Revenge of the Duchess

Chapter 24

A/N: Don't steal my plot, you thirsty hoes. Enjoy!

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Piper raised an eyebrow as everyone's attention turned to her. She was, of course, innocent of the physical deed, but she had been clued in on Annabeth's plan. Neither had expected that Piper herself would be accused. How the tables had turned, Piper thought grimly.

But perhaps Medea hadn't planned what would come after this. Piper had seen how Medea used her fascination magic to prevent the maid from speaking the truth of whoever had planted the salt.

"I've never seen you before in my life." Piper answered calmly back. "Poisoning the Colchis princess and trying to frame the princess of Cythera, you have some big guts. Who are you to frame me?"

Piper stepped closer to the maid as a shorter distance made the magic easier to work with. The maid trembled, until her eyes met Piper's eyes. Piper felt the magic working through her voice, permeating through the maid and washing over her mind. Listen to me, Piper's voice seemed to call. No one else. Just me, her voice soothed in the maid's mind. Piper could feel Medea's magic working to fight back in the maid's mind.

Surely, Princess Medea would now know that she, too, had fascination magic, but the choice had to be done. The investigation would eventually clear up the truth, but it could take days for Medea's fascination magic to wear off. By that time, Piper's reputation among the Cuora nobility would be in tatters.

Baroness Kelli, Annabeth's cousin, shifted uncomfortably. It was just salt, a harmless prank at the very least, so why was poison being mentioned so much?

"Hmmph. The truth is out there, and you're trying to deflect blame, Princess Piper." Medea scoffed. "The maid clearly said it was you, as everyone else saw."

"Tell us clearly the incident," Piper ignored Medea's words. "Are you sure that it was I who instructed you? Or are you lying?"

Medea had miscalculated here. It was easier to make someone tell the truth using fascination magic than to tell a lie. Lying went against the person's instincts.

"Come now. Telling the truth is easier, isn't it?" Piper said softly. This time, she pulled every fiber of her magic into the notes of her voice.

The maid shivered as Piper's glance swept over her again. Piper's magic was still battling against Medea's in her mind, making the maid confused.

"W-well, it was late at night three days ago so I couldn't get a good look, but a lady with brown hair and brown eyes paid me a pouch of gold and told me in the shadows to p-put salt in a teacup and then serve it to the princess."

"Preposterous! Brown hair and brown eyes, that is clearly a description of you, Princess Piper! How dare you!" Medea slammed her hand against the table. Piper felt a wave of a force pushing back against her own magic.

The sudden action frightened Princess Hazel, who accidentally dropped her teacup, spilling the hot tea over Medea's hand.

"Ow!" Medea cried out, snatching her hand.

"Oops, I'm terribly sorry, Princess Medea! You startled me there. Please forgive me!" Hazel cried out innocently. But the Inferis princess hid a small smirk as Medea shook the hot tea off her hand.

The moment the hot tea had spilled, Piper felt the force pushing against her magic decrease. Medea's rubbed her hand with a handkerchief, and her onyx ring dimmed. Piper took the opportunity to increase her magic once more, quickly overpowering any remnants of Medea's magic.

"There are a lot of people in the castle with brown hair and brown eyes, including some of the other attendees here. Brown eyes, you say?" Piper turned towards the lanky maid. "You said it was dark, but you apparently got a good enough look that a lady with brown eyes and brown hair gave you instructions to salt the tea."