The flowers smelled like the Queen.

I closed my eyes and let the aroma take over my mind. The scent—of the Queen, of her fingers on me, of her beautiful eyes staring into mine—was enough to make me forget the pain on my knees and the ache in my arms.

After yelling at me, the head palace lady had ordered me to kneel in the public courtyard while balancing a pot of water over my head. Thankfully, she had been kind enough to place me in front of the shrubs. They were pretty. It was the peak of Spring, and specks of yellow, sweet-smelling flowers peppered the plant. They made the punishment a lot more bearable.

“Unni?”

I blinked. Carefully, I shifted my head to the side. 

My sister was standing next to me, hands buried under the upper robe. She frowned. “Why are you being punished, Unni?”

“Ah, Seul-Na,” I said, my voice coarse from exhaustion. I tried my best to ignore a group of maids strolling by behind her and chuckling in my direction. “Hey. How was your first day?”

The concerned expression on my sister’s face was immediately replaced by a cheery, dreamy one. “It’s so good! I was assigned to the Bin Concubine, along with Yun-Mi and Hyo-Young, so I’m not alone! And this morning, our Sanggung introduced us to the Bin Concubine, and she gave each of us a bowl of mandu to eat!” She let out a small sigh. “The Bin Concubine is as generous as she is beautiful.”

“Really?” That was what the other servants had said too. “Did you get to see her face?” 

Seul-Na nodded enthusiastically. “So beautiful. Breathtaking.”

Breathtaking. That had been how I felt about the Queen too. The palace was indeed filled with the most beautiful people in the world.

“It’s no wonder the King likes her so much,” Seul-Na continued. She kicked a stone on the ground before turning to me. “But I’m… guessing your first day wasn’t good?”

I tried to recall the day, but all I could think of was… the Queen. 

And how breathtaking she was. 

I cleared my throat. “It was actually very good.”

“Oh. But you’re being punished.”

“Yeah, well…” 

Seul-Na leaned down and plucked a small flower from the bushes. She twirled it around her fingers, and a single petal came loose. I watched as it landed on the concrete, so slowly and gently, like the Queen’s pacing feet. Like her caressing fingertips on my forehead.

I gulped. 

“So, how was the Queen?” Seul-Na asked.

The pot of water over my head jolted dangerously at that question. I could feel my cheeks burning and I averted my eyes from my sister. 

“Um, she’s…” I trailed off, not quite sure how to begin.

“Is she as evil as people say?”

I blinked and turned back to Seul-Na. “Evil?”

“Yeah.” Seul-Na shrugged, as though she had not just said the worst abomination of a lie. “That’s why the King hates her. She’s evil and mean and ugly. The Bin Concubine is much better and should have been queen.”

“Seul-Na… Why would you say something like that?”

She stuck her lips out into a pout. “I didn’t say that! They told me that in the servants’ quarters. The King loves the Bin Concubine and visits her every other day, but he never visits the Queen, not once since their consummation. And it’s because he hates her. Because she’s evil and mean and ugly.” 

My grip tightened around the pot while the water trembled. This… did not make sense. Why would people say something like that about the Queen? She was gorgeous, she was a goddess, she was the softest, gentlest angel.

“She’s not evil,” I said through gritted teeth, “or mean, or ugly.”

“But you’re being punished on your first day working for her.”

“It’s not because of her,” I snapped. “She didn’t ask for me to be punished.”

The tone of my voice must have been too harsh, because Seul-Na winced and lowered her head, dropping the flower in her hand. 

“Maybe the other servants are wrong then,” she muttered. Then, she lifted her head and smiled again. “Remember the time when we were all convinced the late master drank human blood?”

I cracked a smile at that too. “Yeah. And it turned out he just liked to make his own berry tea at night.”

Seul-Na chortled. “Right? It was so ridiculous.”

“Yeah.” I laughed too.

It had been a ridiculous time, but it also had been fun. Nostalgia stung my heart. The times spent at the Kang estate already felt like ages ago. The servants working for the Kang family had all been born into our roles, growing up together and fooling around with one another. But the last few days had been a whirlwind of terror and unease. And now, we were scattered in different parts of the Royal Palace.

But I was grateful to be alive and working. And most of all, working for the Queen.

“I miss everyone,” Seul-Na said, echoing my thoughts. “And I miss you, Unni.”

“I miss you too, Seul-Na.”

“Why don’t you come work for the Bin Concubine too? I can ask her! She told us this morning that she was sympathetic to our plight, and that she was willing to help us get settled as best as she can. I bet she would be willing to help us reunite!”

Seul-Na stared at me with such eagerness that I had to look away from her. As much as I wanted to be with my sister again, I knew I could not. I wanted to work for the Queen. 

I wanted to see her again.

“That’s very nice of her,” I said carefully, “but it won’t be fair for the Bin Concubine. She’d have to pay for me, on top of the extra servants she got. I don’t want to burden her like this.”

Seul-Na’s body seemed to deflate. “Yeah… You’re right…”

Flashing a wide grin, I assured her, “But we’re not that far apart, Seul-Na. I can still meet and talk to you often.” 

“Yeah.” Her body began to inflate back a little. “You’re right.”

“And if I keep getting punished by my Sanggung, you’ll be able to find me here often.”

“Unni!” Seul-Na was pouting, but I could see the smile growing on her lips. “I don’t know what you did, but I hope you don’t get punished like this anymore!”

“I’ll try.”

I readjusted my grip on the pot as Seul-Na continued to talk about her day. She had been enjoying herself a lot, and I was glad about that. Working at the Royal Palace was definitely an upgrade from working at the Kang estate. Everything was bigger and of higher quality, the food was better, the rooms in the servants’ quarter were more spacious, and the people we served… 

My brows furrowed as I thought about the Queen and what Seul-Na had said about her.

Why would the King hate her? Why would anybody hate her?

Seul-Na’s chatter stopped with an abrupt yelp and a hurried bow.

“Who are you?” The head palace lady’s familiar voice barked behind me. “Who do you work for?”

“I’m- I’m a maid working for the Bin Concubine, Sanggung.” Seul-Na’s answer was quiet and trembling.

“The Bin Concubine? Then what are you doing here? Report back to your house’s Sanggung and get back to work!”

“Y- Yes, Sanggung!”

As Seul-Na scurried away, the head palace lady directed her glare at me. “Why are you disturbing other maids from doing their work?”

“We- We were just talking, Sanggung. She’s my sister.”

“Your sister?” the Sanggung scoffed. “Is everyone from the Kang family all so lazy? Come on, stand up and follow me. The Queen wants to see you.”

My heart lurched. The Queen… wanted to see me? “Oh. W- Why?”

“Insolent brat,” she chided. “Don’t ask questions and just follow me, new girl.” 

I bounced to my feet, almost toppling the pot of water all over the shrubs. The head palace lady clicked her tongue at me before trotting away. Every part of my body was screaming in pain, but I could not help smiling. 

The Queen wanted to see me. She wanted to see me.

And I wanted nothing more than to see her again.