Villainess Of Hearts

It wasn't often that one would be in the presence where Four Kingdoms gathered together. In the Royal Conference Hall, the delegates were nervous despite being trusted people of their respective Kingdoms. Most of them had stayed when the King of Hearts left, and perhaps it was only the Kingdom of Clovers who had gone out and left no one to stay behind. That was no doubt a faux pass but who would tell that to the King? And yet this was something that Rosalyn Lockhart would have to get used to for many years—if the situation worked out well for her.

But what had the King of Diamonds tell her? She cleared her throat and managed a disarming smile. "The pleasure is mine, King Francis le Diamant. I know that the situation between Her Majesty and I are a bit terse due to both of our families having the same line of business. But I assure you that as the Royal of Hearts, it is in our best interest to maintain good ties with the Diamond Kingdom."

"Of course, of course. We have no concerns about that; it's always good to have competitors." Francis le Diamant said amiably. "Without it, there's no chance to improve."

And that was enough reason to try and have a good relationship with the other King. It wasn't enough for her to be obsessed with Alice when other enemies surrounded her. The kind of enemies that were willing to commit a crime in the very chambers of a Queen. She hadn't mentioned it to the King of Diamonds yet, although she probably should have done so.

They were waiting for the other two Kings to return here, and it was a wonder on where they have gone too. A short walk—that was a lie. And the idea of two Kings taking a walk by themselves with no representative from Hearts made her a tad uneasy. She would have never expected that there could be a group of people so bold to attack them on her premises.

Could it have been from the Kingdom of Diamonds? Or the other two Kingdoms? Many may have thought that this was the perfect time to strike—

"Ah, Her Majesty of Hearts is here." A familiar voice called out from the door. Alfred Villeuce strolled back inside the Royal Conference Hall with ease as he took his seat. It was as if he had done nothing wrong. His delegate had stayed here, and the Queen of Hearts noticed them speak to the King.

She pursed her lips and said nothing.

Perhaps she should have greeted them back, but somehow it felt appropriate—no, there was no chance that she'd feel comfortable with him. "Thank you for returning, King Villeuce. That only means we're waiting for His Majesty of Clover and then we can bring this meeting to an end."

"Ooh, it seems that the King of Hearts is preoccupied with dealing with the Joker, then?" Alfred Villeuce said it without missing a beat. The man had a smile on his face that told her that he couldn't care less if it was some dragon or dangerous magical creature that had gone here.

But it struck a nerve with her.

Rosalyn Lockhart knew very well where the King of Hearts was with right now—and it wasn't with the Joker. It wouldn't do her any good if they learned that he was with the Queen of Clover. "He is indeed preoccupied." She answered with a nod, and that was all she said about it. She then returned the question to him, "May I perhaps ask where the King of Diamonds went during what was supposed to be this meeting?"

Her tone was non-accusing and mild to prevent any sense of concern. 

"I took a moment to refresh myself," The King replied with a relaxed shrug, and then his lips curved into a small smirk, "I did not expect Her Majesty of Hearts to be so concerned of my whereabouts." He said it in a way that teased her about asking a simple question.

Instead of being offended—he took it differently.

His reactions were somewhat aggravating, but it was attributable to the fact that he had no idea what she had gone through. Although she healed with Jeanne la Monique's crystal, the raw pain on her shoulder was still present. At least in her mind. 

She felt her lips twitch for a moment, "I do not wish to raise any alarm, but there was an attempt made on my life—"

The entire room stilled and silenced at her words. Warth Duke who had been conversing with his wife beside her had quickly gazed at her in alarm. Of course, Catherine Duke wouldn't mention it in front of anyone here. The King of Diamonds paled in his seat as the delegate beside him looked around the room with concern.

Alfred Villeuce's eyes widened as he gazed at her, "Are you alright? You don't look—"

Rosalyn Lockhart turned to the King of Diamonds, and she bowed her head. "I have to thank Her Majesty, Jeanne la Monique. She had healed me earlier." There was no evidence on hand except for the body in her chambers. She glanced at Lord Warth Duke, and the man stood up wordlessly.

He didn't need any verbal instructions to do what was necessary.

"T-That is not a problem, Your Majesty." Francis le Diamant spoke up at last. His brows furrowed together and he looked like he was about to speak complaints—but he held back himself. If he wanted to, the man could restrain himself. The situation had made him much more unwilling to outburst. 

It indeed was a dire situation.

"But do we not need to do something? Is there a need to postpone the meeting?" In this situation, Francis le Diamant's frets had overtaken him, and it was a realistic reaction to this situation.

As for Rosalyn Lockhart—it felt like she was still in some cloud or fog. It had happened, and blood still stained her gown with the smell that was familiar from a time before. She had experienced it with visceral intensity. But it was pale. An axe to the shoulder by some unknown assassin—it paled in comparison to being comforted by her Knight as he raised his sword and dealt the finishing blow.

Where exactly was Julius Ginellevé anyway? He was there before she lost consciousness and yet he wasn't there when she got attacked at her chambers.

She had to worry about it later though and focus on ending this meeting in success. It was terrible for the reputation of the Heart Kingdom if news came out that the Gathering of Suits suffered under their hosting—and so this was nothing. Rosalyn Lockhart will tolerate this much until she could head back to her room? 

Focus. She glanced at Francis le Diamant to reassure him, "You don't have to worry—"

His Majesty, Ivan Nordskov stepped into the room, and there was a smile on his face, "Ah! I am back. What did I miss?"

This King tested her patience once again. 

. . .

The Queen of Hearts was not omniscient, and it may have come belatedly to her that the other Queens stayed in the Garden. Underneath the rays of the sun, two women in gowns were standing around with frowns on their faces. A delegate of the Clover Kingdom rushed past them and hadn't even noticed them perhaps. He hadn't greeted them as he rushed to find their Queen no doubt. As it was, the other two Queens had not come with Catherine Duke back to the Royal Conference Hall, and they didn't have anyone with them.

It could have been anyone's guesses on how they reacted.

"...They just left us here unattended." Olivia Deuce looked mildly aghast at the situation while she held on to the steel axe. The axe had blood splattered on it, and perhaps someone might have protested that it might make her a primary suspect. That she was the one who had attacked the Queen of Hearts—but she had witnesses to testify her innocence.

Jeanne la Monique rolled her eyes at the statement. "If you wish to head to the Royal Conference Hall, be my guest. I have no interest in signing agreements." That was a lie that both of them knew. Her Noble family was mercantile, and she had drilled it into Francis le Diamant's mind to put up a fight and make concessions.

And yet they had no place there. 

The Queen of Spades frowned and looked at the axe, "There is an assassin here—and this weapon seems to be something that one can probably retrieve from a woodcutter. Are you not concerned?"

"W-Well, of course! It makes sense to return to the Castle of Hearts if only to look for guards. But what if they're still there?" The Queen of Diamonds answered. And this was the problem with gathering all the Royals in one place. It would have been easier to sign agreements via correspondence or perhaps a crystal.

"I have this axe, and it seems better if we catch them ourselves?" The Queen of Spades suggested.

"Are you mad?!"

"Don't forget how I defeated the soldiers in the barracks." Olivia Deuce reminded the other Queen with a light smile.

Jeanne la Monique tsked, "That was in a fair fight—this is not a battlefield either, this was an attempt on someone's life!"

"Then what do you suggest we do?"

"...Why don't we try to look for the King of Hearts and the Queen of Clovers?"

"I did not expect you to be such a gossip." Olivia gave the other Queen a frown. 

"....Are you not curious about what the King of Hearts and the Queen of Clovers relationship is truly like?" The Queen of Diamonds scoffed at the other Queen.