The Web of Knightspur-Chapter 224 - 222

Princess Eleanor sat in front of her mirror as her eyes studied her own reflection.

She could hear footsteps coming her way. "Is someone here?" Princess Eleanor asked Lady Gisella who was standing behind her, helping the Princess to arrange her hair.

"They should be..." Lady Gisella was yet to finish her words when a knock was heard on the door. Princess Eleanor looked to the side before turning her gaze to Lady Gisella who smiled as if she knew who the person was.

"Come in." Princess Eleanor called in a calm tone and soon the door swung open and Princess Vida walked in with her lady-in-waiting.

"Princess Vida." Princess Eleanor greeted her with a smile before turning around and looked into the mirror again. She could see Princess Vida and her lady-in-waiting’s reflection in the mirror as her lips curled up. "Please have a seat."

Princess Vida looked at Lady Gisella with hate in her eyes. She was here to get married to the Crown Prince. To be the chosen one and show the man her support. But why was nothing going the way she wanted?

It was just now that Princess Vida knew the difference between the escorts that came to her and the ones that went to Princess Eleanor. There was a huge difference in their statuses. Especially the woman who was standing there moving her comb on Princess Eleanor’s hair as if it was her only work. Who could tell that she was the one who controlled the social world of the upper class? An important figure whose words cannot be taken lightly. Someone who had served in Duke Beaumont’s household but even had a good relationship with the Royal family. What a fearsome character!

Princess Vida took a deep breath as she could feel the resentment rolling off Lady Gisella. The Lady’s hand did not stop working with Princess Eleanor’s hair, but neither did it increase its pace. She worked slowly as if she was enjoying putting Princess Eleanor’s hair into intricate patterns. Her movement slowed down as well. Princess Vida could not help but sigh. She walked towards a chair before taking a seat and then looked straight at Princess Eleanor.

"I did not get to meet the Princess yesterday." Princess Vida continued as she smiled. Her eyes looked at her lady-in-waiting, before Kelly, getting the hint from her master, walked towards the table as she put some ointments down. "I heard the Princess is still not feeling well. I got these bottles, especially for you."

"Should I be worried, Princess?" Princess Eleanor’s words were filled with curiosity as she peered at the bottles through the mirror. "Maybe these are poisoned as well, like the last one?"

Princess Vida’s eyes widened in shock. She could not believe that she was listening to this. The first thing that popped up in her mind was, ’How did Princess Eleanor know? And for how long had she known?’

Princess Vida’s face changed colour as she turned around to look at Kelly who was having the same pale expression on her face. The poor lady-in-waiting was clueless and a little afraid.

Princess Eleanor did not care about the emotions they were experiencing. She looked at Lady Gisella who stopped her movement as Princess Eleanor turned around to face Princess Vida.

"What... You thought I would not find out?" Princess Eleanor’s lips curled up as if she was observing some inside joke. "At first I thought that maybe I was thinking too much. Princess Vida was the first person to talk to me when I arrived. But then I remembered what Lady Gisella taught me. One needs to understand where we are. This is a competition where everyone is a rival. And two rivals cannot be friends. Princess Vida and I are fighting for the same position, after all. I just could not ignore the advice of my trusted friend, so I got it tested and turns out, the results were really interesting."

"You... You..." Princess Vida tried to say as her fingers formed a fist. She was ready to attack at any moment and it was evident in her rigid stance. Her eyes glowed as she bit down on her lips. "The Princess is really intelligent."

Princess Vida closed her eyes as she took a deep breath. She understood that hiding her true self was useless now. She had to fight heads on with her enemy. "But Princess Eleanor should know that this would not have happened if the Crown Prince had not shown his interest in you."

Arching an elegant brow, Princess Eleanor scoffed. "So you are blaming me now? Your people attacked me on the way here before we even knew each other. How cruel and calculative you must be to harm yourself in the process." Princess Eleanor shook her head as she observed Princess Vida. "Your determination is really commendable."

Princess Vida leaned back as she laughed. Her face showed her true emotions. There was no need for her to show her sad face to the person she did not care for. All she needed to do was keep up her confidence. "I was only trying to reduce the competition. I wanted the Princesses to fall out of favour sooner rather than later. After all, the Crown Prince hates people who cry easily. But who would have guessed that the Crown Prince would not only not be angry but also look after you?"

Princess Vida’s eyes looked Princess Eleanor up and down as if she was silently judging her. "And as for why I attacked myself? Isn’t it obvious? I wanted to look innocent as well. And to be honest, Princess Eleanor should not blame me for the attack. There were other groups of people too and yet you say it was all my fault? Ridiculous!" Princess Vida said as she rolled her eyes. "But to be honest, I do not care what you think about me anymore. I just came here to let the Princess know the truth."

Princess Vida got up from the chair and she folded her hands. "I had wanted to sound polite, but it seems there is no longer any need for that now. Anyway, the people standing behind me are powerful. So stop thinking you can take the Crown Prince away from me. The position beside him was always mine and I will not allow anyone to take it." Princess Vida turned around as she left her parting words. "The medicine is poisoned. But I will not take it back. Who knows if the Princess might need it after today’s banquet?"

Princess Vida and her lady-in-waiting, Kelly walked out of the room.

Princess Eleanor was silent as she looked at their disappearing backs before the door was closed. Princess Eleanor’s eyes narrowed before she laughed loudly. Lady Gisella who was standing beside her was confused as she stared at Princess Eleanor with concern.

Princess Eleanor ran her fingers over her eyes as she wiped up the tear on her fingertip. The laughter made her cry. She looked at the teardrop as her lips curled up before she flicked it off.

Princess Eleanor turned around as she looked at Lady Gisella whose eyes were wide in shock. "Why are you looking at me like this?"

"The things Princess Vida said..." Lady Gisella did not continue. She, of all people, knew what the meaning of her words were and Lady Gisella was so confident that Princess Eleanor was aware of it too. But seeing the way Princess Eleanor was treating the situation confused her.

"There is nothing to worry about. The man needs me and I know it." Princess Eleanor said as she shook her head. "We made a deal and I know for a fact that he is anxious."

Lady Gisella did not need to ask who Princess Eleanor was referring to. It was obvious that the person was the Crown Prince of the Roulux Empire, Prince Richard.

"I will be the one announced to be the chosen one at today’s banquet." Princess Eleanor’s eyes were filled with determination as though she were a rebellious Princess who was ready to strike at any moment if required. "All I want is to see Princess Vida’s face at that moment when I am named the chosen one. I am a little curious to know how she will react?"

"Aren’t you angry at all, Princess?" Lady Gisella asked. Her eyes looked straight into Princess Eleanor’s as she tried to understand what was going on in her mind to no avail.

Princess Eleanor looked at Lady Gisella and she shook her head as her lips curled up . "Why should I be angry? We are enemies who can cut through each other’s throats at any moment. I am angry at people who backstab. But Princess Vida decided to attack heads on. She is giving me an open challenge. Isn’t she?"

Princess Eleanor looked at the closed door before her eyes moved to the bottles sitting innocently on the table. "I like to play with people who attack me directly. Although it is shocking, at least you are aware of the enemy. There is fun in that too."

Princess Eleanor sighed as she turned around and looked into the mirror. Her eyes moved to the reflection of the table. "Anyway, we should keep these bottles safe. Who knows if it would be Princess Vida who would need this medicine? We should always return the favour." Princess Eleanor smiled sweetly at Lady Gisella through the mirror.

Lady Gisella smiled back as she understood the underlying meaning in Princess Eleanor’s words as she nodded. "I understand, Princess. I will keep it safe."