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The truth, Anna discovered, was a weapon best wielded with a smile.

She stood before the Duke's desk, hands folded, expression serene despite the accusation hanging in the air between them. The question was simple: why had the Crown Prince noticed her? The answer required careful calibration. Too much truth would sound like ambition. Too little would sound like deception.

"I spoke to His Highness for perhaps three minutes at the garden party, Your Grace," Anna said softly. "He asked why I stood alone. I told him I preferred observation to performance. He seemed to find that answer... unexpected."

The Duke's fingers drummed once against the dark wood. "Richard Rodriguez does not request the company of insignificant nobles. He collects interesting people the way other men collect weapons. Tell me, Emily, do you wish to become part of his collection?"

The real question beneath the words: Are you trying to elevate yourself above your station?

Anna met his gaze with careful humility. "I wish only to avoid bringing shame to the de Valois name, Your Grace. If His Highness has extended an invitation to the Imperial Hunt, refusing would be seen as an insult to the Crown. I leave the decision entirely in your capable hands."

It was perfect. She had given him control while making refusal politically dangerous. The Duke's expression did not change, but she saw the calculation behind his eyes.

"You will attend," he said finally. "You will comport yourself with absolute propriety. You will not embarrass this family. And you will remember that you are there as a representative of House de Valois, nothing more."

"Yes, Your Grace."

"Dismissed."

Anna curtsied and left before he could change his mind. The system chimed the moment the door closed behind her.

DEATH FLAG #5: The Imperial Tea Party (ACTIVE) Time Until Trigger: 6 hours Survival Strategy: Do not show fear when confronted by Prince Richard

Six hours. She had six hours to prepare for a social minefield where every conversation was a test and every smile concealed a blade.

The Imperial Gardens were designed to intimidate. Marble fountains, imported roses, pathways that twisted through sculpted hedges like a maze built from beauty and wealth. The tea party was already in full swing when Anna arrived, nobles clustered in small groups that shifted and reformed like schools of predatory fish.

She recognized faces from the game. Lady Marguerite, who sold information to the highest bidder. Lord Ashford, whose gambling debts made him susceptible to blackmail. The Dowager Countess, who controlled half the marriage contracts in the capital through sheer force of gossip.

And there, at the center of it all, Crown Prince Richard held court like a dark star around which everything else orbited.

Anna stayed at the edges, accepting a cup of tea she would not drink, listening to conversations without participating. The original Emily would have forced herself into the center, desperate for attention. Anna knew better. Invisible meant safe.

Until it did not.

"Emily de Valois."

Richard's voice cut through the garden chatter like a knife through silk. Every head turned. Anna's pulse hammered, but she kept her expression neutral as she set down her teacup and approached.

"Your Imperial Highness."

He was surrounded by nobles who suddenly found reasons to drift away, leaving them in a bubble of forced privacy. Richard's smile was sharp enough to draw blood. "I hear your father has given permission for you to attend the Imperial Hunt. How generous of him to allow his adopted daughter such a privilege."

The words were polite. The tone was mockery.

Anna had two choices. She could accept the humiliation, reinforcing her position as victim. Or she could refuse to play the role he expected.

She chose truth wrapped in steel.

"The Duke is nothing if not strategic, Your Highness. He understands that refusing a Crown Prince's invitation would reflect poorly on House de Valois." She met his gaze directly. "As do I."

Richard's eyes narrowed, but something shifted in his expression. Interest, sharp and dangerous. "You are not afraid of me."

"I did not say that, Your Highness."

"But you stand here anyway." He leaned closer, and Anna's body betrayed her with a spike of adrenaline that had nothing to do with fear and everything to do with proximity to something lethal. "Tell me, Emily. What do you want?"

The question was a trap. Every answer would reveal something.

Anna smiled, soft and enigmatic. "To survive the Hunt, Your Highness. Nothing more, nothing less."

She curtsied and turned away before he could respond, walking with measured calm back toward the garden path. Her hands did not shake. Her spine stayed straight.

The system chimed.

DEATH FLAG #5: CLEARED Reward: +5 Charisma, +3 Courage PRINCE RICHARD: Interest increased to 12% (Fascinated)

Anna allowed herself three seconds of relief before her analytical mind kicked back in. Twelve percent interest from the Mad Dog Prince was not safety. It was a different kind of danger entirely.

A shadow fell across her path. She looked up to find a man she had never seen before, tall and elegant, with silver eyes that held the weight of someone who saw too much and spoke too little.

"Forgive the intrusion," he said, his voice cultured and careful. "But you look like someone who has just survived something significant. I find that interesting."

Anna's instincts screamed recognition even before the system confirmed it.

MICHAEL DAVIES - Head of the Mage's Tower Interest Level: 3% (Curious) Danger Rating: UNKNOWN

The information broker. The neutral route. The man who traded knowledge like currency.

"And you look like someone who collects interesting people," Anna replied carefully. "I wonder what that costs."

Michael's smile was genuine for the first time that afternoon. "Come with me to the balcony, Emily de Valois. Let us discuss the price of survival."