A Talented Maid

Chapter 10

Auren’s eyes grew wide with surprise.

But he soon realized that the prince had come up with a brilliant plan.

“I see. If you take her as your spouse, the people of Cloyan who look up to her will naturally bow down to you. Excellent plan.”

“And that is why you must find the princess.”

“Yes, sir!”

But one problem occurred to Auren as he bowed down to his sovereign.

“By the way, sir...”

“What is it?”

“Are you sure you’ll be able to do it?”

“What do you mean?”

“You don’t even know what the princess is like. Are you sure you want to take her as your queen?”

Rhaël chuckled.

“I don’t know what you’re saying, Auren. I am the one who rules over this empire. What matters is whether it is good for my people or not. How I feel about a woman I take as my queen is immaterial,” he said, spoken like a true ruler.

“But what if the princess refuses to be your queen?” Auren asked.

“Then I’ll have to kill her,” the prince replied.

***

Auren discussed a few more matters of state with the prince before leaving his office.

The prince breathed a heavy sigh, took off his mask, and set it down on his desk. Whether it was from the conversation he had just had with Auren or his horrible insomnia, he was utterly exhausted.

His knight Armond noticed this and asked, “Should I send for some whiskey, sir?”

“No. Alcohol rather keeps me up. I’d rather take a walk.”

“Let me escort you.”

“No, thank you. I won’t be but a moment.”

“But—”

“I'm fine,” the prince said firmly, silencing him.

Going for walks alone incognito was the only rest the prince could afford. Armond was aware of this, but was still concerned about his security as his knight.

“You have nothing to worry about. I’m safe inside palace walls now, unlike before.”

Unlike before...

Before, when he had slaughtered everyone within the palace walls who was trying to kill him with his own hands.

Armond sighed and gave in. “Please be careful, sir.”

And so Rhaël set out on his own. He changed into plain clothes so as not to attract attention.

Where to? The cool breeze of the summer night blew away some of the stress of his busy day.

Gazing about, he caught sight of a building in the distance with the lights still on.

It's the Crystal Palace. The orchestra must be hard at work still rehearsing at this hour, thought the prince. Maybe I’ll have a listen.

Just behind the Crystal Palace was a small hill. The windows of the rehearsal hall faced a hill where one could lie down and enjoy the music without having to go inside. As a young boy, Rhaël had often snuck out and listened to music there.

And I fell asleep listening to music on more than one occasion. Mother and Sister were so worried.

He smiled softly, remembering them.

I hope they’re playing something soothing. Something to help me with my insomnia, Rhaël thought as he headed over to the Crystal Palace.

But for good or ill, the orchestra was not at the Crystal Palace at the moment.

The only one still in the rehearsal hall was Marie the scullery maid.

***

“Done!” Marie cried as she looked down at the manuscript she had just finished.

She’d written out the important motifs in their simplest form, so it did not take very long.

Vahan will be able to fill in the rest now.

She quickly folded the manuscript in half and placed it on Vahan’s desk.

Nobody has seen me, right?

She gave the rehearsal hall a quick scan. There was no one around.

Marie blew out the lamps in the rehearsal hall and hurried toward the exit. She was about to close the doors and head out when something stopped her.

It was the piano sitting in the dark.

Marie froze in place. Was it the spirit of Mozart inhabiting her? She was overcome with a strange impulse.

Play it, she could almost hear Mozart egging her on. You’ve never heard your own music outside of your head. Play it on the piano. Don’t you wanna try it yourself?

She did want to.

She wanted to give in to the impulse, but she wasn’t so sure.

What if someone catches me?

She had stayed too long in the rehearsal hall as it was. Even if she wasn’t playing the piano, one might find it suspicious to find the scullery maid alone in a rehearsal hall.

But there’s no one around. Give it a try.

Marie gave in to her impulses in the end and sat down before the instrument.

Just once. Just once, and then I’ll go.

A quiet, pure melody that tugged at the heartstrings echoed in the rehearsal hall and traveled out the windows.

And by great coincidence—or perhaps fate—Prince Rhaël was listening.

***

Do I hear music?

The prince was close to the Crystal Palace when he saw the lights go out, so he’d assumed the rehearsal was over and had been about to head back. But just then, a tune reached him in the darkness.

Piano? Is that a piano arrangement of a symphony? Rhaël wondered. It’s lovely. Truly...

It was a quiet, pure melody that tugged at his heartstrings. Rhaël, who had a good ear for music, could tell that this was the performance of a great virtuoso.

Marvelous. I didn’t realize that a keyboardist of this caliber was under the palace’s employ. Who could it be? The music director? But little did he know that the real surprise of the night had yet to come.

Inside the rehearsal hall of the Crystal Palace, Marie’s right hand moved swiftly across octaves. Rhaël’s eyes grew wide hearing it.

What's this?

He could hear the rush of a river in the piano melody. It wasn’t just the river, though. The warm breeze, the depths of the ocean, and the vast fields—the images came to him through the music.

Rhaël closed his eyes.

This is soothing. I feel restored.

This was a kind of peace he had not felt once recently. If he went on listening to this music, he felt his insomnia might be cured.

Who is the musician?

Just then, the mood of the music shifted with a gradual ritardando. The image of the sun setting over a vast field appeared in Rhaël’s mind. And in the field stood two people. They were ordinary people—sometimes happy, sometimes sad, laughing and crying through their utterly ordinary lives.

The low notes in a minor key hinted that there was occasional sorrow, but that they were able to keep smiling thanks to the special people who warmed their hearts.

Prince Rhaël silently bit his lip. He once had people in his life who filled his heart with such warmth. He ached to think that he could no longer reach them.

He let out a sigh.

What is this music?

How could mere music move him so?

What...

Rhaël was unable to move, enfolded in the afterglow of the tune, after the music ended. He could still hear the echoes of the piano.

Then, suddenly snapping back to reality, he said to himself, “Who wrote this music?”

He needed to know. He did not wish to let this person get away like the sculptor, and so hurried into the rehearsal hall.

But where’s the entrance?

Rhaël went inside the Crystal Palace, and began looking for signs. The palace was a vast place and it was hard to get his bearings. Besides, most of the lights were out.

I must find the musician.

He had just taken a first stride forward with renewed determination when something bumped into his chest.

“Aah!”

The prince peered in the dark and saw that it was a petite girl. She seemed cute and kind, about seventeen.

“Ow, that hurts.”

She was on the ground groaning in pain when she noticed him and quickly bowed.

“I’m so sorry, sir. I should have been more careful.”

A maid? Rael thought.

She looked like a scullery maid by the way she was dressed. She had kind eyes and a cute face, but none of that registered with Rhaël, who was on a mission to track down the musician who had played the miraculous music. He extended his hand to the girl on the floor.

“Are you all right? Here—on your feet.”

“Oh. Th-thank you.”

Marie took his hand, pulled herself up, and blushed.

Wow, he’s handsome.

Angelic blonde hair, airbrushed skin—he was more elegant than handsome. There was a chill in his eyes, but even that piercing gaze was surreal.

Who’s this? He’s in commoner’s clothes, so he’s not a gentleman. A servant?

Having never seen the prince without his mask on, Marie never imagined she was standing face-to-face with the infamous prince himself.

“Where is the rehearsal hall?” the man asked. Even his voice was angelic.

“That way,” Marie pointed him in the direction she had come.

“Thank you,” the prince said with a nod. Then she headed down the hall as he asked over his shoulder, never dreaming that he had just spoken with the very musician he was looking for, “Did you see anyone coming out from there?”

“Just me,” Marie said, shaking her head.

***

The prince arrived at the rehearsal hall before long.

“Oh, no!”

There was no one in the rehearsal hall, just as he had feared—merely the percussion instruments and a piano.

“Where did he go?” He looked around the rehearsal hall. There were several exits apart from the set of doors through which he had just entered.

He must have gone out another way.

The maid was the only one he’d seen coming down the corridor, so the musician had to have gone out the opposite way. Rhaël hurried down in the opposite direction, determined not to let the musician get away.

“Where is he?” There was no one in the opposite corridor, either.

In the end, he had the entire rehearsal hall searched, but no one turned up. He asked the servants and guards nearby, but no one had seen a musician leaving the Crystal Palace in the last ten minutes. Rhaël frowned.

I’ll have to bring in the orchestra members and check with them, he thought. If that’s what it takes. It must be one of the members of the Imperial Orchestra. Most likely the music director.

Rhaël had a bad feeling, perhaps because of the sculptor he had yet to find, but he quickly shook it off.

Only the greatest virtuoso could have managed that performance I just heard. It’s rare even among imperial musicians. I’ll find him in no time at all.

“I ought to bring in that scullery maid,” he thought out loud to himself, remembering the cute little maid as he headed back to the Lion Palace.

“She must have heard the music as well. Perhaps she saw who was playing.”