Aries listened to the ancient chanting being spoken under the night council's breath. She reached for the tea and again downed it in one go, easing the pain prickling under her skin. Just as Aries gulped the lingering taste in her cavities, she coughed out blood.
"Your Majesty!" Suzanne panicked, taking out a white handkerchief. She handed it over to the empress, which Aries used to wipe her mouth. "Your Majesty, I think this is enough."
Suzanne clenched her teeth, glaring at the guests of tonight's banquet, and yelled. "Stop it at once! Her Majesty is already coughing out blood!"
The guests who were chanting the same spell over and over simply glanced up at Suzanne. All they saw was desperation and fury in the empress's lady-in-waiting, but no one stopped. Not unless Aries said so. They wouldn't stop.
"I said —!"
