The Unlucky Sisters
Like a rabbit caught in a trap, the young Valeria didnât dare to move a muscle. It was the first time
Cassandra witnessed a member of the Imperial family being so scared. Was it because of Shareen?
She couldnât be one of Kareenâs children, so who was her concubine motherâ¦? A girl her age and her
rank definitely had nothing to do there, especially alone and in a servantâs outfit. It looked like she had
sneaked out of the Palace.
âValeria, talk,â insisted Shareen.
However, the young woman stayed completely mute and petrified by fear. Annoyed, Shareen ripped
the little bottle off her hands and threw it at Cassandra.
âArenât you good with plants and potions? What is that?â
The girl was on the verge of tears.
âLet me goâ¦â She begged, trying to pull away from Shareenâs tight grip.
Cassandra reluctantly opened the bottle. She didnât like doing this, but if Shareen was asking⦠A little
sniff made her frown, and feel so nauseous she almost dropped it. Dahlia immediately took it from her.
Just like Cassandra, she sniffed it, and then, applied a bit on her pinky to get a little taste.
âDahlia! What if itâs poisoned,â said Cassandra, worried.
âIt is fine, my Lady. I have been trained for poisons. Moreover, this is no such thing. I can taste green
orchid, pudding grass, nutmeg, sea squill, twin-leaved gamophiliaâ¦â
The more she said, the paler Cassandra became, understanding what the content was. Shareen
noticed.
âCassandra, what is that?â
The young concubine exchanged a look with the servant, who nodded, confirming her thoughts.
âItâs an abortifacient. A potion to⦠induce a miscarriage.â
Instinctively, Cassandra put a hand on her belly and lost all compassion for the young Princess, who
was clearly terrified. Her dark eyes went from Cassandraâs tummy to Shareen, growing wider and
wider.
âNo, no, no! Sister Shareen, I swear this wasnât meant for the Concubine! I swear! I would never dare
toâ¦â
âTo try to harm my brotherâs offspring? Is that it, Valeria?â Said Shareen with a menacing tone, raising
her wrist higher.
The young girl cried in pain, as Shareen was taller than her and hanging her by her wrist on purpose.
The difference in strength showed by the calm with which she was almost hanging her younger sister
by her wrist without showing any effort.
âSpill it, Valeria. Who is that meant for, you little swine?â
The young princess obviously couldnât bring herself to say it. Her expression was tortured between pain
and frustration, but Shareen was not going to let go until she heard what she wanted.
âI swear⦠I swear it wasnât for her,â she cried repeatedly.
âFor who, then? Talk, we donât have all day!â
âShareen,â whispered Cassandra, feeling a bit uncomfortable with the situation. âMaybe we shouldâ¦â
âNo, she will say it now. Even if she doesnât know who it was destined to, she has to know who asked
her for it. Dressing up as a servant, leaving without an escort and trying to evade me, too. You know
how short my patience
is, Valeria, and I donât think Father would mind much if I lost my temper with youâ¦â
The threat was ice cold, even Cassandra felt a chill. Was Valeria the daughter of a lower Concubine of
the Emperor? She probably didnât have any of the brothersâ backing, from Shareenâs wordsâ¦
However, she was only fifteen and defenseless like this. Cassandra sighed. She truly believed this
potion wasnât made for her. Valeria looked like she would have been much more terrified if Shareen
had seen through her right
away.
âIs it for one of the concubines?â Asked Cassandra. âOne of the Princesâ? One of your Father his
Highnessâ women?â
Valeria turned her eyes to her, looking a bit surprised by the sudden questioning, but seeing her lack of
response, Cassandra was sure neither of those was right. Thenâ¦
âIs it for one of the Princesses?â
This time, Valeria went from red to white in a matter of seconds. Shareen saw it, too, and smirked.
âSo thatâs what it was⦠One of our dearest sisters ordored you for this. Now I wonder which one of
those bitches was dumb enough to get pregnant.â
To Cassandraâs surprise, she let go of Valeria right after those words. The young Princess didnât wait
and ran away in a hurry. Cassandra turned to Shareen, confused.
âIs that it? Arenât you going to ask her which one?â
âThere are only a few who could get that child so scared. If it was any daughter of a low-rank
concubine, Valeria would have spilled the beans right when I caught her. She is an only child and her
mother is of no importance now. Whichever Princess ordered her to get this potion is at least as scary
as I am, and there arenât many that can be said of.â
Cassandra finally understood.
Though they were all seemingly sisters, not all Princesses had the same statuses or power. Shareen,
for example, was backed up by a favored mother and a brother. Phetra, too, had a rather comfortable
position thanks to her Imperial brother Vrehan. However, not all Princesses had the same luck. Unless
they had a brother or a mother favored by the Emperor, they were probably just pawns for the othersâ¦
Valeria was probably among the unlucky ones, fighting for her own survival just like many.
Who could be pulling her strings, then? Cassandra had an idea, but she wasnât sure.
âWhich Princess would want an abortion potion?â She wondered out loud.
âDonât know. But we are not supposed to engage in sexual relations until our father marries us offâ¦â
Cassandra turned to Shareen, surprised. She knew it was a rather common rule for daughters in the
Dragon Empire, but somehow, this brought out a completely different side of Shareen she had never
thought about.
âDoes that mean you areâ¦?â
âMarried? Me?â Asked Shareen with a snarl. âHell no.â
âButâ¦â
Cassandra still vividly remembered some scenes the Princess was involved in that she would rather
forget. She even blushed just thinking about it. Shareen smirked.
âOh, Cassandra, I may be a virgin but it doesnât mean I canât play, can I?â
This sentence would stay a long time in the young Concubineâs mind before she could actually realize
what it meant, and rearrange her whole way of seeing Shareen.
She shook her head, trying to forget about it, and turned to Dahlia, pointing the little potion still in the
servantâs hands.
âDo you think she came here just for this?â
âProbably so⦠No Princess would want to be seen here buying an abortion potion, Father would be
furiousâ¦â
Cassandra nodded, taking the potion. She silently thought she should hold on to this until they found
the culprit. Maybe she could even find a clueâ¦
âAll right,â said Shareen. âIâve had enough, letâs go grab your feisty sister before I really lose patience.â
The three women agreed to go check the next Brother, but once again, Cassandraâs heart faced
another deception. Missandra had come and left this place too. This time, however, things appeared to
be different, as the young cunuch explained. (3)
âMie tricked some local thugs into losing a lot of money, and they didnât appreciate. They came often to
harass this brothel, so the owner decided to kick her out. She only realized a while later that Mie had
actually stolen her money too⦠I have no idea where she is now, though, this is all from about⦠eight
or nine months ago? She could be anywhere now, but I would bet she didnât stay in the Red District.
Too many people were unhappy with her, and this group of thugs is still actively looking for her. To be
honest with you, I wouldnât even be surprised if she left the Capital, your Highness.â
Cassandra had to repress the urge to cry. How could her younger sister get in so much trouble? She
should be barely sixteen by now! Did Missandra grow to be such a mischievous girl from her upbringing
in the Red District? The worst for Cassandra was to think that, all this time, the two women had been in
the same City. Though the Capital was extremely vast, they could have crossed paths, if only
Cassandra had ventured closer to this area, or Missandra had been near one of her old masterâs
propertiesâ¦
âWell,â said Shareen, âI guess this is it for today. At least we know this troublemaker sister of yours was
still alive and well a few months ago. She could be literally anywhere now, thoughâ¦â
âI can still ask around⦠There are a few places Missandra could have tried to go toâ¦â
Cassandra was already thinking about where to search for her next. After everything she had found out
that day, she couldnât give up. She felt closer to Missandra than she had been in years.
âTomorrow, pretty face,â said the Princess with a frown. âSunâs about to set, and my brother will make a
fuss if I donât bring you back before night falls. Especially considering where we spend our day.â
Cassandra blushed. Indeed, a lot more establishments were open now, as the Brothels and their
tenants were preparing to work. More customers were filling the streets too, though they kept a careful
distance with the three women. They probably wondered what this odd trio was doing there.
âCome on, letâs go.â
As they started walking back, Cassandra couldnât help but glance sideways, just in case she could spot
Missandra. It was a bit desperate, but she just couldnât stop. Even Shareen, who noticed, didnât bother
to say anything about it, resolutely walking her back to the entrance.
âYou!â
An angry voice came from behind them, but for the first few seconds, neither Shareen or Cassandra
realized it was aimed at them. Hence, they turned back only when they realized people around were
eyeing them.
Charging their way was a large man, with a shaved head and too many tattoos to see his faceâs
actually traits. He was quite horrendous to look at, but Cassandra had a good idea who that man was
anyway. In the Capital, criminals were marked like so, their wrongdoings tattooed in visible places for
others to see. While most people wanted to avoid those as to not to be cast away by the society, local
thugs like this man arbored them proudly, as if it was a proof of strength. And that one had a lot. (1
âYou little bitch! Do you think you can hide from us? And use this kind of disguise, too? Youâll see!â
Shareen and Cassandra exchanged looks, completely unsure about what was going on. It was Dahlia
who understood first and stepped to stand between that man and the young concubine.
âI think you are mistaken, sir! My Lady is not the one you seek!â
âAre you kidding me? This bitch is the one Iâve been looking for! Youâd better give me my money back
and youâll take a good one for stealing from me, you bitch!â
Cassandra was speechless. Was that man mistaking her for her sister? Were they really so alike that
someone would actually confuse them? A group of men was gathering behind him, with only a few
fewer tattoos but quite the same horrible faces.
Shareen sighed, swinging her swords, a bit hesitant.
âCassie, do you mind if I play a bit? I need to exercise, and I have some frustration to ventâ¦
While Cassandra had a generous soul, she really didnât care much for criminals. That manâs bad deeds
were tattooed on his face and she was well aware of this kind of peopleâs horrible behaviors towards
women like her. She nodded, crossing her arms.
âAlright gentlemen, letâs play,â said Shareen, a bit too enthusiast.
Cassandra turned around. They were only a few steps away from the entrance.
While the Princess happily parred with the men present, she couldnât handle them all, especially since
they were trying to corner the trio. Dahlia had taken a little dagger, but it wouldnât do much against the
sabers the criminals had.
The young concubine took two fingers to her mouth and whistled. After a few seconds, a large shadow
came over them, and all the thugsâ faces turned sheet white.
âCassandra! Why are you spoiling my fun!â
âI am tired, and this is not a playground. I want to go back, my Lord will look for me.â
Krai landed next to her, growling immediately like a big cat would purr. His paw was squishing a man
on the ground with a gruesome sound and a long screech, but he didnât seem to hear it. Instead, he
was more curious about the men running around him in utter fear, and gobbled one up, as if he was
trying some new treat out of sheer curiosity. Meanwhile, Cassandra was climbing on its back, leaving
Shareen to her game. Another thug tried to throw his saber at Cassandra, but the Dragon sent it to fly
away with a flap of a wing. Unfortunately for that man, that weapon came back right at him, stabbing a
painful spot.
âFine, you party-wrecker, just go!â Yelled Shareen. âBut take that damn lizard with you before he eats
them all!â