Episode 10

As soon as Kayena arrived at her palace, she noticed that her bedroom was untidy. “I see that you haven’t cleaned this room,” she chided.

“I apologize, Your Highness!” The young lady-in-waiting who was in charge of cleaning the chamber was taken off guard, and her knees buckled beneath her.

“Make sure you do not make this mistake again.”

“Yes, Your Highness!”

The ladies-in-waiting secretly exchanged glances, noticing how Kayena generously overlooked the mistake. The princess had definitely changed. She was a lot more mature, now. And as they were the ones who were the closest to her, they were the ones who saw best just how much she had changed.

“I’d like to take a rest now, so you may leave.”

“Then please excuse us.” The ladies exited Kayena’s chambers and went into the lounge.

Some maids brought out tea and refreshments for the ladies’ break. The products that they brought out were of a much higher quality than they usually were.

“Lydia.” Vera called out to Lydia, the lady-in-waiting who had been responsible for cleaning the bedroom.

“Why didn’t you fulfill your duties properly? I know you’re not such a poor lady-in-waiting that you would make such a mistake.”

Lydia made a discontented face at Vera’s scolding. “Her Highness forgave me, so why are you bringing this up?”

She immediately started scolding Lydia back.

“It’s only the bedroom. Just because I skipped it today—”

“What?” Vera was stunned.

Lydia had originally behaved because Kayena had a strong temper, but in reality, Lydia was arrogant because she came from an influential family. Now that Kayena was kinder and more tolerant, Lydia was quickly showing her true personality.

“Besides, the one who hired me was Prince Regef, not Princess Kayena.”

Among everyone here, who wasn’t? They had all been brought in by Regef to be Kayena’s ladies-in-waiting.

“His Highness Regef will protect me,” Lydia continued. “He needs my family’s power.”

The maids around Lydia began to agree with her, one by one. “Really, it’s Vera who shouldn’t forget our mission. We’re Prince Regef’s people.”

“Don’t you know that we can’t let Princess Kayena’s influence become too strong?”

Vera couldn’t speak as she listened to their foolish conversation. They realize that much, she thought, but they don’t understand why we were planted as her ladies-in-waiting.

She could tell the reason just by looking at Lydia Benzeman, who hailed from the most powerful family amongst them. They were like spare coins. In other words, they weren’t worth much, but it was better to have them than to throw them away.

Vera lost all her will to reproach them. They were foolish without peer.

“Why are you meddling and making a fuss?” they murmured as they walked past Vera.

She remained silent. Vera felt dejected. And now that she saw the true nature of those she had once believed to be her colleagues, she felt tired. How did I ever think I could be acknowledged in this place?

Actually, most of the maids gathered here only wanted Regef’s acknowledgment. He was the only prince of the Empire, and his soft and kind appearance shook their hearts. They were under the impression that they could save him and melt his cold and cruel nature.

As if that could ever happen.

Vera knew how this would go. None of them would be a match for Regef. As for her, she just wanted to be recognized for her own merit. If she was able to be recognized, it might be enough to receive a title of nobility or establish her family’s influence.

I’m sure that Her Highness had me stay with her today for a reason.

Vera’s mind was in turmoil.

***

After dismissing the ladies-in-waiting, Kayena leaned comfortably on her sofa.

Because of Vera’s nature, she won’t neglect her work, she thought.

The division between Vera and the other court ladies was going as planned. It had been much like this in Kayena’s first life, too. In the novel, Vera had increased her influence by accusing the other ladies-in-waiting of incompetence and negligence. But now, the situation was a little different.

She’ll start to realize that Regef does not care.

However, Regef was sure to be the next emperor. That was the biggest reason that Vera hesitated. So Kayena needed to calm the confusion in Vera’s mind.

“What would be the best way to do that?” Kayena said out loud to herself.

At her murmur, the maids briefly raised their heads before continuing to clean the bedroom. Unlike her ladies-in-waiting, the maids came from humble circumstances. They were relatively out of Regef’s control, as most of them could not read or write. For this reason, it was safer to have just the maids in her room.

“Don’t clean things too thoroughly. Make it look like you were reluctant to do it.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Regef entrusted the care of the maids to her ladies-in-waiting, but today, the lady who was in charge of them was the problem.

“Your cleverness saved you,” Kayena said.

The maids, Donna and Annie, smiled.

As soon as Lydia ordered them not to clean the bedroom today, they had secretly reported the fact to Kayena. Kayena found that Lydia was quite hated among the maids.

“You can use my name to get the medicine that you need,” Kayena said.

Donna prostrated herself on the floor. “Thank you, Your Highness!”

Donna’s parents were both ill, but the salary of a maid was not enough to cover the price of medicine. Donna thought that it was definitely good to be on Kayena’s side.

Donna clenched her fist. This was something that Lydia, her direct superior, should have taken care of. However, Lydia hated the thought of requesting something from Kayena. It would have hurt her pride to make such a trivial request to her when she might become the next empress.

Lydia will become more reckless and foolish, Kayena mused.

In Kayena’s first life, Lydia had eventually become unafraid of Kayena’s temper and refused to submit to her, acting unruly up to the end.

Kayena knew it was also part of Lydia’s duties to report Kayena’s every move to Regef.

It would be best for her to get out of here as soon as possible.

Kayena knew that Lydia had eventually been executed as part of one of Regef’s plan. And while Kayena intended to cut off Lydia’s tail, at least she would keep her life.

Now that I am stronger and have more power, I have to use that power.

The original novel had begun with Raffaello’s marriage proposal to Olivia. Kayena had to prepare for that moment. She needed to coordinate the timing of Olivia’s entry into her palace.

Kayena had told Regef that she wanted Olivia as one of her ladies-in-waiting. However, it would be difficult for Regef to bring her in, as Olivia was sponsored by the Kidrey duchy.

If she becomes a lady-in-waiting at Regef’s request rather than at the emperor’s, she’ll become estranged from the Kidrey dukedom.

Then, it would become a political problem for Raffaello and Olivia to get married, and Kayena was trying to set the two up together. She had no intention of getting in their way.

“Annie, bring me some stationery.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Kayena wrote a very brief letter, disregarding flowery introductions.

Olivia won’t make a move because of what Regef orders. I have to make it so that she will become one of my people regardless of what Regef wants.

The Grace family was humble but loyal. They would never betray their sponsors, the Kidreys.

Right now, they were pretending that they didn’t know that Regef was asking for their daughter as Kayena’s newest lady-in-waiting, but Regef would eventually put pressure on them. Kayena knew this would happen because Regef hated to be challenged or humiliated. He might get angry at how such a lowly family dared to ignore his request.

Kayena let wax drip down from the red candlestick she held, then pressed down on the wax with an unengraved stamp to seal it.

Her secret letter was complete.

“Annie.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Even though Annie wore the same uniform as the others she looked more stylish than they did. If she wore a good enough dress, she would look like a noble.

“I have an errand for you.”

Kayena held out the sealed letter to Annie. “Take this to Marette Salon on Lawrence Street.”

In the meantime, she would have to distract Regef. Kayena stood up. “I will go to the prince’s palace,” she said.

***

As Regef listened to his subordinate’s report, he stopped in the middle of the letter he was writing.

“His Majesty the Emperor spoke to the princess and implied that he would allow her to choose her own husband.”

“My father did?”

Regef asked if anything about Raffaello had come up during that conversation.

The subordinate shook his head and said, “She said that she didn’t want to marry Lord Raffaello.”

“Is that so?”

Kayena must have been serious about wanting to marry someone of her own choice.

It had been convenient for Regef that the emperor was putting pressure on Raffaello by using Kayena’s affection as an excuse; he was a little sad that this pretext was now gone.

“But they also say that Her Highness had tea with Lord Raffaello after her audience with the emperor.”

“...The two of them?”

“Yes. Miss Lydia came and informed us on her way to prepare the tea.”

“You’re saying that Raffaello went along with this obediently?”

“Yes. Her Highness Kayena offered to help him solve his problems if he joined her for tea.”

Regef knit his brows. The Kayena who had looked at him directly and without fear came up in his thoughts again.

“What did the two of them talk about?”

“The lady-in-waiting named Vera said that they were talking about marriage partners, and Her Highness critiqued several families’ daughters. However, she did compliment Lady Olivia Grace.”

She complimented Olivia Grace…because she’ll become one of her ladies-in-waiting? Was it for my sake?

Regef couldn’t understand her actions at all. These days, Kayena seemed both like and unlike the sister that he knew.

“...All right, then. You may leave now.”

He couldn’t pay too much attention to this, because he had a lot to deal with at the moment. There were many things to take care of after reversing the attempted murder of Kayena.

Knock, knock.

As the knock resounded through the room, a servant came in.

“Your Highness, Jannon Evans is requesting to see you.”

“Let him in.”

Jannon Evans entered the study and began to bow. Regef raised his hand.

“No need for that. What has happened?”

The gray-haired man approached Regef, holding a silver tray full of letters in his hand. “Since your last talk with Heinrich, some aristocrats have changed their behavior,” said Jannon.

Regef frowned at the mention of Heinrich. That lunatic kept on rising up no matter how much he stepped on him, and it was eating at him.

“What bullshit did that insect feed them now?”

Just look at what was going on with Kayena.

This blundering, reckless fool, whose blood was not even connected to the Imperial family, was clamoring to get to the throne. Regef wanted to hit him and his supporters with a fiery club and knock them off their pedestals.

He put down his pen and opened the envelope to check the contents of the letter.

“Ignorant, bastard mutt!”

He jumped out of his seat, furious. Jannon quietly backed away, having expected this to happen.

“These idiots decided to side with Heinrich?!”

They were letters from his ex-supporters, who declared in the letter that they had decided to join hands with Heinrich. They argued that Archduke Heinrich had been personally recognized by the emperor to have a right to the throne, and that he was a legitimate heir. This raised Regef’s ire to new heights.

Regef was not the child of an empress but rather of the emperor’s lover. Unless his birth mother became empress, he would remain an illegitimate child. However, if his name was entered under the empress in the family registry, he would be considered legitimate. That would be enough to be recognized by the church.

But the Emperor didn’t seem like he was going to do that any time soon.

The archduke’s people claimed that being adopted by the emperor’s family gave Heinrich as much as a claim to the throne as Regef.

“How much have I done for them—and they still betray me for a few mines? I am the real heir to the throne, not that dirty, fake Heinrich!” There was a loud crash as Regef flipped the table upside down. “When I become emperor, they’ll all be purged! These things don’t even know their place!”

Regef roughly swept his bangs away from his face, then turned to Jannon. “Is there still no answer from the Grace family?”

“Viscount Grace still has not replied.”

Regef threw a vase at Jannon. Fortunately, it missed. It hit the wall and broke into pieces.

“How have you not received a reply from them yet?! It’s because of you that these unimportant people are ignoring me!”

This was something he should have expected from the beginning. The Grace family was supported by the Kidrey dukedom, so they would not be able to reply with ease. But it was clear to Jannon that if he said this to Regef, his head would be cut clean off.

Jannon bowed his head, swallowing a sigh. “...I’m sorry, Your Highness.”

“There isn’t a single useful person around me! That’s why Heinrich gets away with so much!”

In his mind, Jannon thought that it was difficult to tell whether Archduke Heinrich or Prince Regef was worse. That was when a frightened-looking servant came into the room and called out to Regef.

“Y-your Highness.”

“What is it?”

Regef looked at the servant with his young eyes.

Click.

“It’s me, Regef.” Kayena opened the door and entered inside.

Jannon kept himself from clicking his tongue in surprise. He glanced at Regef, who was clenching his fists and struggling to control his wrath, and approached Kayena.

“Princess, I apologize, but it would be better to visit again later.”

In return, Kayena looked at Jannon with a stern face.

“And what are you planning to do if Regef hurts himself?”

At her words, the unpleasant tension in the study broke. It was as if this violent mess had been reduced to a child’s tantrum.

Since when does the princess have such a strong will?

Jannon backed away because of her intensity. Kayena smiled and walked gracefully past him. She glanced around at the wrecked room and slowly approached Regef.

The floor was strewn with broken pottery and glass. As she was wearing thin leather slippers, stepping on something could cause her serious injury.

“Don’t come near me, Kayena,” Regef said stiffly with cold, sunken eyes.

But Kayena still approached him like nothing was wrong. She didn’t even look at the floor. She was at serious risk of becoming injured.

Annoyed, Regef warned again, “I told you not to come near!”

“But if I don’t come near you, you’ll be alone.”

“What…?” His face twisted at this absurd remark. Then Kayena stepped on something and tripped, losing her balance.

She cried out as she fell. If she fell into the mess Regef had made, she would be badly injured. Regef gulped and quickly grabbed her.

“This is why I told you not to come near—!”

But before Regef could finish venting, Kayena lightly brushed Regef’s cheek. The tingling sensation made Regef frown.

“You’re hurt, Regef.”

While he was throwing things, a small piece of the vase had bounced back and cut his cheek.

“What are you doing to your handsome face?”Kayena wiped the blood on his cheek with her sleeve.

Regef looked at her with disapproval. Still, the anger that had been churning inside him like lava began to subside.

It was the first time that seeing his sister had helped him get rid of his anger.

He carried Kayena to a safer spot in the room. The long sofa that was by the bed was the only place left intact.

“You’re so strong!” Kayena exclaimed, amazed at her young brother’s physical ability. No matter how light Kayena was, she wasn’t a piece of paper. Regef still carried her like he was unencumbered.

Regef somehow felt his anger drain further. He suddenly felt like a fool, having acted in anger like a madman up to this point.