"Princess, I must thank you for sending such a precious girl to me. She outperforms more than half of my girls," Madame Helene purred, her voice laced with false sweetness. She knew this girl loved flattery. But Josa's expression betrayed her, there was no joy in seeing Ara, only fear, bottomless and suffocating, like seeing a demon. The girl's terror was palpable as if she knew something unspeakable loomed just out of reach that smelled like trouble. This girl would only leave ruins wherever she went.
"Josa, I want you to bed someone in the castle, satisfy him," Ara said, her words cutting through the air with brutal clarity.
The room's temperature dropped as the air shattered into icy shards. Madame Helene's smile dried, her excitement giving way to a grimace of confusion and distaste.
"My Lady, she beds royals only. But someone in the castle?" Madame Helene's voice held a note of uncertainty, and the discomfort in her eyes grew. "May I ask who that is?"
