wish, Your Highness.”

Lizzie never expected Athena to agree. Her migraines were congenital, something she’d suffered from since birth. Ever since she was old enough to understand, the migraines would flare up intermittently. She thought, ‘All those imperial physicians were stumped, what makes Athena think she can pull it off?’

Lizzie clearly didn’t believe her, but when she met Athena’s bright, unwavering gaze, a surge of hatred overwhelmed her. She nearly wanted to gouge those eyes out.

She loathed being stared at like this, especially when the one staring at her was Athena. Lizzie reached out and pinched Athena’s chin between her fingers, her smile oozing sinister malice. “Fail to cure me, and you’ll die.”

Lizzie expected Athena to be scared out of her wits, but to her surprise, Athena lifted her head and met her gaze fearlessly. With boldness, she asked, “And what if I could cure Your Highness?”

Lizzie froze for a split second. She was taken aback by her audacity. With an icy sneer, she demanded, “How dare you bargain with me?”

“I wouldn’t dare, Your Highness,” Athena said softly, “I merely thought that if Your Highness recovers and feels happy, you might reward me generously. So I took the liberty to ask.”

Gale watched with bated breath from the side. She thought, ‘Athena has always known her place. What has come over her today to make her seem like a completely different person?’

Just as Gale was about to plead for Athena, Lizzie suddenly burst into derisive laughter.

She pointed at Athena, doubled over with laughter. She looked at Athena as if she were watching an ant struggle helplessly in the palm of her hand. With a final slam on the table, she declared, “Fine, I agree. If you can cure my migraines, you’ll be handsomely rewarded. But fail… and that pretty little head of yours will roll.”

Athena bowed respectfully and said, “Thank you, Your Highness.”

Lizzie seemed to have had enough of her antics and rose to her feet. Lizzie abruptly shed her frantic antics and gave Gale a dignified nod. With feigned courtesy, she said, “I have overstayed my welcome, you surely wouldn’t hold it against me, right?”

Though Gale inwardly loathed her, she managed a polite smile and said with feigned delight, “How could I possibly mind? Having Your Highness grace me with your company is my greatest pleasure.

“Well then, I shall visit you again sometime.” With that, Lizzie turned on her heel and strode out of the room. The moment she departed, the imperial guards followed suit. The oppressive atmosphere lifted from the entire courtyard, and even the air felt lighter.

Gale slumped weakly into her chair, clutching her chest as she muttered, “Getting mixed up with this walking disaster will be the death of me.”

Athena hurriedly poured a cup of hot drink and set it by Gale’s hand. “Here, Your Grace, have some drink,” she said gently.

Gale took the cup and gulped down two large mouthfuls before finally feeling warmth spread through her body. But traces of lingering fear still showed on Gale’s face.

“Your Grace, what brought Lizzie here today?” Athena asked with genuine puzzlement.

At the mention of Lizzie, Gale’s face twisted in disgust. She slammed her cup down on the table with a disdainful sniff. Gale scoffed, “She’s always been so eccentric, who knows what madness possessed her to barge into my residence unannounced?”

As she said this, a look of confusion crossed Gale’s face. “Could it be that she’s still after Ferris?” Gale asked suspiciously.

Athena asked at just the right moment, “Did Lizzie ever pursue Ferris?”

Gale caught herself, about to brush it off, but since Athena wasn’t an outsider, she confided, “There was a time when Lizzie did pester Ferris a few times, but he always managed to shake her off. Later, when he fell ill, she lost interest.”

Ferris was terminally ill, so of course Lizzie didn’t want to be with a dying man.

Athena’s heart clenched with worry. The poison in Ferris’s body was gone, but those damn nails were still inside him. All that remained was to wait for his return so the nails could be removed. Athena thought to herself, ‘Lizzie must have caught wind of something. That’s why she came to test the waters. If that weren’t the case, there’s no way she’d be this hostile toward me.’

“Athena, what’s on your mind?” Gale asked gently, noticing Athena’s thoughtful expression.

Athena shook her head lightly. “It’s nothing, Your Grace.” But traces of worry flickered across Athena’s face.

She thought, ‘Thank goodness Ferris isn’t here. Lizzie is a walking time bomb, who knows when she’ll go off. Please, let Ferris return safely. Please let there be no more complications with our wedding.’

Stepping out of Gale’s courtyard, Athena couldn’t shake the worry weighing on her mind.

Athena was just about to take a walk along the mountain path to clear her mind when a familiar voice rang out. “Wow, this place is gorgeous!”

At the sound of that voice, Athena instinctively frowned, her expression darkening with clear displeasure.

Athena didn’t need to look. She knew exactly who it was. Athena turned around and, sure enough, saw Willow, Nicolas, and Michael appearing in the manor, just as she’d expected.

Michael’s gaze instinctively trailed after Athena the moment he saw her. That lovesick act of his disgusted Athena the most. Athena’s gaze turned icy. ‘These people just won’t stop haunting me,’ she thought bitterly.

At that same moment, Willow’s eyes landed on Athena. Though they should have been strangers, Willow came charging toward Athena like a mindless fool. “Sis! It’s really you! What a wonderful coincidence meeting you here!”

Willow’s sickeningly innocent act made Athena want to vomit. “Michael said this place has hot springs, so he brought me here specially. Sis, shall we go try it together?” As Willow spoke, she brazenly reached out, attempting to take Athena’s hand with feigned affection.

Athena swiftly sidestepped, easily dodging Willow’s hand.

“Sis, we’re family after all,” Willow said, taking two tentative steps closer with teary eyes. “Can’t we just let bygones be bygones? Mother has been missing you terribly since you left, she barely eats or sleeps. If I’ve ever done anything to upset you, just hit me as hard as you want.”

Willow grabbed Athena’s hand, trying to slap herself with it.

Athena didn’t hesitate as a sharp backhanded slap cracked across Willow’s face.

Willow stood frozen in shock, her eyes instantly turning red as tears welled up and spilled down her cheeks.

“Athena, have you lost your mind? You actually hit her?” Nicolas rushed forward to check on Willow’s injury, his face dark with anger.

Athena fixed Nicolas with an icy glare and snapped, “She asked for it, didn’t she? Weren’t you all here to make amends? So this is your idea of sincerity?”

Her words left Nicolas speechless. Nicolas thought bitterly, ‘If Fermin didn’t want to win Athena over, why would I put up with her insolence?’

Willow clutched her stinging cheek, tears welling in her eyes, yet forced a smile. “It’s nothing, Nicolas,” she sniffled, “I don’t mind the pain, as long as she isn’t upset anymore.”

Nicolas let out a furious snort, his gaze burning with undisguised hostility as he glared at Athena.

Just as Willow was nervously racking her brains for a way to get closer to Athena, Athena’s voice suddenly cut through the air. “There’s a natural hot spring out back. Wanna go with me?”

Honestly, Willow would have found it perfectly normal if Athena had refused her. But when Athena suddenly invited her, Willow grew fearful instead. “You really want to soak in the hot springs with me?” she stammered, her voice trembling with uncertainty.

Athena curled her lips into a mocking smile, eyes flashing with challenge as she looked at Willow. “What’s the matter? Got some dirty little secret? Too chicken to come? Then forget it.”

With that, she turned on her heel to leave.

Willow gently bit her lip and glanced at Nicolas. Seeing him give her a subtle nod, she felt reassured. She thought, ‘We followed Athena here just to bury the hatchet. Now’s my chance!’

Willow took a deep breath and hastily nodded. “Alright, I’ll go.”

“I’ll be waiting for you,” Athena said, her voice dripping with ominous promise.

The way Athena looked at Willow sent an indescribable terror that made Willow’s blood run cold.

Willow shuddered violently, a chill running down her spine. ‘Why do I feel like Athena is going to tear me apart any second?’ she thought, fear gripping her.