The morning sunlight flooded the grand dining hall, but the atmosphere remained frozen in a lethal standoff. Alia sat at the head of the table, frame draped in a high-neck white silk gown to hide the marks on her throat. However, the dark red welts on her wrists from Victor's restraints were impossible to fully conceal. Her hands trembled slightly as she lifted her coffee cup a lingering trace of the night's primal war.Elina sat beside Isrovona, her sharp blue eyes missing nothing. A faint, mocking smirk played on her lips as she noticed the discoloration on Alia's wrists. She knew instantly that what happened between the Godmother and the Lord last night was no ordinary romance; it was a brutal struggle for dominance.
Elina: (In a sweet, yet poisonous tone) "Godmother, you look... exhausted today. And those marks on your wrists—it looks like someone held you down quite firmly. Did our Lord Victor exert a bit too much 'authority' last night?"
A deathly silence fell over the table. Victor took a calm sip of his coffee, a look of victorious satisfaction in his eyes. Isrovona kept his head down, but Alia froze. Her eyes turned into pits of demonic coldness. She was not a woman to be mocked.
Alia: (In a low, guttural voice) "Elina, you seem to have forgotten who truly owns this palace. You are new to this network, so perhaps you don't know that when I am provoked, I do not fight alone."
Suddenly, Alia made a strange, rhythmic sound through her teeth— "Ssssss... Ssssss!"
The hiss echoed against the stone walls. Moments later, from behind an ancient marble statue, a terrifying creature emerged. A Giant White Serpent, nearly 20 feet long, its scales glistening like crushed diamonds, and its eyes glowing a ferocious, bloody red.
The snake slithered across the floor, heading straight for the table. Elina gripped her chair, her face turning porcelain-pale. The serpent reared its head behind Alia's chair, looming over the table and locking its red eyes onto Elina.
Alia: (Smiling chillingly) "Her name is Nagini. She understands my rage perfectly. Elina, before you comment on my wrists again, remember—this snake doesn't just hunt enemies; she specializes in crushing human bones until they snap."
Victor chuckled darkly, glancing at the beast. He knew that when Alia summoned the serpent, it meant only one thing: there was only room for one Queen in this palace.Isrovona, seeing his new bride trembling and humiliated, felt a sudden surge of misplaced protective rage. He forgot for a moment that the woman across from him wasn't just his mother, but the Godmother of the Romanov Empire.
He slammed his fist onto the table, standing up abruptly.
Isrovona: (Screaming) "Enough, Mother! Elina is my wife now, the new Princess of this house. You cannot terrorize her with your pets! To insult her is to insult me!"
The room went silent again. Victor lowered his cup, watching with a cruel curiosity to see how Alia would crush this rebellion. Alia didn't move for a second. But then, with the speed of a striking cobra, she stood and closed the distance between her and her son.
SLAP!
The sound of the blow cracked through the hall. Isrovona's head snapped back, a trickle of blood appearing at the corner of his mouth. Alia grabbed his collar with one hand, her eyes blazing with hellfire.
Alia: (In a voice of thunder) "Who gave you the right to raise your voice to me? Do not forget—I am the one who put this girl in your bed. I made you a Prince, but if you think you can stand against me because of some new woman's scent, you are dead wrong!"
She shoved him back and turned her lethal gaze toward Elina.
Alia: "Listen well, Isrovona—if this wife of yours steps out of line even an inch, I will bury her alive by tomorrow morning. And you? I will marry you off to someone else! My network is full of girls who would kill to take her place. I will replace her before your very eyes and bring a new bride into this house. Then we'll see where your 'dignity' lies!"
Elina sat frozen, finally realizing that in Alia and Victor's world, she was a piece on a chessboard, not the player. The giant white snake coiled around the base of her chair, waiting for Alia's command to strike.
Victor stood up and placed a hand on Alia's shoulder, his touch finally cooling her temper.
Victor: (In his gravelly tone) "Listen to your mother, Isrovona. In this palace, even the wind doesn't blow without our permission. Learn to control your wife, or you will suffer the consequences alongside her."The humiliation didn't break Elina; it made her lethal. She realized that to defeat Alia, she needed leverage, not just beauty. She crept into the forbidden wing of the palace, finding a hidden compartment behind an ancient bookshelf. Inside lay a leather-bound diary—Alia's private records.
As Elina flipped through the pages, her breath hitched. The birth records. Alia and Victor weren't decades older; they were practically her age. The "Mother" persona was a masterful lie fueled by a secret formula from Grandfather.
Elina: (Whispering) "Unbelievable. This witch is my age? She's playing 'Mother' while she's just a peer. This truth will burn her empire to the ground."
Suddenly, the heavy oak doors creaked open. Elina shoved the diary into her dress just as Alia stepped in, swirling a glass of Red Wine.
Alia: "Searching for something, Elina? A book? Or perhaps... a weakness?"
Alia stood inches away, sipping her wine before exhaling the scent of grapes and iron onto Elina's face. She tilted Elina's chin up with the rim of her cold wine glass.
Alia: "You know, Elina, wine gets better with age. But some secrets... they turn into acid if touched by the wrong hands. Are you sure you can carry the weight of what you just found?"
Alia's hand moved toward Elina's waist, right where the diary was hidden. In the suffocating silence of the library, the psychological war reached its peak. The rim of Alia's wine glass was still pressed against Elina's chin, but Elina's eyes no longer held fear. Instead, they gleamed with the triumph of a blackmailer.
Elina: "What is your real age, Godmother? Or should I just call you... Alia?"
Alia's hand froze. The wine in her glass stopped swirling. A sinister stillness filled the room. Elina took a step forward, closing the gap between her and Alia's towering 6'2" frame.
Elina: (Mockingly) "The diary is fascinating. Grandfather's secret formula, the forged birth certificates... I have it all. You play the role of my mother-in-law so well, yet we are practically the same age! This flawless skin, this boundless energy—it's all just the result of a hidden science, isn't it?"
Alia let out a cold, melodic laugh that sent shivers down the spine. She took a final sip of her Red Wine and slowly poured the rest over Elina's shoulder. The red liquid stained Elina's white dress like fresh blood.
Alia: "You're clever, Elina. But the cleverest people know that some truths are best kept in the grave. Yes, I am young. To the world, I am the aging Godmother, but in reality, I am an eternal queen. Now, what's your move? Will you tell Isrovona? Do you think he can handle the fact that the woman who raised him is barely older than he is?"
Alia grabbed Elina by the hair and pinned her against the bookshelf.
Alia: "If Isrovona finds out, he will lose his mind. His whole life will become a lie. And Victor? If he finds out you touched that diary, he will tear you apart and feed you to Nagini."
Elina winced but didn't back down.
Elina: "Then let's make a deal, Alia. Give me half of your network, and I keep your secret. Or by tomorrow morning, copies of this diary will be on the desks of every mafia don in Russia."Alia's sinister expression suddenly shattered into a mocking laugh. She released Elina and set her empty wine glass on a side table. Elina stood frozen, unable to tell if Alia had lost her mind or was weaving a new trap.
Alia: (In a playful, mocking tone) "Oh, you silly girl! Did you really think I was some sort of witch or supernatural being? I was just playing with you to see how far you'd go."
Alia wiped the red wine stain from Elina's shoulder with a corner of her own silk wrap. Her voice was now steady, yet still carried a chilling edge.
Alia: "The truth isn't that mystical, Elina. What you saw in Grandfather's diary isn't magic—it's a cruel reality. In Russian Mafia families, to secure power, we were married off at a very young age. Victor and I were barely teenagers when we were wed. When Isrovona was born, I was practically a child myself."
Alia looked out the library window at the overcast Russian sky.
Alia: "We hide our real ages from the world so our enemies don't perceive us as 'inexperienced' or weak. People fear us because they think we are the 'old guard.' In reality, we are only a few years older than you. This youthful skin and energy? It's not a potion—it's just good genes and brutal discipline. We simply perform the roles of 'Mother and Father' to keep the Romanov empire in check."
Elina stood speechless. The diary in her hand no longer felt like a winning card.
Alia: "Now tell me, Elina, what good will this truth do? If you tell the world the Godmother is young, it won't ruin me—it will make me a legend. But..."
Alia leaned in close, whispering into Elina's ear:
Alia: "Isrovona must never know. If he finds out his 'Mother' is barely 8-10 years older than him, he will lose his respect for my authority. And I will not allow that to happen.Alia stood by the window, her silhouette reflecting a haunting past. She turned to Elina, finally breaking the facade.
Alia: "My grandfather taught me that to survive, I had to outrun time. When he arranged the marriage between Victor and me, I was only 13, and Victor was 15. We were children playing at being rulers. When Isrovona was born, I was barely 14 years old. I didn't even know what it meant to be a mother; I only knew I had to produce an heir."
Elina stood in shock. The age gap between Alia and her son was only 14 years!
Alia: "Grandfather groomed us to play the role of 'adults.' Today, I might be only 32 or 33, but I've worn the mask of the 'Ancient Godmother' for decades. Isrovona sees me as a towering authority, never realizing his mother is barely 14 years older than him. We aren't witches, Elina. We are the survivors of a cold, calculated legacy.""