Chapter 7 Online Battlefield

As the days went by, the people of Australia and worldwide observers waited with bated breath for the announcement of the chosen bride. The highborn young ladies who had applied were all anxious and nervous, hoping that they had what it takes to win the heart of the king and become the queen. Things were getting heated on the internet as the D-Day for the announcement of the chosen queen, February 21st drew closer. As Catherine scrolled through her social media feed, she noticed something peculiar. A lot of young ladies, who had applied to be the queen, were posting their profiles and pictures from the Royal Seal website for all to see on their social media accounts. Obviously, they were trying to get the attention of the king and the people. This caused a frenzy online and people started comparing who had the best background, beauty, education, character, and so on. Catherine couldn't help but feel a little disgusted by the way some of them were flaunting themselves. It seemed as though they were more interested in becoming queen for the power and prestige that came with it rather than being genuinely interested in King Shawn. How could they even be comfortable with sharing that much personal information about themselves just for clout? There were hundreds of posts on TikTok, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook from young ladies who had submitted their profiles and pictures, all vying for the position of queen. Catherine scrolled through some of the profiles and was amazed by the level of competition. Some of the girls had family names that were more prominent than hers, while others had striking beauty that could make anyone envious. Catherine was surprised by how easily some of the girls put themselves out there, and it made her question the integrity of the selection process. It almost seemed like a beauty pageant rather than a search for a queen. Meanwhile, the comment section of most of the posts was filled with harsh words and insults like: “You’re too thick, King Shawn wouldn’t like you.” “Your hair is too black, he’s more into blondes like his ex, Rory.” “E*w, all the boys in our high school basketball team fucked you and you dare wish to be queen?” “You didn’t even graduate from college and have the nerve to submit your profile.” “You’re not even a legitimate daughter of your father, your mother was a whore, bastard,” and lots more derogatory comments. Most of these hateful comments were posted by people from the top competing families as they tried to bring down others just to secure the position of queen for their daughters, sisters, cousins, friends, or relatives. Some even went to the extent of spreading lies and rumors about the other girls, hoping to eliminate competition. She also discovered that there was even more fighting online for which highborn clan the chosen queen would be from, Kindred clan or Noble clan? It was like an online battlefield and war zone, with both clans trying to outdo each other with extravagant displays of wealth and influence, it was turning into a bit of a spectacle. Catherine couldn't help but shake her head at the thought of how petty and superficial some people could be. She knew that being chosen as the queen was a big deal, but the way these families were fighting online was simply ridiculous. The whole thing had turned into a circus, and Catherine couldn't help but feel a little annoyed by it. She also came across another interesting talking point and piece of information. Apparently, some of the highborn ladies who had applied had a high body count or past sex partners as seen on their profile, and this was causing a lot of controversy and concern for them. It all started when a popular noble lady called Serena Lynn posted her own picture and information from the royal seal website. On her profile, the number of her past sex partners was 64 in number which was pretty high and insulting for a twenty-five-year-old noble lady. She was ripped apart by people and dragged to pieces solely because she had a particularly high body count. Catherine was horrified and felt a twinge of sympathy for the poor woman who was being publicly shamed all over the internet. It was a delicate situation, and the media was already having a field day with it. As she scrolled through the comments on social media and online forums, she realized that there were mixed opinions on the matter. Some people were defending Serena Lynn, arguing that her past sexual history was her own business and should not be used against her. They pointed out that men were not judged in the same way for their sexual experiences, and that double standards were at play. On the other hand, there were those who were criticizing Serena Lynn for what they perceived as promiscuous behavior. They argued that as a noble lady, she should uphold certain standards of morality and decency, and having a high body count was unacceptable. Some even went so far as to call her derogatory names and she even had to lock her Instagram comments section. Catherine rolled her eyes in disbelief. She couldn't believe that in this day and age, people were still so obsessed with someone's past sexual history. She knew that it didn't matter how many people someone had been with, as long as they were happy and healthy. Honestly, she couldn't imagine being part of all that chaos, she didn’t care and just went ahead with her life the usual way. It’s been about 5 weeks since the day Steven convinced her to submit her profile on the Royal Seal website but there was still no news about who was chosen as the queen to date. Recently she was back in the USA, focusing more on her job which she so dearly loved, and was happy that her career was starting to look more and more promising. She was working hard, covering major events around the globe and making a name for herself in the world of journalism. This particular morning, Catherine had woken up to the sound of her phone buzzing. It was a message from her boss at the New York Times, asking if she could cover a major event at Time Square the next day. She was so happy and thankful for the fact that she was constantly getting freelancing gigs these days and getting her cheque swiftly. She was so focused on her work that she barely had time to think about the whole queenship issue. She had applied on a whim, not really expecting anything to come of it. She knew that she didn't fit the typical mold of a queen, with her independent spirit and her desire for a career. But Catherine was also confident in herself and believed that if given the chance, she could bring a fresh perspective to the monarchy. But that was like an impossible dream. Or was it?