Early the next morning, Scarlet was sitting in the glass-domed greenhouse enjoying her breakfast. The dining table sat right in the center of the room, surrounded by a fragrant, gentle breeze and a sea of flowers. Tiny dewdrops clung to every single petal, sparkling beautifully in the golden sunlight.
Scarlet sat among them wearing a flowing sea-green dress with a cinched waist. She gazed out at the clear blue sky beyond the glass.
At that exact moment, her four beast husbands walked into the greenhouse. The moment they looked up, they saw the stunning young woman standing amidst the sea of blossoms, offering them a sweet, radiant smile. She looked even more delicate than the flowers and brighter than the sun itself. It was a blinding kind of beauty that pierced straight through their hearts.
A tiny crack formed in the depths of their guarded eyes, letting a fleeting, unfamiliar emotion slip through before it was instantly snuffed out. Their expressions returned to a cold calm as they walked over to the table and bowed respectfully to Scarlet.
Scarlet silently pulled up her system interface.
Affection level: zero.
Okay. So striking that pose was a total waste of time.
She shut off her smart band's communication link and casually gestured for them to sit down and eat. Outside the greenhouse, Lilia noticed the comms disconnect. She gave a knowing nod and ordered the servants to bring the food inside.
Everyone was completely quiet during the meal. The only sound was the occasional clink of silverware scraping against plates.
Halfway through, Scarlet suddenly broke the silence. "Riley."
Riley paused what he was doing. He looked up at Scarlet with gentle eyes, but for some reason she felt a sudden chill run down her spine. She gave her shoulders a little shake to rub off the goosebumps and said with a smile, "I had them unlock the restrictions on your terminal. You're free to come and go from Helda Palace now."
Hearing this, Riley's thick eyelashes fluttered slightly. "Thank you, Your Highness."
"Ziko, the same goes for you." Scarlet turned her gaze to Ziko.
Ziko was undeniably handsome, with amber eyes so full of tender emotion they'd look at a stray dog with deep devotion. He was wildly popular with the females. Plus, given where he worked, which was always crawling with young noblewomen, the original owner of this body had gotten jealous and locked him away too.
Right now, Ziko's face was completely blank. He didn't even spare her a glance, completely ignoring Scarlet as he focused solely on his food.
Scarlet then shifted her gaze to Kai.
Kai didn't have Riley's gentle vibe, nor Xavier's delicate beauty. His features were sharp, exuding a heavy, aggressive aura. He honestly looked like a flawless computer-generated model. To be completely honest, Scarlet absolutely loved his face. But the moment she remembered their very first meeting, when Kai had literally swung a massive blade right at her, her blood still ran cold. She took a quick peek and immediately looked away.
"Xavier, you're coming out with me later."
Xavier was happily sipping his sweet juice. Hearing Scarlet suddenly call his name, he panicked and spat it all out. He had only trusted Scarlet because of the pool and the delicious food. As long as everyone was together, he didn't mind being in the same room as her. But being completely alone with her —
"No, thank you." He was terrified she'd try something wicked.
Scarlet's eyes curved into crescents. She smiled radiantly, speaking word by deliberate word, her voice deceptively soft. "People on the Star Net are saying that I've been bullying you, denying you food and clothes. So I'm planning to take you to the mall today to buy you some nice outfits."
At this point, her sweet tone suddenly took on a sharp edge. "It's completely fine if you don't want to go. However, I just had my people burn all of your old clothes. If we don't buy new ones, you'll just have to walk around naked."
Scarlet actually quite enjoyed using the original owner's villainous persona to win over her beast husbands. She didn't have to be unconditionally sweet to them. In fact, acting too nice too quickly would only make them suspicious. A little push and pull — that was the real way to capture their hearts.
Xavier froze completely. "Why — why —" he stammered, entirely at a loss for words.
Scarlet just beamed at him. His tense expression slowly melted into sheer helplessness as he desperately darted his eyes toward the other men for help. Getting no response, he looked back at Scarlet, raising his head with the look of a man marching to his doom.
"Fine. I'll go." It wasn't like Scarlet was going to eat him alive. Right?
At that very moment, as a luxurious hover ship touched down, countless galactic reporters swarmed the area with their cameras and microphones. Camera flashes erupted non-stop.
As a princess of the Empire, every single thing Scarlet said or did was put under a microscope by the galactic press. Especially now, with the Galactic Net blowing up with scandals. Everyone wanted to catch her slipping, film her awful behavior, and post it online to go viral and score some fame.
The reporters were already buzzing with loud gossip.
"Councilman Riley hasn't been seen in a whole month. I bet he's a goner."
"I heard one of the princes already fled back to his home planet, and now he's rallying an army to attack the Orin Rosa Empire."
"Oh my god, Scarlet is such a worthless piece of trash. Look at the massive mess she's made. Is the Empress really just going to turn a blind eye? If you ask me, she ought to pay for this with her life."
"Wait, look. Scarlet is coming out."
In the early morning, bathed in brilliant sunlight, Princess Scarlet stepped out in a flowing sea-green corset dress, completely unfazed by the staring crowd. As she walked out of Helda Palace, her stunning features — an absolute breathtaking beauty — were fully on display. Every little smile or glance carried this indescribable, almost magnetic charm, completely locking in everyone's gaze.
She gave a soft smile. Her pale golden eyes were vibrant and playful, yet carried the perfect hint of untouchable distance. She was an absolute mystery.
Everyone in the crowd took a collective sharp breath the second she appeared. It was like taking a heavy punch straight to the head. Their minds went totally blank, leaving them caught in a dizzy, starstruck daze. They couldn't even blink.
Even though the whole galaxy despised Scarlet, no one could deny one simple fact. Scarlet was drop-dead gorgeous. Her beauty was absolutely unmatched in the entire universe.
Male affection detected toward host. Affection points plus twenty. Plus twenty. Plus twenty. Plus twenty. Plus twenty.
Scarlet's jaw literally dropped. Wait, that actually works? Guess farming affection points isn't so hard after all. It's just my dense beast husbands who haven't figured it out yet.
The crowd stayed in their daze for a long moment before they finally noticed the man standing next to her.