Poison beneath the Lotus 🪷🪷

✿❀༄༅༄༅༄༅❀✿ Let the Games Begin ✿❀༄༅༄༅༄༅❀✿

The moon hung like a silver blade in the velvet sky, casting soft light across the Royal Palace. Hana stood at the edge of her veranda, the cold breeze brushing against her long black hair. The scent of plum blossoms lingered in the night air, but the beauty of it all couldn’t distract her from the chilling truth—danger was already crawling toward her.

✨ “They want me dead… and they’re getting desperate,” ✨ she murmured.

Behind her, footsteps approached.

Knock knock knock...

“Princess Hana,” whispered Eunji, her loyal maid, “a gift from the Queen Dowager. She said it’s to help you sleep better.”

Eunji set down a golden tray. On it rested a beautiful porcelain cup, steam rising from the tea, and sweet rice cakes shaped like lotus petals.

But Hana didn’t move. Her eyes narrowed.

“A gift?” she echoed. “From the woman who once said I was nothing more than a dust-born girl who should’ve been drowned at birth?”

Eunji gulped. “I… I thought it was strange too, so I haven’t let anyone touch it.”

Smart girl.

Hana stepped forward slowly and knelt beside the tray. The aroma of the tea was strong—too strong. Jasmine and honey, masking something bitter underneath.

⚠️ Her instincts screamed. Something was wrong.

She turned to Eunji, an idea flashing in her mind. “Fetch the white cat from the gardens. Now.”

“Princess?”

“Just do it. Hurry.”

Moments later, the fluffiest white cat in the kingdom was meowing in her arms. Hana dipped her finger into the tea and dabbed it on the cat’s tongue.

The reaction was almost immediate.

HISSSSS!!! The cat spat, pawed its mouth, and stumbled back, trembling.

Eunji gasped. “P-poison?!?”

☠️☠️☠️ “Nightshade,” Hana confirmed, her voice icy. “A slow killer. And very hard to trace.” ☠️☠️☠️

Eunji trembled. “Princess, you could’ve died if you drank that—”

“But I didn’t,” Hana interrupted. “They’ve made their first real move… and now it’s my turn.”

She stood tall, eyes glowing like burning embers. “Tonight, we don’t just sip tea… we serve revenge.”

———❀༶•┈┈┈•༶❀———

Midnight – Lady Myung’s Private Quarters

Lady Myung, Hana’s cunning stepmother, was enjoying her nightly wine surrounded by handmaids and luxuries. Sook-Yi, her daughter, played the gayageum nearby, her song soft and deceitful.

Then—

CRASH!!

The doors burst open. Hana walked in, regal and calm, holding the poisoned cup in her gloved hands. Her presence was like frost in a warm room.

“Good evening, Lady Myung,” Hana said sweetly. “I came to return your gift.”

Lady Myung’s lips twitched. “Such manners. I didn’t expect you to visit so late.”

“Oh, I was too touched to sleep. After all…” she held up the cup, “this blend is truly unforgettable.”

Sook-Yi froze. “Where… where did you get that?”

“The same place you sent it from,” Hana said, placing the cup on the table in front of them.

Lady Myung’s smile began to crack. “You’re accusing me of—”

“I’m not accusing,” Hana interrupted coldly. “I’m informing. This tea nearly killed my cat. A drop more, and it could’ve been me.”

The room fell into a suffocating silence.

“I had it tested,” Hana continued, her voice like silk over steel. “Nightshade. Confirmed by the palace apothecary. A plant so deadly… only someone desperate would use it.”

Sook-Yi stood quickly. “This is a setup!”

“Oh, then drink it,” Hana offered, pushing the cup toward her. “Just a sip, if you’re so sure.”

Sook-Yi flinched. Lady Myung’s eyes narrowed like a serpent.

“You think you’re clever,” she hissed.

“No,” Hana replied with a smile. “I know I am.”

She turned away. “Sleep well, My Lady. Tomorrow, the entire court will know what kind of queen you really are.”

⚖️ The game had begun. And Hana made the first strike. ⚖️

———❀༶•┈┈┈•༶❀———

Next Morning — Royal Court Assembly

The grand hall filled with nobles, generals, and court officials. Whispers echoed like wind through trees.

“Poison?”

“Princess Hana survived?”

“She dares accuse the Queen Dowager?”

Hana entered dressed in a crimson hanbok, embroidered with golden phoenixes. Her head held high, her eyes unwavering. She walked to the center of the court and bowed.

“I stand before you today as the true daughter of the late Queen Nari,” she declared. “And I accuse Lady Myung of attempted murder.”

Gasps rang out.

Lady Myung stepped forward, her face pale. “This is treason! You dare slander the royal matron?!”

Eunji handed the Minister a scroll. “The poison was verified. Nightshade—rare and restricted.”

The Minister raised it. “The seal of the palace apothecary confirms this. A deadly substance was delivered to Princess Hana in the guise of tea.”

The court fell into chaos.

“This cannot be!”

“An attack on a royal heir?”

“She must be punished!”

King Jiwoon sat at the edge of the room, hidden behind a screen, observing it all. His eyes gleamed with respect.

“She’s fierce,” he whispered. “Fierce… and fearless.”

———❀༶•┈┈┈•༶❀———