Urban Plundering: I Corrupted The System!
Chapter 488 - 488: Tessa's Vigil... 2

The power discussions happening in discrete clusters, voices lowered but body language screaming importance. Isabella Harrington holding court near the champagne fountain, her dress showcasing assets that had probably toppled governments. Diana Beaumont moving through the crowd like controlled violence in designer shoes, every gesture calculated for maximum diplomatic impact.

The supernatural guards stationed throughout the ballroom, their alert postures suggesting they were waiting for something that hadn't happened yet. Their whispered communications carried undertones that made the air itself feel electric with anticipation.

And there, near the center of it all, was the bastard himself.

At the top of the stairs, she paused, her hands gripping the ornate railing as she looked down into the ballroom below. Five hundred of the world's most powerful people moved through conversations that sparkled like champagne and carried the weight of global politics.

From her vantage point, she could see everything.

Aleric Ashford stood surrounded by congratulations and handshakes, his smile modest but his posture screaming arrogance. At nineteen, he carried himself like someone who thought he was about to inherit the world, accepting praise for a marriage that would make him the most powerful man in human politics.

If only he knew he'd be dead before the night was over.

Her gaze swept the shadows, and she found what she was looking for. A figure that moved like liquid darkness, positioning herself with the kind of precision that spoke to professional expertise and personal interest.

Whisper.

Their gazes met across the ballroom, and Tessa couldn't help but smile, remembering her deal with this quiet but dangerous princess. She'd been serious about getting as much support as she could among Parker's circle of Origin Families, friends in preparation for winning the position of his empress against Maya.

She'd never given up on that dream. Maya had been his empress for eight lives? Fine. Then Tessa would be his first empress in his last life—the one that was meant to last for eternity.

Quite ambitious against a woman who could erase souls and even eliminate their candidacy in the circle of reincarnation, but so what? She too could command time, ice elements. She was terrifying in her own right.

Okay fine, she admitted Maya was cooler—literally and figuratively. But Maya had lived for nine entire lives while Tessa only knew one.

Although thanks to that conversation back then when Parker told her about that geometric shit and circles of fate and karma, she knew this wasn't their first meeting. But that's not to say their first meeting was meaningful.

Didn't that same concept suggest she might have met him as a waiter or donkey or whatever shit karma and fate liked to play with?

The more she thought about it, the more tears threatened to come. But she pushed them back with iron will and cosmic determination.

Anyway, she'd managed to convince Whisper to join her 'team.' Now they were quite the collection:

Whisper, because the Shadowmire princess had her own complicated feelings about the whole prince around Parker that she'd never admit aloud, but her loyalty ran deeper than duty—and she enjoyed the chaos of a good power struggle.

Atalanta, who'd joined with typical Amazon directness: "Maya's had her turn for eight lifetimes. Time for fresh blood on the throne." She wanted in and Teesa was like a represantive of Parker's young blood women in this life against Maya who apparently represented his first women in all those lifetimes.

Annabelle—and this was the hilarious part—who's Maya's friend for decade and a few years, almost two decades but claimed she "didn't like Maya's smile of accomplishment" and wanted to take her down from that empress chair.

The betrayal was so beautifully petty that Tessa almost felt bad for Maya. Almost.

Nyxavere herself, Maya's own daughter, who found the coup d'état among her daddy's women absolutely hilarious and brought Seraphina with her just to watch the chaos unfold. "Mom's been smug about the empress thing for too long," she'd said with that innocent smile that fooled absolutely nobody.

"Besides, it'll be funny to see her face when she realizes her own daughter is plotting against her."

Seraphina had joined because Nyxavere asked, but also because she found the whole "mother-daughter political intrigue" aspect deliciously entertaining. Plus, she'd admitted with vampire honesty, "Mum's been acting like she owns the place for centuries. A little competition might humble her." She repeated exactly what Nyxvare had told her to say...

Ava, who'd joined because she "wanted the games"—and wherever Ava went, so did her two avengers, turning this into a proper faction war.

Cassidy had refused to join, probably because she was too smart to get involved in relationship politics that could reshape cosmic hierarchies, but that was fine. They had enough players for this particular game.

The best part? Maya had no idea her own social circle was plotting her romantic downfall. Even her own daughter was conspiring against her imperial ambitions. It was going to be spectacular.

The thoughts brought a smile to her lips amidst her emotional turmoil. She couldn't wait to rejoin Parker again, to fight for her place at his side, to prove that she deserved to be his empress for all eternity.

But first, she had a mundane bastard to kill.

The announcer's voice cut through the ballroom chatter like crystal breaking, calling everyone's attention to the main stage. "Ladies and gentlemen, if I may present the groom—Aleric Ashford!"

Applause rippled through the crowd as Aleric stepped onto the small stage they'd constructed for the announcement, his smile radiant with confidence and cosmic ignorance.

"And now," the announcer continued, his voice carrying across the ballroom, "may I direct your attention to the lovely bride-to-be—"

He gestured toward the balcony where Tessa stood, and suddenly five hundred pairs of eyes were looking up at her.

Tessa smiled down at them all, her expression serene and beautiful and hiding enough murderous intent to concern small armies.

"Miss Tessa Wilder!"

The applause that followed was polite but enthusiastic, the sound of powerful people celebrating what they thought was a simple marriage alliance.

If only they knew they were applauding the opening act of a cosmic reckoning that would redefine their understanding of power itself.

Tessa raised her hand in acknowledgment, her smile never wavering, her thoughts focused entirely on the moment when she could wrap her fingers around Aleric's throat and squeeze until the light left his arrogant eyes.

The engagement party had officially begun.

The murder was about to follow.