Reborn as the Psycho Villainess Who Ate Her Slave Beasts' Contracts-Chapter 83 --

Elara added a new task to tomorrow’s schedule: Coordinate with beast knights for eastern docks ambush setup. Ensure no actual security presence visible but full kill team hidden in position.

If the professional assassins took the bait, they’d find twenty well-trained beast knights waiting instead of one vulnerable princess.

And if they didn’t take the bait, she’d try again with different information until she found what made them commit.

Either way, she was done being reactive.

Time to make them dance to her rhythm instead of the other way around.

The chair wobbled. She kicked it hard enough that one leg cracked slightly, but it stopped wobbling.

Good enough.

She kept working, mind already three moves ahead, calculating probabilities for scenarios that hadn’t happened yet but would soon.

Because that’s what you did when you couldn’t afford to lose.

You planned for everything.

Elara suddenly paused mid-step.

The question that had been circling her mind for a while finally slipped past her lips. She turned slightly toward the Beast Knight standing near the doorway.

"Sera—the princess I met in the palace," she asked slowly, watching his face, "is she my second sister or my third?"

The Beast Knight halted. For a brief second, the corridor felt quieter than before.

"She is the Third Princess, Your Highness," he replied.

Elara frowned. Something didn’t sit right.

"But I heard some people say she was the second princess," she pressed. "Didn’t they say the second sister died?"

This time, it was the Fox Knight who paused. He exchanged a glance with the Beast Knight before answering carefully.

"Your Highness, the Second Princess was Rena," he said. "She was the twin sister of the Third Princess, sera. Their faces, their way of speaking—even their habits—were identical. They were true twins."

Elara’s breath stilled.

"But... she died, didn’t she?" Elara asked quietly. "The second princess."

The Beast Knight’s expression hardened. He looked at her for a long moment before lowering his gaze.

"Your Highness," he said, voice restrained, "we are not permitted to speak about that matter."

Elara slowly lifted her head, studying him.

"So that means Rena isn’t dead," she said flatly.

The Beast Knight stiffened. He bent his head deeper.

"My apologies, Your Highness. I truly cannot speak about the royal bloodline."

Elara held his gaze for a heartbeat longer, then nodded once.

"Send everyone out," she said.

The Fox Knight withdrew at once. The corridor emptied, leaving behind a heavy silence.

After a while, a knock sounded.

"Enter," Elara said.

Dimarti stepped inside. The moment the door closed behind him, Elara turned, her eyes sharp and unwavering.

"This second princess, third princess—whatever it is," she said. "Are they alive or not?"

The directness of the question clearly caught him off guard. Demarti paused, then asked carefully,

"Your Highness... do you want the truth, or the lie everyone else knows?"

Elara straightened.

"Do you think I would have followed you for a lie?"

Demarti shook his head.

"Your Highness," he said, "none of the princesses are dead."

Elara froze.

"What?" Her voice cracked despite herself. "But there were funerals. Everyone said they died."

Dimarti shook his head again, slower this time.

"In the royal palace," he said, "death does not always mean the end of life. It often means the end of magic."

Elara’s expression darkened as he continued.

"You know this already, Your Highness—the princesses of this empire are not like those of other kingdoms. They inherit the throne because of their bloodline. Every princess carries magic. Some weak, some overwhelming... but all of them possess it."

Elara nodded, her jaw tight.

"Your mother was the only exception," Dimarti added. "She had strong magic, but it did not come from the royal blood. You are the same."

He took a breath.

"At present, only you and the eldest princess hold the strongest magic in the palace. When a princess loses her power completely, she is cast out—stripped of her status. Some are married off. Some disappear from the palace records."

"Princess Lira," he continued, "was married to a noble within the empire. You could say she died as a princess... but she lives on as a noblewoman."

Even Elara—who had seen cutthroat dealings and ruthless power plays in the business world—felt a chill creep up her spine.

So even blood means nothing here, she thought.

The emperor was far more ruthless than she had imagined. To discard his own daughters the moment they became powerless...

.

.

The eighteenth arrived with fog rolling in from the harbor.

Elara stood in her office on the second floor, watching the gray mist obscure the streets below. Perfect weather for an ambush—visibility low, sounds muffled, easy to move unseen.

The fox knight stood beside her. "Your Highness, all teams are in position."

"How many?"

"Twenty-three beast knights. Divided into four groups." He pointed toward the eastern district, though they couldn’t see it through the fog. "Group one: rooftop positions along the main dock approach. Group two: ground level, disguised as dock workers. Group three: inside the warehouse closest to the meeting point. Group four: mobile response, ready to cut off escape routes."

"Civilian clearance?"

"Complete. We paid the dock master to close that section for ’structural repairs.’ No innocent bystanders."

"Good." Elara checked her pocket watch. "The false meeting was scheduled for dawn. That’s twenty minutes from now."

"Do you think they’ll actually come?"

"If they’re professionals, they’ll have scouted the location already. Probably arrived last night, set up observation points, confirmed the dock closure." She turned from the window. "If they’re coming, they’re already there."

The fox knight’s ears flattened. "And if they realize it’s a trap?"

"Then they withdraw and we learn they’re more cautious than expected. Either way, we gain information." Elara walked to her desk and pulled out a communication crystal—one of the enchanted paired stones that let her receive messages from the team leaders. "Has there been any movement?"

"Not yet, Your Highness. But—"

The crystal pulsed with soft blue light.

Elara picked it up. A voice came through, barely a whisper: "Group one reporting. Four individuals observed entering dock area from south approach. Moving with purpose. Armed. Not dock workers."

"Describe them," Elara said quietly.

"All male. Dark clothing, non-descript. Two carrying what look like crossbows under cloaks. Others have blades. Professional movement—staying to shadows, checking sight lines."

"Numbers confirmed? Only four?"

A pause. "Wait. Group three reporting—two more entering from north warehouse entrance. That’s six total observed so far."

Six assassins. More than the amateur attempts but fewer than she’d feared.

"Hold positions," Elara ordered. "Let them move into the kill zone. No one engages until I give the signal."

"Understood, Your Highness."

The crystal went quiet. The fox knight looked at her. "Six against twenty-three. They’re badly outnumbered."

"They don’t know that yet." Elara set down the crystal. "They think they’re ambushing one princess with a small security detail. They’ve positioned themselves to cover approaches and exits. In their mind, they have overwhelming advantage."

"When do we spring the trap?"

"When they’re committed. When retreat becomes impossible." She picked up the crystal again. "All groups, status report."

Four voices responded in sequence:

"Group one: ready."

"Group two: ready."

"Group three: ready."

"Group four: ready."

"Hold," Elara said. "Wait for them to move toward the false meeting point."

Through the crystal, she could hear breathing. The quiet rustle of fabric. Somewhere, distant footsteps on wet wood.