Chapter Nine: The Game Begins
973 Words
The long dining table had been cleared, the chatter of earlier gift-giving now a fading echo through the mansion's vast halls. sss had retreated to her room, her footsteps quiet but heavy. The carved double doors shut behind her with a soft thud as she exhaled.
She didn’t change out of her clothes or remove her shoes. Instead, she sat cross-legged on the window seat, eyes watching the moonlight s***h across the black-tiled rooftop below. A sudden memory surfaced—one not old, but shadowed already by the chaos she’d stepped into.
---
FLASHBACK: The Deal
It had been two days before Grandfather Sebastian’s arrival. sss, back from school, had wandered outside. The stone path coiled through trimmed hedges to a large, glittering pool. The water shimmered under the setting sun.
She stared at it, eyes blank. Wouldn’t it be easier to just vanish into that silence? The thought danced in her mind like a devil in a velvet coat.
She smiled grimly—half-mocking, half-daring. The two maids tending to the pool exchanged nervous glances. That smile didn’t belong on a seventeen-year-old girl’s face.
"Ma'am, the Master calls for you in his study," the Head Butler’s voice broke her thoughts. She turned slowly.
“Fine.”
She followed him through grand staircases and endless marble halls. When they reached the heavy oak doors of the study, the butler bowed and left.
Amazon didn’t knock. She stepped inside and leaned against a bookshelf. Her emerald eyes roamed lazily over ancient tomes before landing on Hermit, who stood beside the fireplace in silence.
“Well?” she said dryly. “What now? Want your pound of flesh? Or should I just hand over my neck?”
Hermit didn’t flinch. His gaze was unwavering.
“You speak like a girl used to bleeding.”
Amazon tilted her head. “And you speak like a man who enjoys watching it.”
A smirk ghosted across Hermit’s face—cold, precise. “Perhaps I do.”
She snorted. “I’m flattered. Shall we move on to the flogging?”
“I have a proposal,” he said instead.
Amazon lifted a brow.
“Be my wife.”
There was silence. It pressed in around them, heavy and golden.
She laughed. Not sweetly. Not in delight. It was a low, sarcastic chuckle that could slice through diamonds.
“Why not? You need a wife to gain the inheritance. I need a roof over my head. A perfect transaction.”
Hermit stepped forward. “You’ll behave as my fiancée in front of my family. No scandals. No running away. And most importantly, you obey when I speak.”
Amazon turned from the bookshelf slowly, her expression unreadable. Then, she gave a mock little bow.
“I'm sorry, my lord. I’m poor. But I’ll do my best.”
And with that, the deal was struck.
---
Back in the Present
Amazon sighed and rested her forehead against the glass. She was now Hermit Kingston’s intended fiancée. For now. But power always came with a price—and she was no fool.
There was a knock on her door. Clara peeked in, her face still bandaged from Snow’s earlier rage.
“Miss... are you alright?”
Amazon gave her a tired smile. “Come in. Let’s braid your hair before you sleep.”
---
Elsewhere…
Down in the golden-lit family room, Athena sat curled on the velvet settee, eyes narrowed.
“She dares stand next to us?” she hissed to Snow. “She offered a stone and a dragon sketch. How pathetic.”
Snow sipped her champagne mockingly. “She plays humble. But she’s plotting. I feel it.”
Athena glanced toward the shadows in the hall, making sure no one else heard. “I won’t let her ruin this family’s legacy.”
“Neither will I,” Snow whispered.
---
Atop the Mansion Tower
Hermit stood alone under the sky, his hand in his coat pocket, clutching a torn page from one of his old philosophy books. It had been found in the library—torn neatly from the middle of a rare edition.
His eyes narrowed. He knew who had touched the books.
She reads philosophy... and tears out Nietzsche. He smiled slightly.
“A savage, indeed,” he murmured.
Then his phone buzzed.
UNKNOWN CONTACT: Audrey Kingston is enrolling at Black-Vale Elite. Sponsored by a student named Norris.
His smile vanished.
“Let the games begin.”
---
Next Morning – Black-Vale Elite School
Amazon walked through the tall iron gates, her fiery ginger hair a sharp contrast against her all-black designer outfit—gifted by Aqua that morning after sss had unknowingly impressed her with her drawing skill.
Pixis, her ever-cheerful white-haired maid who had snuck into school behind her with lunch, caught up beside her.
“You forgot your—oh no, never mind, you look so cool today!”
Amazon chuckled softly.
Suddenly, a sleek sports car rolled in—Audrey stepped out in a modest dress, holding her bag nervously. Norris waved at her with a friendly grin. Students turned to look.
Amazon’s eyes narrowed as she saw the familiar face in the crowd.
She said nothing. But her lips curved ever so slightly in challenge.
---
Cliffhanger Ending
A phone buzzed on Snow’s desk later that afternoon.
She opened a message and froze.
“She’s not who you think she is. The savage girl—she's more dangerous than you realize.”
Attached was a grainy, paused video frame: sss, in the village... surrounded by men lying on the floor... bruised, defeated.
Snow’s eyes widened.
And far away, Hermit’s phone buzzed with a similar message from an unknown number:
“Your fiancée was born of storms. Tame her, or she’ll destroy your throne.”
Hermit’s lips twitched.
“Let her try.”
- Writer
