Chapter 92: Green at the sight
Anastasia, who stood before the Blackthorn rose, narrowly avoided getting her hand pricked by its thorn thanks to a momentary loss of balance, causing her to shift to the side. She quickly stepped away from the plant, turning to look at who had spoken before offering them a deep bow, folding her hands together in the process.
The Mother Queen clenched her jaw in disappointment. To think they were so close to unravelling the truth. Maybe she should have accompanied the young woman herself so that she could push her to see her being pricked by the thorn firsthand.
Princess Emily didn’t know how they were going to explain what they were in the middle of doing. But the question was asked of her and not her grandmother, considering her grandmother’s silver tongue.
"What is going on here, Emily?" King Maxwell demanded, making his way towards where his two family members stood.
The princess looked nervous before lying, "I am helping Grandmother in finding a new antidote for Lady Evin. We, we thought of using the courtesan to ensure the new one works and won’t cause any lasting side-effects."
Anastasia’s face was angled towards the ground, and she frowned, because what the Mother Queen had said before and what the princess was saying now didn’t match. Though it seemed like both of them wanted to see her being pricked by the Blackthorn rose.
"That seems very unlike you to voluntarily offer a former maid of yours to be subjected to the prick of a poisonous plant," King Maxwell remarked, and his eyes shifted to look at their grandmother. He said, "And moreover, this seems more in line with our grandmother’s doing. What exactly are you up to, Mother Queen?" he questioned his grandmother, who maintained a stoic expression, as if she had no hand in anything that was happening.
"Me?" the Mother Queen asked, her eyebrows arching slightly. She said, "I am trying to find a cure so that I can see my great-grandchildren quickly. A cure so Lady Evin will wake up, and you can wed her."
Anastasia could feel the slight tension forming in the air, and she heard King Maxwell order,
"Henceforth, you are forbidden from any further experiments, and the research will be undertaken by the physicians from now on."
The Mother Queen stared at her grandson and asked, "Don’t you think that is a bit of a stretch? I am the one who knows the ingredients. In case you have forgotten, I am the one who made the antidote for the snake bite that you received."