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Chapter 9
“Good thing we smuggled out the earrings before the princess’s palace was sealed off.”
“How much did you get?”
“500,000 gold. I was going to ask for more, but we settled for this since it was urgent.”
“Eek!”
“Pretty amazing, right? If we get a few more like this, we might be able to pay off our debts and quit this job.”
Greedy eyes sparkled.
The head maid’s informants had been ordered to harshly torment the princess, but—
As long as we don’t get caught, what’s the problem? It’s not like the head maid ever comes to the princess’s palace anyway.
Like well-trained dogs, they were now bound by the jewels the princess had given them, intercepting malicious “gifts” meant for Medeia before they could ever reach her.
Meanwhile, the situation among the other maids was similar.
“You, start wrapping things up. Word is starting to spread outside the palace. That means this won’t last much longer.”
“You didn’t get caught, right? If the head maid finds out, she’ll skin us alive.”
“Don’t worry. This isn’t my first or second time doing this. I’m not doing anything that’ll get me killed.”
The information they had carefully carried began to spread outward, trailing like ripples.
“Did you hear? The head maid is sending rotten food to the princess.”
“They say she hid needles in the bedding too!”
The head maid was startled.
“Where are these rumors coming from?!”
“From the royal capital. For now, it seems to be circulating only among nobles.”
The work had been handled discreetly. There had been no careless ends left exposed.
And yet, for some reason, everything was being uncovered and spreading through people’s mouths.
“Rotten food? Needles?! What nonsense is that?! I’ve never sent such things!”
The stories were even being exaggerated further.
Everyone knew the princess was being mistreated in the palace, but the spread of detailed and cruel accounts was a different matter entirely.
This directly affected the honor of the royal palace.
The princess’s palace did not only contain the head maid’s informants.
Like before, and even more actively than usual, they were spreading information behind the scenes.
“What? The head maid? Even if it’s not true, it’s worth probing!”
Among them were rivals of the head maid.
“Goodness, how unfortunate. They say the princess is being treated terribly.”
And Gallo as well.
“Did you have nothing better to do? You actually included it.”
Ignoring Cesare’s cold glare, Gallo casually waved a piece of parchment filled with tiny writing.
His handsome eyebrows drooped into a sorrowful expression.
“The head maid is harsher than our western madam. Poor princess… it seems she’s enduring by giving away the jewels gifted by the regent couple to the maids. How pitiful.”
“She gave away jewels?”
Cesare, who had been staring disinterestedly at the chessboard, asked in return.
“Yeah. Black sapphires, teardrops of a lamb… anyway, she didn’t hesitate to hand over those expensive pieces. The maids happily accepted them.”
“….”
“Is she naive? Or just foolish? Did she think that would be enough to keep the maids loyal?”
In his hand, he picked up a white pawn.
“If she’s not trying to keep them…”
“Eh? What do you mean?”
One square forward. The pawn advanced and reached the final rank.
“Promotion. To a queen.”
Though a pawn is the weakest and most insignificant piece in chess, once it reaches the final rank, it can transform into any piece.
“Whoa, boss—you just captured my bishop there!”
However, what it becomes—and what it captures—only becomes clear at the end.
A flicker of intense interest appeared in Cesare’s eyes, then vanished.
An unexpected commotion broke out in the princess’s palace.
“Let go! Where are you taking me?!”
The head maid’s people had stormed in and were forcibly dragging away the princess’s maids.
“W-Why are you doing this all of a sudden?!”
“From today onward, you are no longer affiliated with the princess’s palace. Therefore, you cannot remain here any longer.”
The princess’s maids were dragged out without even time to pack their belongings.
“How dare mere servants torment our princess! Do you have a death wish?”
One of the head maid’s subordinates leading the group reprimanded them sternly.
“What?”
The princess’s maids widened their eyes in shock.
“Both the kitchen and laundry departments have confessed. You conspired to torment Her Highness and falsely accused the head maid of ordering it!”
Watching the worsening situation, the head maid intended not only to remove Medeia’s support but also to erase the rumors spreading throughout the capital.
She had learned that the maids of the princess’s palace—who had been accepting benefits from her—had been speaking carelessly.
“What nonsense! That’s a lie! The head maid is the one who—!”
“You have evidence. Do you still intend to deny it? Take them away!”
A subordinate leaned close and whispered into one maid’s ear.
“When you ran your mouth so freely, did you ever think about the consequences?”
The maid’s face turned pale.
How were we exposed so quickly…?! We were so careful…!
Perhaps blinded by the sudden profits, they had overlooked the head maid’s network of influence within the palace.
One maid, sensing despair, sought a way out.
“Your Highness! Please help us! The head maid is trying to take us away!”
Even as they were being dragged off, they shouted loudly.
“Try to lay a finger on us. Do you think our princess will just stand by?”
They firmly believed.
Even if they had turned their backs on the princess, she—gentle and soft-hearted—would surely come to rescue them.
Just as she had saved Neril.
“Your Highness! The head maid is—!”
“Shut their mouths!”
Rough hands seized them forcefully, and the commotion was quickly silenced.
“What is going on here?”
At that moment, the princess appeared. It was only after her maids had already been dragged away. The timing was somewhat suspicious.
So she was afraid? Now she finally shows herself.
At the same time, the head maid’s subordinates felt a bit tense.
“Your Highness, you must have suffered greatly until now.”
“….”
“These insolent girls were the ones sowing discord between you and the head maid. The wise head maid has learned of this and sent us to correct the situation.”
Their prepared explanation flowed smoothly.
Their expressions were triumphant, as if to say Medeia could do nothing now that her support had been cut off.
“Those who insulted royalty will not be spared. They will atone with their lives.”
“….”
“And we have brought new maids. They are young and pure, newly entered into the palace, and will serve Your Highness faithfully without any ulterior motives. You, step forward and greet Her Highness.”
He pushed the new girls forward and waited for Medeia’s reaction.
The princess’s palace, now emptied of all her attendants.
Aside from Neril, who remained bedridden, Medeia had no allies left here.
Even if she had managed to keep Neril, she would not be able to extract all of them.
The head maid’s judgment was correct.
“Is that so?”
Unexpectedly, the princess was smiling.
“That’s fortunate. If they are chosen by the head maid, they should be reliable.”
Medeia turned to face the new maids.
“Take a good look. This is what happens to those who are disloyal to their master.”
Her voice fell like a blade of frost.
“If you wander like bats from place to place, you’ll end up dragged away and die like dogs. Understand?”
The new maids’ gazes shifted past the princess and down to the floor.
There were long marks left behind from the maids who had just been dragged away. Here and there, drops of blood could be seen.
The new maids nodded in fear.
There is only one master.
Betrayal instead of loyalty leads only to death.
Because the princess’s palace had been suddenly restaffed after losing all its maids, the head maid had not been able to fully win over the newcomers.
Thus, Medeia’s warning was etched deeply into the minds of the new arrivals.
“Please convey my gratitude to the head maid. She has saved me some effort.”
“Huh?”
The subordinate blinked in confusion.
“Come with me. Let’s go inside.”
“Yes, Your Highness!”
Medeia calmly led the new maids inside.
“Damn it… we were tricked!”
After hearing the subordinate’s report, the head maid felt as though she might faint.
“That girl used me to remove all the surveillance around her!”
Not only that—she had also used the maids to eliminate the rumors about her.
Those behind the maids would likely assume the head maid had removed them for some hidden scheme.
She had only succeeded in creating unnecessary enemies.
Had she thought a little more, she could have realized it. Blinded by momentary anger, she had failed to see clearly.
“Argh! Medeia, that girl—!”
“Head maid, please calm yourself!”
Crash!
The sound of thrown objects shattering echoed through the palace until dusk fell.
