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~Chapter 13~
“By the way, Heart, who assigned you to our room?”
“Of course, it was the head maid of the palace.”
“Why did the head maid suddenly do that?”
“She said she got orders from above to take special care of all the young ladies from different countries.”
“Why?”
Dahlia looked at Heart with curiosity. Heart smiled and lowered her voice like she was sharing a secret.
“I think… maybe they’re hoping one of the young ladies will become close to His Majesty, the Emperor.”
“You really think ahead! Do you know if there’s a princess or noble lady the palace is watching?”
Heart smiled mischievously. “How would a simple maid like me know that?”
“Oh…” Dahlia’s face fell.
“Miss, do you like His Majesty?”
Heart’s eyes shone.
“No, not at all! Why does everyone think that?”
Dahlia sighed.
“Who’s everyone?”
“The Emperor, of course.”
“Oh my, you’ve met His Majesty? Is this how a romance starts?” Heart clasped her hands excitedly.
“No.” Dahlia made a face, and Heart’s shoulders drooped.
“Don’t you like the Emperor? He’s so handsome, he’s good at swordsmanship, and his personality is… well, people say he’s great.”
Heart stumbled a little over his personality, but no one seemed to care.
“It’s not about liking or disliking him. There’s just no way I’ll get involved with him.”
“Why not? Everyone knows most of the young ladies came to the empire because of the Emperor, not the festival.”
“Please leave me out of that.”
“Me too,” Annie said, joining the conversation.
Heart looked back and forth at them, looking confused.
“If you didn’t come for the Emperor, then why are you here?”
“To see the empire,” Annie answered plainly.
“Me too! And to see the world!” Dahlia said happily.
Heart gave them a strange look, and Annie let out a sigh.
“Ria, you look tired. Should we get ready for bed? Heart, can you get some bath water?”
“Yes, I’ll get it ready!”
Heart bowed and left the room.
Dahlia started to speak, but Annie put her finger to her lips.
“Shh.”
Annie didn’t say anything, but nodded and pressed her ear to the door for a while. When the footsteps faded, she whispered close to Dahlia.
“It’s strange. Suddenly having a maid assigned to us.”
“It is strange. Nobody cared about us before,” Dahlia whispered back.
“I haven’t been able to check with my brother if Heart’s story is true. Also, I think I should speak more formally to you for now. I’m sorry.”
“We agreed to that before coming here. Don’t worry about it. It just makes us feel more like real friends.”
Dahlia smiled, and Annie smiled back.
“But why do you have a leaf in your hair? And your dress is dirty. It looks like you rolled on the ground.”
Dahlia shook her head in surprise.
“I can fool anyone but not Annie.”
“Did you really roll on the ground?!”
“Yes. I tripped on a stone and did a breakfall. I even got applause.”
“You did a breakfall so perfectly that you got applause? Do you realize you’re a… well, someone important? What noble lady rolls on the ground?”
Annie used “hmm hmm” instead of saying “princess,” but it was obvious.
Dahlia put on a pitiful face.
“Should I just fall like a normal lady next time?”
“Normal ladies just fall,” Annie said, giving her a worried look.
“My knees and hands would get scraped. Would you rather see me hurt?”
Annie looked serious, thinking it over.
“…You did well,” she finally said.
“See?”
Dahlia grinned, happy with her small victory.
“But next time, only roll when no one is watching!”
“Okay, I’ll be careful.”
Neither of them thought about the possibility of it happening again.
Then there was a knock at the door.
“Come in,” Annie said.
Surprisingly, it was Cole who entered.
“Did you call for me? T-the air is nice tonight, Lady Ria.”
“I didn’t call you.”
“Si—” Annie ran over and covered Cole’s mouth before he could finish.
Cole’s eyes went wide.
Annie shut the door loudly, pushed him against the wall, and put her hand against the wall beside his head.
Dahlia admired Annie’s bold move.
Annie whispered sternly,
“Don’t ever call me like that again. From now on, I’m ‘Annie.’ Nod if you understand.”
Cole nodded.
“There’s a maid assigned to our room. You know what that means, right?”
Cole’s expression grew serious.
“Guard our door so the maid can’t listen in.”
“I understand.”
Usually, easygoing Cole and strict Annie disagreed about everything, except for one thing—they always agreed on protecting the princess.
‘Protect the princess.’
Dahlia looked at them and joked, “You two really get along at times like this, don’t you?”
Cole smiled, but Annie replied, “We don’t.” Her ears turned red, but Dahlia just laughed.
Elsewhere, in a waiting room near the Emperor’s chamber, a lieutenant entered and saw a tall man by the window.
“Commander Loand.”
The Knight Commander, Loand Ophelion, turned. Sunlight made his golden hair shine. His clear blue eyes were strong, and his sharp jaw showed his confidence.
“It’s time to meet His Majesty.”
Loand nodded and followed. As he walked, he remembered a conversation with the Pope.
In the prayer room of the Halen Holy Empire, colored light shone through the stained glass, filling the room where a tall goddess statue stood.
“Your Holiness.”
An old man, praying before the statue, lifted his head.
“Loand.”
“I’m sorry. I failed to find the Saintess.”
“This search has gone on for decades. Don’t rush. The Goddess will show the way.”
“Yes.”
The Pope poured tea and looked at Loand.
“You received the report too, right?”
Loand nodded.
“Something showed up on the border between Halen and Lusephon Empires. It’s all black, not human or animal. The scriptures called it… a ‘demon beast.’”
