"Really? You’re just clinging to whoever throws you a bone?" Ruben sneered, his expression twisted in disdain. "How trashy."
As if you aren’t paddling in the exact same shallow end of the loser pool, Callista thought.
She swallowed the urge to say it aloud.
Did her sister actually enjoy this genre? The toxic, emotionally stunted male leads masked behind the glorified "tsundere" label, waiting for some long-suffering heroine to rehabilitate them?
Personally, she’d prefer a man for her that came pre-assembled, a walking green flag, not a DIY construction project with missing emotional instructions.
A fresh wave of scandalized whispers rippled through the hall.
Two scandals in under twenty-four hours was an impressive feat, even for a disgraced noble, and Callista could practically feel her social credit score plummeting into the abyss.
Far across the foyer, the crown prince caught sight of the commotion.
Flanked by his usual flock of swooning fan-girls, his knuckles turned white as he spotted Callista cornered. White-knight complex fully activated, he began charging through the crowd to her rescue.
He didn’t make it in time.
"A bone?"
Corvina glided into the circle like an apex predator, casually tossing a possessive arm around Callista’s shoulder.
"Don’t be dramatic, Ruben. I didn’t throw her a bone," Corvina purred, tossing her dark hair with lethal elegance. "I simply had infinitely more to offer."
"Since when were you he—"
Before Callista could finish her sentence, Corvina slapped a gloved hand firmly over her mouth, muffling her completely.
"Shh, sweet girl," Corvina purred, leaning in until her breath brushed Callista’s ear, though her sharp eyes remained locked on the approaching Prince. "Hush. The royal toddler is marching over, and I didn’t pack a pacifier."
╔════════════════════════════════════════════╗
[SIDE MISSION: Choose Your Sidekick]
Scenario: The entrance exam requires a partner.
Objective: Lock in your co-op partner before a brawl breaks out.
[AVAILABLE CANDIDATES]
[Prince Alistair von Grandeur]
• Route: Royal Drama / White Knight Syndrome
• Compatibility: -100% (High risk of ego-induced headache)
[Lady Corvina Rosenberg]
• Route: Hostile Takeover / Villainess Synergy
• Compatibility: ERROR_OVERFLOW (Warning: High mortality rate)
[Ruben Rosier]
• Route: DIY Reclamation / Emotional Renovations
• Compatibility: 15% (Requires extensive assembly) ╚════════════════════════════════════════════╝
Are you kidding me? Every single option was an absolute biohazard.
Alistair was a fragile, white-knight ego trip waiting to happen.
Corvina was an angry villainess whose life the original Callista had methodically ruined.
Sure, Callista was secretly rooted for her, but how was she supposed to form a tactical alliance while occupying the exact body that caused all the damage?
And Ruben? Ruben was an emotionally stunted DIY fixer-upper who needed three years of therapy and an instruction manual.
She was seconds away from forfeiting the exam entirely.
But if there was one thing she still possessed, it was her pride...
And an absolute, non-negotiable weakness for gorgeous women.
God, I love women.
╔════════════════════════════════════════════╗
[SELECTION CONFIRMED: LADY CORVINA BLACKWOOD]
Status: Co-Op Contract Locked.
Warning: Survival rate questionable. Mutual destruction imminent.
╚════════════════════════════════════════════╝
Corvina’s hand was still clamped over Callista’s mouth, her fingers warm and surprisingly slender against Callista’s lips. Up close, she smelled like crushed velvet and dark roses.
Callista’s eyes darted down to Corvina’s collarbone, then up to the sharp curve of her jawline.
Without thinking, driven entirely by survival instinct and a sudden, terrible burst of audacity, she leaned into the palm pressing against her face and gently parted her lips, breathing a warm, deliberate sigh against Corvina’s bare skin.
"?! You..." Corvina whispered, her voice dropping an octave into a raspy, dangerous hum. She hastily snatched her hand back as if she’d been burned, though her gaze stayed pinned to Callista’s mouth. "Are you out of your mind?!"
"Since you’re already holding me like a prized asset," Callista said, smoothing down the front of her gown with terrifying composure, "would you do me the honor of being my partner for the entrance exam?"
"You... what?"
"You heard me," Callista continued, offering her most serene, corporate-approved smile. "Why gamble on unknown variables when I can partner with the strongest, most exquisite person in this room?"
"Callista!" Prince Alistair’s voice boomed across the marble floor, his knuckles white as his hand gripped the hilt of his ceremonial sword.
His golden-boy facade cracked, eyes burning with a dangerous, volatile jealousy.
He was supposed to be the main character, the grand prize every woman fought over!
Yet here she was, standing in his ex-fiancée’s shadow, completely ignoring his existence as if he were nothing more than background decor.
"Have you completely lost your senses?!" Alistair snarled, stepping into their space. "You would discard royal protection to side with her?!"
Corvina snapped back to reality.
The flush on her neck hadn’t fully faded, but her lips curled into a slow, razor-sharp smirk as she looked at the Prince’s fuming face.
She turned back to Callista, her hand snaking around Callista’s waist once more, pulling her just a fraction closer than necessary.
"Royal protection sounds so terribly bland," Corvina purred, her eyes glittering with dark satisfaction as she met Alistair’s furious gaze. "Partner accepted, Callista. Let’s show the Prince how a real power dynamic operates."