RTTE 04

Chapter 4

A few days later.

Maids Number One, Two, and Three knelt before Lumiere with tense expressions.

Lumiere let out a quiet, incredulous laugh.

The “sincerity” they had brought was nowhere near enough to meet her expectations.

“I distinctly told you to show me your sincerity, didn’t I?”

Number One hurriedly offered an apologetic excuse.

“Your Highness, how could we possibly take Your Highness’s words lightly? It’s simply that the amount of money we can prepare immediately is limited…”

“That’s your problem.”

They had been siphoning money away for years, yet they had brought her nothing more than a month’s worth of wages?

And all three of them brought exactly the same amount, as if they had planned it together.

They must have thought that if they all presented the same amount, she would have no choice but to let all three of them stay behind.

But collusion only worked until one person broke the agreement.

Lumiere placed the jingling pouch down and looked at Number One.

“Among the three of you, your sincerity is the most impressive.”

“Pardon…?”

“Even if it isn’t entirely to my satisfaction, a promise is a promise.”

“What… what do you mean by that?”

“You may remain in the imperial palace. The other two, however, will accompany me to the Grand Duchy, so start packing.”

The atmosphere in the room changed instantly.

Number Two slowly turned to look at Number One.

They had clearly offered the same amount.

So why?

Number Three also glanced sideways at Number One, her face stiffening.

Meanwhile, Number One merely moved her lips soundlessly, looking as though she had no idea what was happening.

“Y-Your Highness, I believe there must be some misunderstanding. The sincerity shown by the three of us should be roughly the same…”

“How would you know whether your sincerity was the same or different? Did the three of you perhaps coordinate your answers beforehand?”

“……!”

Number One froze, unable to respond.

Then Number Two and Number Three, who had been watching the situation carefully until now, hurriedly threw themselves to the floor.

“Y-Your Highness! We will find the rest of the money somehow, no matter what it takes!”

“M-Me too! I’ve already sent a letter to my family. If you could just give me a few days…”

It seemed that any loyalty between them had been forgotten.

Now, each of them was only concerned with saving herself.

To think I suffered such humiliation at the hands of people like these.

Lumiere gave a dry laugh and walked into her bedroom.

Click.

After closing the door, she quietly pressed her ear against it.

Soon, the voices of the three women arguing reached her.

“How much more did you add?”

“I don’t know! I really gave exactly what we agreed on!”

“And you expect me to believe that?”

“Then what? Should we go ask Her Highness and find out whose story is true?”

“You little—!”

Just as Lumiere had expected, the close relationship they had maintained until recently had begun to crack.

Now all I have to do is wait.

The three of them had been thrown into a competition for survival.

They would desperately bring her money in an attempt to save themselves.

Imagining the pouch that would soon grow pleasantly heavy, Lumiere’s lips curved into a satisfied smile.

The Wizer Empire, the Emperor’s Office

A man with blond hair, blue eyes, and a tall, impressive physique—

yet an unmistakably mean and unpleasant appearance.

Tenor von Wizer let out an incredulous laugh.

“The Grand Duke is expected to arrive in the capital soon?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“To think he’s personally coming all this way to take that worthless thing away. How absurd.”

“Perhaps he’s worried that Her Highness the Princess might run away?”

“I heard women flee one after another whenever his family proposes marriage. Tsk.”

The Princess herself had attempted to poison herself rather than marry a barbarian, so perhaps it was only natural for the Grand Duke to come and collect her personally.

‘On the day the black hawk of the North spreads its wings, a shadow shall fall across the sun.’

Thinking of those ominous words, the Emperor found the thought of imperial blood mixing with barbarian blood unpleasant.

But there was no helping it.

Because of the scandal that woman had caused, no one else wanted to take her.

“What about that girl? She isn’t making a fuss about dying again, is she?”

“No, Your Majesty. Since regaining consciousness, Her Highness has remained quiet.”

“That’s fortunate.”

After disgracing the imperial family for so long, she ought to pay the price for it.

It would be troublesome if she died without even being worth what had been paid for her.

“Keep this news strictly hidden so the Princess cannot do anything foolish. And when the Grand Duke arrives, bring him directly to the Grand Hall.”

“As you command, Your Majesty.”

“Oh, and summon Duke Trovitan to the imperial palace that day as well.”

“Your Majesty…?”

The Princess’s desperate love story was already widely known.

And yet the Emperor wanted him summoned?

Seeing the confusion flicker across his attendant’s face, the Emperor twisted his lips into a smile.

“She may be the shame of the imperial family, but she is still my only younger sister. We should give her a chance to see her first love one last time before she leaves, shouldn’t we?”

“Your Majesty is most gracious. If Her Highness the Princess understands the depth of Your Majesty’s consideration, she will surely be overwhelmed by your benevolence.”

“Of course she will.”

A vile malice surfaced in the Emperor’s blue eyes.

The lies uttered by that lowborn dancer still continued to grow like mold in the darkness, whispered by those who questioned his ability and qualifications.

Therefore, that worthless girl had to spend her entire life paying for her mother’s sins.

Just as he himself would have to carry those ominous words like a shadow for the rest of his life.

And yet—

despite all that, he was giving her the opportunity to say a final farewell to her beloved first love.

What an act of mercy.

The Emperor smiled unpleasantly as he imagined the Princess collapsing in miserable despair.

It had already been a month since Lumiere returned to the past.

The shallow bond between the three maids had been completely shattered after that single act of sowing discord.

Having become bitter enemies, the three women competed fiercely to become the sole survivor.

They offered up not only money but new dresses and jewelry, and eagerly informed on one another.

How much money the others had embezzled.

What terrible things they had said behind her back.

And so on.

Honestly, they’re all ridiculous.

How could it not be amusing to watch people who were all equally guilty tear each other apart just to save themselves?

In any case, after spending a month tormenting them and relieving her stress, Lumiere felt as though even her complexion had begun to glow.

“Your Highness! An envoy from the Grand Duchy has arrived at the palace gates!”

At last, the news she had been waiting for arrived.

Perhaps it was because the Grand Duke had come.

Or perhaps it was because she was finally leaving the imperial palace.

Either way, her heart began pounding with anticipation.

“I need to prepare to leave immediately.”

She was about to meet her future husband for the first time.

She could not afford to waste even a single second.

With the help of the maids, Lumiere prepared herself.

All that effort I put into gaining weight over the past month was worth it.

Her white hair had been treated with fragrant oil until it shone softly and fell neatly into place.

Her skin was still pale, but now clear and smooth.

Her eyes were beautiful and deep.

Her lips were red and full.

The woman reflected in the mirror was a beautiful lady with a sorrowful, almost fragile air, as though she carried countless untold stories within her, dressed in an elegant and luxurious gown.

Perhaps it was because she had devoted herself to restoring the body she had neglected for so long.

She had not done anything particularly extraordinary, yet she could almost see a trace of her mother—the dancer who had captured the Emperor’s heart despite her lowly status—in her reflection.

Lumiere finally looked away from the mirror and checked her money pouch.

Inside, the gold coins and jewels she had taken back from the maids glittered brightly.

There was quite a substantial amount.

It was almost as though she had scraped them clean down to their very souls.

“Your Highness… then whom are you planning to take with you to the North?”

At the question from Number One, who had been cautiously watching her until now, Lumiere shook her head.

“That won’t be necessary. I would be fortunate if taking them along didn’t simply make them a burden.”

The maids’ faces immediately brightened.

You really shouldn’t be so happy just yet.

Would that petty excuse for an Emperor truly see her looking so healthy and simply leave her alone?

No.

He would undoubtedly look for someone to take his anger out on.

And there was a very high chance that his targets would be the maids of the Princess’s residence—the very women who had worked so hard to restore her health.

…Well, whatever happens to them is none of my concern.

Lumiere carefully hid the now pleasantly heavy pouch inside her clothes and straightened her attire.

How long had she waited like that?

Soon afterward, Number One announced the arrival of an imperial attendant.

“Your Highness, an attendant sent by His Majesty the Emperor has arrived. His Majesty commands you to come to the Grand Hall immediately.”

Leaving behind the excited maids, who had no idea what awaited them in the near future, Lumiere stepped out of the room.

At last, the moment had come.

The moment she would finally leave—

this dreadful imperial palace she had grown so sick of.