"We are like an outcast over here," Serena pointed out as she swirled the glass of wine in her left hand and looked around the massive hall she was in. "The atmosphere here is really suffocating. Now I understand why your mother wanted us to accompany you here," she glanced at Anastasha, who was observing her siblings that competed as successors.

"She's just being overly protective," Anastasha smiled softly, she was no longer shaken from the confrontation she had with her family. "But there's one problem here," she pointed out when she saw a handsome man wearing a silk white hanfu robe, his hair was black and silky smooth that he let loose, making him look flawlessly charming and intelligent. He was accompanied by two men wearing red hanfu robes with gold flower symbols on each sleeve, showing their identity.

Rasmus noticed the flower symbols, it was the symbol of the imperial family of the Khan Empire that ruled over half of East Neva. Knowing the conflict between the two sides of the continent, it was a bit of a surprise to see one of them two giants show up in this place, a place where it stayed neutral from the conflict. He decided to turn away to let Anastasha have some privacy with the man.

"Your Highness the Princess," the handsome man bowed his head slightly toward Anastasha, he had a charming smile that made him look so gentle and fragile.

"Young Master Cyuren," Anastasha mirrored the same gesture as the handsome man by lowering her head slightly. "It's a surprise for the foster son of the most influential eunuch that the emperor himself adored and favored to attend such gathering, especially it's far from home," she revealed Cyuren's identity for Rasmus.

Rasmus was enjoying his wine when he found out the identity of Cyuren. An adopted son of a eunuch but had two people from the imperial palace to accompany him. It was enough to understand the amount of power and influence the eunuch had within the empire.

"I was invited by the Young Lord, Zayn Asghar, but I do have another reason to come here," Cyuren kept that gentle smile plastered on his face, and his eyes never left Anastasha's.

"You came for me personally, Young Master?" Anastasha looked a bit surprised, a performance that appeared like an automatic switch. "And what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?" She asked as she put her hands together on her abdomen. "However, Young Master, you should understand where I'm standing right now, after what I have done," she said with a serious expression. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

"I'm fully aware, Your Highness the Princess. That makes my desire even stronger," Cyuren softened his gaze filled with adoration and admiration.

"That kind of desire has been pointed at me since I was a child, Young Master. I have grown accustomed to it that the meaning behind it feels hollow," Anastasha reacted without showing any mockery or hostility, it was an honest answer. "I don't want to be desired, Young Master. I want something real..." Her voice suddenly grew lower and quieter. "Something that I can feel, touch, hold, and take control over it," she pointed out as her eyes suddenly turned hazy and hooded.

Cyuren finally smiled that revealed his teeth, and his pupils dilated slightly that Anastasha could see that her provocation affected him more than he realized.

"If that's the case, would you give me the pleasure to prove it to you that my desire is real and nothing empty words," Cyuren said, his voice grew quieter and lower that matched Anastasha's.

"Then..." Anastasha paused to take a step closer toward Cyuren. "Would you like to have some privacy, Young Master? Somewhere where decency and judgement do not exist?" She suggested as she took another step closer. "Unless you are afraid of losing your composure because that's exactly what I'm intending to do if you agreed," she smirked as she closed the distance even more until she was particularly standing in front of him.

A slight twitch of Cyuren's neck muscle showed how much he wanted to agree with the suggestion. However, he held back, not wanting to feel desperate, especially not when hundreds of gazes were pointing at them.

"Hesitation? So you still want to perform after all. Yet, here I am, baring myself compelety honest," Anastasha's gaze and expression suddenly turned cold. "If you want to keep living in the spotlight, don't try to walk off the stage, Young Master," she sighed as she turned a few steps back away before she turned around and went back to Ramsus' side.

"It's not the stage or the performance, Your Highness the Princess," Cyuren responded before Anastasha could settle beside Rasmus. "It's the circumstances of where I'm standing right now. If I dared to even show a shred of authority and power here, the whole empire would get affected by my own foolishness. I ask Your Highness the Princess for your understanding," his voice was calm and gentle, but this time there was no smile on his face, showing that he could remove the mask if he wanted to.

Anastasha looked over her shoulder and saw Cyuren's expression, showing the honesty in her words, just like how she did it.

"Until next time then, Young Master," Anastasha lowered her head slightly before she approached Rasmus and invaded his personal space.

Cyuren lowered his head slightly and then he glanced at Rasmus for a moment before he walked away and met with the other guests. On the other hand, Rasmus looked at Anastasha with his brows raised, finding it odd to end the conversation like that.

"What? You need to understand that man is the only man that can get in and out of the imperial palace and is the closest person of all the emperor's children. His foster father is one of the few people that the emperor listens to. Cyuren inherited the intelligence and the skills that had surpassed his foster father, he's called one of the Neonate Geniuses of Khan Empire," Anastasha revealed as she took a sip of her wine. "His achievements are out of the ordinary, a future strategist of Khan Empire," she pointed out.

"And?" Rasmus asked.

"And I believe I just made myself a pawn for the Khan Empire," Anastasha put her glass of wine on the table. "Though..." She paused and glanced at Cyuren, who was greeting the other guests from the south of East Neva that should be his enemies because of the current conflict between the two sides. "An unplanned accident like this is a welcome one," she turned her head to look at Rasmus.

Rasmus nodded with understanding and looked at how Cyuren used his expressions when he spoke with the other guests.

"What do you want to do now?" Rasmus asked and took a sip of his wine.

"Now? I believe we still have the remnants of fear in the air. Shall we take advantage of it?" Anastasha suggested with a playful smirk on her face.

Rasmus thought for a moment and when he put down his glass, Anastasha chuckled softly as she offered her hand to him. He effortlessly gave his right arm to her to wrap around.

"Let make yourself known in the board of the game," Anastasha wrapped her arm around Rasmus' arm and guided him toward the guests while Aris, Rullein, and Serena stayed behind to do their parts.