Liana's feigned fear vanished, her expression hardening into a cold mask, a dark smirk playing on her lips. "Guess who I am, Mei?" she said, her voice low and dangerous, the sweetness gone. "Remember the market? Remember who saved you from the slaver's block? But when outsiders attacked me, you changed sides faster than a chameleon, didn't you? Swore your loyalty to him."
Before Mei could stammer a denial, Liana's grip tightened on her arm, her strength surprising the injured supervisor. "Come. Let me show you something." She dragged Mei towards a large, steaming pot, the size used for communal meals. With a swift movement, Liana yanked off the heavy lid.
Inside, instead of the expected stew, lay the carcass of a large dog, its eyes glazed over, a trickle of dark liquid seeping from its mouth. "This," Liana said, her voice a chilling whisper, "is what I prepared earlier. Tomorrow, it will be a special treat for the esteemed guests. Haha."
Mei's face drained of all color. She stumbled backward, her eyes wide with terror, a strangled cry escaping her lips. She scrambled away, her fear overriding her pain, and fled from the kitchen.
Moments later, the supervisor returned, dragging a stern faced guard behind her. This was no ordinary guard, Liana recognized the insignia on his armor, he was a captain, one of Kieran's trusted right hand men. He followed a frantic Mei into the kitchen, his eyes narrowed with suspicion.
"What is going on here?" the captain demanded, his gaze sweeping over the tense kitchen staff.
Mei pointed a trembling finger at Liana. "She… she… there was something… something horrible in that pot!"
The captain turned to Liana, his expression hard. "Open it."
Liana hesitated for a fraction of a second, then slowly lifted the lid of the large pot. Inside, it was filled with nothing but steaming vegetables, the aroma of herbs filling the air.
"She… she showed me… a dead animal!" Mei insisted, her voice bordering on hysteria. "A dog! A poisoned dog!"
Liana widened her eyes in feigned innocence. "A dead dog, Master Captain?" she stammered, playing the role of a frightened kitchen maid. "The head maid… the supervisor… she told me to keep the lid closed tightly so the vegetables would soften properly. I haven't opened it since."
The captain's gaze flickered between the frantic Mei and the seemingly innocent Liana. He backhanded Mei across the face, the sharp crack echoing through the kitchen. "You trouble-making viper! Spreading lies and disrupting the work!"
He barked orders at the other guards. "Take this one to the dungeon! Her lies are poisoning the atmosphere!" He turned back to Liana, his expression softening slightly. "Don't mind her, girl. Just… make sure these vegetables are cooked well. Continue your work."
As the guards dragged a sobbing and protesting Mei away, the captain left the kitchen. The moment he was gone, the innocent facade dropped from Liana's face. A wide, triumphant smirk stretched across her lips. The illusion trick had worked perfectly. The memory of the terrified look on Mei's face, the brief glimpse of the phantom dog corpse Liana had conjured, fueled her dark satisfaction. The game had truly begun.