Elite Argent Academy, a towering institution where heirs to global dynasties gather, glitters with crystal chandeliers and marble halls. It is a gilded cage where reputation is currency and secrets are lethal weapons.
Valentina, a transfer student with striking white hair and pale, translucent eyes, enters for her final year hoping for a quiet new beginning. But her exotic beauty immediately draws the attention of the 'Six Crowns' — six heirs who rule the school as their personal chessboard. To
**White Queen's Gambit** - Queen's Move — Collapse of the Poison Fang
The old greenhouse was deathly silent in the dead of night.
Only the moonlight streaming through the broken glass windows cast pale streaks across the decaying workbench. The smell of damp earth mingled with rusted iron, and a faint, sickly-sweet odor of rot stung the nostrils.
Valentina stood before that workbench.
In her hands, a thick file. Inside, the secrets of every member of the Crowns—collected over these past weeks—were arranged with cold, methodical precision. Even on the day of her mother's funeral, even on those nights in Paris when she had cried herself to sleep after being betrayed, she had kept her pen moving across the pages. Carefully, stroke by stroke, she had continued to draw the blueprint of her revenge.
She opened the file.
First page—Marco Visconti.
The Visconti family was regarded as Italian nobility, but this record told the truth. In the 1920s, his grandfather had led a drug cartel in South America. The Visconti family had used that money to buy him in, forging their family tree. His academic credentials, his entire career—all fabricated. Marco's noble bloodline was a fiction built upon stacks of bills stained with narcotics.
Valentina turned the page.
Second page—Adrian Crawford.
During his time at a Swiss boarding school, at just sixteen years old, he had fathered a child. The mother and child were kept secluded in the English suburbs, with Adrian's father sending hush money every month. All to preserve the flawless image of the prestigious Crawford family.
Her lavender eyes took on an icy, crystalline gleam beneath the moonlight.
(*I'll leak these two secrets, making it look like each betrayed the other.*)
Her fingertips traced the edge of the file.
(*Sarah thinks I'm a spy. In that case—I'll make that spy the carrier of my poison.*)
She pulled an old newspaper clipping from the file. It was an exquisite reproduction of a 1920s Italian local paper, created using the old printing press abandoned in the greenhouse. The yellowing of the paper, the way the ink bled—perfect. Even an expert wouldn't be able to tell the difference.
Marco's falsified academic records... I'll arrange for Sarah to just happen to see this.
A faint smile touched only the corners of her mouth.
Cold. Quiet, and yet absolute.
The avenger left the greenhouse, melting into the darkness of the night.
After school. Café La Terrazza, overlooking the Mediterranean.
Soft afternoon sunlight poured onto the terrace seats, and luxury yachts gleamed white in the harbor. The sea breeze carried a faint scent of salt.
Valentina sat at a window seat.
A white blouse, her hair tied back with a single black ribbon. The steam from the tea poured into her cup brushed against her pale cheeks. Beside her, Sarah was opening the menu, her chestnut bob swaying. Her hazel eyes sparkled with amusement, and the dimples on both cheeks formed soft indentations.
The cake set here is delicious. What are you getting, Val?
The same as you.
Valentina smiled. Gentle as an angel, and yet her eyes were not smiling at all. But Sarah didn't notice. As always, she was convinced that Valentina was a "target on the verge of breaking."
They placed their orders, and for a while, idle conversation flowed. Talk of classes, the new menu in the cafeteria, weekend plans. Sarah laughed merrily, and Valentina responded with calm composure.
(*Every single word from this woman is a trap to monitor me.*)
Valentina murmured inwardly as she brought her cup to her lips.
(*But for me, right now—that very thing is my weapon.*)
She set her cup down. The faint sound of porcelain meeting saucer.
Sarah... there's something I want to talk to you about.
Her voice trembled slightly.
Sarah's movements stopped for an instant. A calculating light flashed deep within her hazel eyes. The silver bracelet on her left wrist—a miniature listening device—glinted.
What's wrong, Val? Did something happen?
Sarah leaned forward. She furrowed her brow with feigned concern, her voice brimming with kindness. A perfect performance of a best friend.
Valentina took the replica of the old newspaper article from her bag.
In the library's archivio... I happened to find this.
With trembling fingers, she handed the paper to Sarah.
Marco Visconti's grandfather... it's an article saying he led a drug cartel in South America in the 1920s. The Visconti family bought him in with that money and forged their family tree...
Sarah's hand stopped.
Her face stiffened for just a fraction of a second.
(*Marco's... falsified records...!?*)
Sarah's fingers trembled on the paper. This was information no one in the Crowns should have known. At the very least, Sarah hadn't known. So why did Valentina—?
I don't know what to do... I'm scared. I might be the only one who knows this right now. But if someone else finds out...
Valentina's voice was barely a whisper.
She hung her head, her white hair falling over her face. Trembling shoulders. Lips bitten faintly.
—A perfect performance of a "frightened target."
After a moment's hesitation, Sarah took Valentina's hand.
It's okay, Val. It's no wonder you're scared. But... this is really serious, so you absolutely mustn't tell anyone.
(*I have to report this information to Lucien. Right now.*)
Inside Sarah's chest, her priorities instantly realigned.
I'll handle it. So leave the rest to me. You don't have to worry about anything.
...Thank you, Sarah. You really are my one and only ally.
Valentina looked up, smiling through welling tears.
(*The more you report to Lucien, the more I'll rot you all from the inside out.*)
(*Today, you carried my poison with your own hands.*)
The two smiled at each other.
One, harboring a report of betrayal in her heart.
The other, harboring a poison that turned that betrayal against its user.
That same night.
Villa Sole, the boys' dormitory. The fire in the lobby hearth cast long shadows on the walls.
The elderly guard found an envelope delivered to the counter. It was addressed to "Mr. Adrian Crawford—Confidential." No sender was written.
Honestly, deliveries in the middle of the night...
The moment he reached for the envelope—
—flutter.
The envelope fell to the floor. The glue had been deliberately loosened. Several photographs slipped out from inside. A young child and a young woman. A copy of a birth certificate from a Swiss hospital.
"...What the hell is this?"
A male student passing by peered at the photos. One of Marco's hangers-on.
"Adrian's got a secret love child!?"
The voice echoed through the lobby.
The curious and excited murmurs of the boys enveloped the dormitory that night.
The next day. Noon.
A scream echoed through the Giardino Segreto courtyard.
It was you, Adrian!! You're the one who leaked my family's secret!!
Marco had grabbed Adrian by the collar. His face was flushed crimson, his eyes bloodshot. Overnight, the rumors of the Visconti family's falsified records had spread through the academy like wildfire.
What are you talking about!? You're the one who exposed my secret child!!
Adrian shook off Marco's hands and swung back at him.
The dull thud of fist hitting flesh.
Blood sprayed from Marco's nose. Adrian's lip split open.
Traitor!! My family is finished because of you!!
You ruined my life, you bastard!!
A bloody brawl. Red blood splattered onto the marble fountain.
Dozens of students gathered around, staring in stunned disbelief. Some were even filming with their smartphones.
Valentina stood frozen beside Sarah.
Her pale face was twisted with terror—or so it appeared to everyone watching.
(*Perfect.*)
Her lavender eyes narrowed slightly.
(*Marco is convinced Adrian exposed his secret, and Adrian believes the opposite. Each can only assume the other was the source of the leak.*)
(*What turns my fabrication into reality is your own fear and suspicion.*)
Stop it, both of you!!
Headmaster Rossi came rushing over with security guards.
But the two, in their frenzy, wouldn't stop.
Let go of me!! This bastard, in the Six Crowns' game—
The words that flew from Marco's mouth froze the entire courtyard.
Shut up, Marco!!
Adrian shouted, but it was too late.
—Sarah was feeding us info as the Spider on the game's target, and we were just participating!! The current target is that transfer student—Valentina Ríos!!
Silence.
The wind carried the scent of jasmine through the courtyard.
The eyes of dozens of students converged on Sarah all at once.
Sarah's face turned deathly pale. Her hazel eyes widened, and the dimples on her cheeks vanished completely. She took a step back.
...Indefinite suspension. Both of you, pack your things. I'll be contacting your parents as well.
The headmaster's voice was heavy and cold.
Marco and Adrian were dragged away by the security guards.
That night.
The fourth floor of the main building, the Salon Doré—the Golden Room.
Outside the window, the Mediterranean shimmered silver under the moonlight. Inside, antique furniture and the quietly burning fire in the hearth.
Lucien Ashford sat in a leather chair, staring at the terminal in his hands.
His steel-gray eyes glinted coldly.
...Henry's expulsion. Marco and Adrian's suspension.
His voice was a flat, low monotone.
All of it is the work of one person: Valentina Ríos.
He looked up from his terminal.
But there is absolutely no evidence. She moves indirectly, using Sarah as a medium. She turned our information network against us, contaminating my calculations by mixing in noise.
In the corner of the room, Leon punched the wall.
You've gotta be kidding me, that white-haired bitch!!
Leon's silver-gray eyes burned with rage and agitation. His theatrical mannerisms were gone, replaced now by genuine hatred seeping through.
Three of us have been taken out!! And in public, no less—the Crowns' game got exposed too!!
Calm down, Leon.
How the hell am I supposed to calm down!! Everything we've built up until now—
Even so.
Lucien's voice sharpened, just slightly.
That's precisely why this is interesting. She's not a pawn. She's an equal enemy. ...However, this disruption to my calculations is unpleasant. It's a first.
Lucien's fingers tapped quietly on the armrest of his chair.
His perfect rationalism was, for the first time, confronting an "unprocessable variable."
The next morning. The cafeteria.
As the chandelier light reflected off the silver cutlery, the air was cold and tense.
Sarah sat alone at her usual table.
Her usual seat. Her usual dishes.
But the eyes of the surrounding students were completely different from yesterday. Curious stares. Whispers laced with contempt. No one approached her.
So that's the Spider...
She's sold out so many students like that up until now...
Hey, Sarah.
Suddenly, a voice rang out from behind her.
She turned to see Leon standing there. His silver-gray eyes burned quietly with rage.
Here. Your reports.
He slammed the stack of documents in his hand down in front of her.
All that information you said you gathered from Valentina—it was all garbage, wasn't it? We lost three people because of you. Our game is ruined because of you.
N-no, Leon... I-I properly—
Properly what!? You just got played by that woman!! You're a failure as the Spider!!
Sarah's face contorted with fear.
The surrounding students watched with curious eyes. They hadn't missed the moment Sarah used "atashi"—her real, cold tone leaking through as her usual gentle "watashi" persona crumbled.
Please, Leon... give me one more chance...
Shut up. The only reason I'm saying this is because my brother's keeping his cool. You're useless to us now.
Leon spat the words out and turned on his heel.
Sarah stood alone in the middle of the cafeteria.
Tears streamed down her cheeks.
From the next table, she could hear stifled laughter. *Fake crying, that actress*—such whispers reached her ears clearly.
(*This was... my
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