Cordelia and Jael were examining the texture of the dark sparkly gown they just got from the market.
"Are you sure it is this color you want to wear?", Jael couldn't help but ask.
"Yes, why?", Cordelia replied with a question. She very well knew what the color of the gown symbolizes. Red is the color of vengeance and black of color of death. So the gown having the mixture of both colors was exactly the secret message she was about to send which nobody will understand.
"The color looks a bit...daring" Jael answered, "The color of the gown even matches your hair color",
"Which is why I chose the color, I want to gain the Grand Prince's attention, remember?"
"Ugh, you are smitten by the Grand Prince without even seeing him. I wonder what will be like if you see him face to face. You probably will faint", Jael joked with a serious gaze which made Cordelia to laugh heartily. She'll faint? Cordelia was too angry to faint. She was interested in the Grand Prince's corpse, not his charming beauty.
...
The next night was the night of the ball.
Cordelia sat in front of a mirror in Jael's room while Jael put makeup on her face. She was wanted to look her very best and drive other women pale to insignificance.
"If the Grand Prince did not have his attention on you, you'll have to pay for the gown", Jael reminded while applying a black shining powder to Cordelia's eyelids. Jael knew that Cordelia was a very beautiful woman but she didn't believe that this woman was going to the extreme of gaining the Grand Prince's attention. Maybe she was just one of those women who wanted to get married to the royal family because of the lifestyle of the Royals. Prestige, honour, luxury and wealth were what every woman wanted to find with a man but what Cordelia was looking for was none of the above.
"The Grand Prince will dance with me twice", Cordelia said confidently as she looked into the mirror.
Jael had a unbelieving look on her face as she proceeded to apply a Rouge lip tint on Cordelia's soft full lips. Cordelia saw the look on her face, " You don't believe me? Wait till I come back with gist",
"You seemed to be very confident in yourself. It will not be a good thing if you fall down on your face", Jael warned.
Cordelia did not reply and keep mute. Jael moved to her back and started to comb her long auburn hair before applying some hair oil on it. She packed her hair and added hairpins to it to make it firm. Jael put a pair of crystal dropping earrings on both her ears. When Jael was done, she removed the brown fabric used to cover Cordelia's gown to prevent it from dirt.
Cordelia stood up and moved to the standing mirror that was hung on the wall. Looking back at her reflection, she smiled gracefully to herself. The dark red gown was sparkling under the luminous candelabras. It was a full red ball gown with black laced designs on it. The gown was not provocative but it can make one to look twice at the wearer.
"How do I look?", Cordelia asked Jael while looking at her reflection. Her auburn hair was tied in a messy bun held by golden hairpins0 while few strands fell here and there.
"You look like a bold scarlet goddess in princess style", Jael commented truthfully.
"Thank you", Cordelia appreciated.
Jael raised her gaze to the clock on the wall,
"It's thirty minutes past the nineteenth hour", Jael said, " You should be going. I have prepared a carriage waiting for you outside", Cordelia got out of her room while Jael ushered.
When they came out of the pub house, few passers-by stopped to look at Cordelia who looked like a devil's bride.
"Looks like something different is about to happen to tonight", One of the them stated. He was aware of tonight's event.
A brown carriage stopped in front of them, "This is it. Get inside, Cordelia. The coachman will take you to the Ivory Palace and bring you back", Jael said.
" see you later, Jael. Wait for my gist", Cordelia uttered before entering the carriage. She waved at Jael before closing the carriage door.
Cordelia looked outside through the window as the carriage began to move. Seeing the streets of Melan and her people but so many thought were going in her mind. She couldn't wait to see the Grand Prince herself from up close. She couldn't wait to see the man that destroyed her beloved kingdom. She started to devise plans, ways and techniques to have him killed tonight.
Immediately after the dance, she could find her way into the Grand Prince's chambers and hide in there. When it was time for him to sleep and he was fast asleep, she would sneak up to his bed and stab him in the chest. Speaking of stabbing, she forgot that she had no knife with her.
"Damnation! How did I forget?", she cursed. Just when she thought, she had a chance to him, she forgot about her weapon of death. She was already feeling disappointed in herself when another thought clicked in.
She could get a knife from the kitchen but it was not that simple. She did not know the way through the Palace but she was determined. She would find a way.
The carriage stopped moving, the coachman stepped down and opened the door for her. Cordelia came down from the carriage to the breathtaking sight of the Ivory Palace. The Palace was beautiful at night and wondered how it would look like during the day.
The Ivory Palace definitely followed its name, it was painted white. Purple banners were hung on the walls, signifying the type of event taking place.
Cordelia looked around. She saw other women of noble birth and prominence going inside the Ivory Palace through a certain entrance.
'This must be the entrance to the ballroom', Cordelia said inwardly before going to the entrance.
The moment Cordelia stepped into the ballroom, heads turned to her direction. Cordelia had her hands akimbo and her chin was raised high. With her makeup which made her look so bold, she had an intimidating look on her face. Silently, she saw telling every woman in the ball that the man of the Night was hers.
Her dark red gown was a very sharp contrast to the cream white ballroom she was in. From aerial view, she looked like a big drop of blood on a white marble floor.
Moments later, everyone was already waiting for the man of the moment to show up. The double doors from the other side of the ballroom opened. Cordelia became anxious as her eyes was glued to the open doors, anticipating just like every other woman in the ballroom.
There was a pin drop silence. Footsteps echoed from the other side and began to get closer. In came the Grand Prince of Melan.