Chapter 11

Celestia bowed, setting an example.

“Ah, aren’t you the one? The servant my son is getting close to these days?”

‘Close servant’…..The words that her associate, Luana, had said lingered in her mind. She didn’t expect the Empress to think that way too.

“I’m here to serve you wine, Your Highness.”

“Haha, that’s so funny. Now she is here to serve me instead of her master. So, how’s it going? Is my son good towards you?”

She couldn’t understand whether she should raise her head or not, so she stayed still.

“I’m surprised how he brought a woman even though he has no one to cherish. So, he thinks he can take away my place just by bringing a woman who….visits his room.”

As Luana said, the relationship between the Empress and the Emperor seemed to be really unpleasant.

They thought that the relationship between the Emperor and Celestia was kind of intimate. But in fact, she was only a maid to provide him a treatment service.

She couldn’t believe that the Empress, who didn’t even reside in the Imperial Palace, had such an idiotic opinion. How far did this rumor spread? She could easily laugh off the matter with the other maids, but not in front of Her Highness, the Empress.

“It’s been a while since I’ve seen a toy….It’s quite laughable.”

Celestia could feel tingling malice hidden in her tone. She regretted not escaping the situation with a proper excuse.

Given that the Empress was talking to a person like Celestia with such a strong demeanor, it seemed like she was criticizing His Majesty.

“What is your name?”

“I am Celestia, Your Highness.”

“I see. Where are you from?”

“From Goldina, Your Highness.”

“Hmm, I like your pretty voice. It seems like I can give you a chance. If you become my servant, I’ll set you free.”

She said in a dignified manner.

‘She wants me to work for her? She would give me freedom? What an unconventional offer. I don’t even know the path to which my life is directed.’

Even though it was a tempting offer, it would not be any better than serving the Emperor.

At least her condition wasn’t any of those who were being enslaved and punished. And it was completely because of her stupidity that she fell inside the Magic Circle made by Serek. She was even being sold. She was now a nobody in her own country.

But she might have to live as a servant her entire life if she didn’t accept the offer.

Considering that she began her life from a back alley of Goldina, this offer, if she accepted, might be too burdensome to survive with. But if she didn’t accept, she would never be able to raise her voice.

“Sigh, answer me. Come on, tell me one or two secret weaknesses of the Emperor, and I’ll get you a good-looking husband and some gold.”

The Empress hastened.

She was going to accept it, but…..

The sight of the Emperor’s back, lying on his stomach, floated before her eyes. It was obvious that he was the sole protector of his country, but in that way, he was also becoming weak. And without Celestia’s magic, he wouldn’t be able to survive. He would become helpless.

She had never longed for an aristocrat before.

It was neither her instincts nor the reason that caused her to reject the proposal, but she eventually bowed her head again.

“I beg your pardon, Your Highness, but I wouldn’t be able to do that.”

“….Did you misinterpret my words?”

Her tone didn’t change a bit. She smiled bitterly.

“Raise your head, you don’t have to act like that. Your name, what was it again? Celestia?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

She gulped, as the Empress told her to appear in front of her.

Slap!

It happened in a flash.

Slap!

The Empress slapped her again on the cheek. Unable to keep her balance, she fell down. Then she felt a wet substance being poured down on her head. The long scarf around her neck was colored red with wine, and it flowed down to her hands, which were touching the tiled floor.

The Empress stared down at her as if she was looking at some troublesome bug. Celestia staggered, getting up from the floor.

“Now, say those words again.”

“I beg your…..”

Slap!

As she was slapped again, she fell down on the floor. Rather than just getting hit, she felt an indescribable sense of distance being subjected to herself in front of everyone in the hall.

BANG!

With a tremendous noise, the door was pushed open on one side of the hall.

It was hard to imagine that such a huge, heavy door could be pushed open that easily.

The Emperor approached them at a slow pace but with a clear angry face. He noticed Celestia before turning his eyes to the Empress.

“What did you do?”

The Empress shrugged.

“Ha, amazing. Now, are you blaming me just because I had a sweet talk with this mere server? No, with your servant?”

“Yeah, isn’t it obvious?”

“What would have I done? I was just trying to let her know her place.”

“If you’re done with all the entertainment today, please return.”

The Emperor held Celestia by her wrists. Was he mad at the Empress?

She received a glare from the Empress.

“Are you really telling me to return to my palace, huh?”

“Your Majesty, I….”

“You look terrible. Go back to your room.”

“…..Yes, Your Majesty.”

He ordered Celestia, but he didn’t release her wrist for a long time. She stood there dumbfoundedly in front of the guests, unable to decide what she should do. The Emperor took out his handkerchief and wiped the substance from her face, barely letting go of her wrist.

She was struggling to endure her tears as she turned her eyes towards the Empress from the Emperor, once again.

As she fled from the place, her ears caught the fading voice of the Empress Dowager.

“No matter how much you act like you know, you haven’t even heard me. And do you think I fear your anger? That’s just a servant, isn’t she? If you want to protect something precious, you should treat it accordingly. Don’t you think?”

3. The reason why she went to the academy

On her way back to her room, she ran into that man who had asked her to deliver wine to the Empress before.

Today was the day when she wasn’t supposed to commit any mistakes. She wasn’t supposed to make the President of the servants feel embarrassed for keeping a servant of the Emperor as a substitute for a maid at the banquet hall. She bowed after staring at him briefly.

Maids weren’t supposed to stand and watch from the shadows unless something happened. Fortunately, no one noticed her as she was running. She hurried to her room, not caring as much as she couldn’t see. She would have to get reprimanded all at once later. She couldn’t work when she was drenched in a glass of wine.

As she reached her room, she looked at her reflection in the mirror and noticed her dried out eyes. As soon as the gloominess from her eyes was lifted, she burst into laughter. The people she used to live with in the back alley should have seen her now. She wondered how many people would have laughed at her as she runs while crying.

Celestia’s temper rose suddenly. She cried because she got hit by that harpoon.

Honestly, she cried because she was sad, too. She didn’t feel right about not being able to face the petty face of the Empress because she was just a ‘mere’ servant.

Anyway, it was natural for people to blame others for a crime they didn’t commit.

‘Ha, no matter how much I think about it, she is a tortoise. No matter what my situation is or what your son’s situation is, how could you just bully someone who has such a wide gap in status? A noble does have rights, but he or she can’t violate them like this!’

It’s common sense that the Emperor wouldn’t even lift his eyebrows if she was touched.

‘Of course, now is the time for His Majesty…..to need my presence. And if the medicines don’t improve ever……he might need me for his entire life……’

When he didn’t seem to know much about the situation, how could he know that it was the Empress’s fault for treating a servant like her?

‘Ugh, I’m so mad!’

Venting her anger by throwing her fists on the pillow made her feel better. She didn’t even know herself that she was a little excited. She felt refreshed as she began to swing the pillow while swearing at the Empress Dowager.

‘Ugh, damn you Empress Dowager! I wish you fall in a pool of wine and get hit by a rock on your way!’

As she calmed down, she thought of putting the pillow down. But she kept swinging it until it flew out of her hands.

“…….You’re full of energy.”

At the familiar voice, she turned around, startled. She saw the eminently dressed Emperor standing inside her humble room. The door was closed as well. He was holding the pillow in his hands, on which she was expressing her anger.

‘When the hell did he get here? I’m crazy! I shouldn’t have acted like that. Did he see everything? What do I do? Should I beg on my knees?’

“I knocked on your door but I didn’t hear from you. So I had to rush in because I was worried.”

“I-It’s fine, Your Majesty.”

But it was not fine. She felt like she wanted to get inside a rat hole to hide from him.

His eyes scanned the room before he sat down calmly on the only chair in her room.

‘Wait, now? You want to talk to me now? I was going to see you anyway. How did you get here from a banquet hall filled with all those guests? Is it okay for you to be here?’

‘You’re not here to punish me for ruining the atmosphere of the banquet hall, are you? If so, are you going to kill me? Are you going to kill my brother too?’

All sorts of thoughts filled her mind.

He looked majestic even when he was sitting on a chair that looked shabby compared to his height and physique. He stared at Celestia, with his head tilted and expressionless face. Then he reached out and touched the tip of the white scarf that was tied around her neck. The fabric was stained with the color of the wine.

Shifting his gaze at her, he asked.

“Are you okay?”

“My brother is innocent…….pardon?”

“I asked if you were all right.”

“….Pardon?”

“Didn’t you hear me?”

‘No, why are you worried about how I’m doing? Are you not surprised by my behavior?!’

“…..I-I’m fine, Your Majesty.”

“I apologize on behalf of my brother and the Empress. They have been disrespectful towards you.”

‘Your brother? Ah, that man in black hair with that smile……’

Now that she thought about it, she didn’t notice that the face of that man was quite similar to someone else’s.

‘Ah, why didn’t I notice that there was only another person with that raven black hair?’

She blushed at the thought as the Emperor kept staring at her.