208. Awaken (2)
208. Awaken (2)
- 1 -
"Hoo..."
At dawn, walking in front of the Demon Queen's palace, I drew in a breath.
The new bed was not particularly comfortable, but my body no longer knew fatigue, which was rather awkward.
The soft sunlight seeping through the eastern glass windows illuminated the corridor, and the cold air awakened my mind.
At that moment, I spotted a figure from behind.
"Head Maid."
The middle-aged woman flinched, stiffened, then turned around with a relieved expression.
"...Miss Joanna."
In her arms as she turned was a thick bundle of documents, and her face was clearly etched with fatigue.
Normally, she would have levitated them with magic power, but it seemed she could not even concentrate enough for that.
She looked as though she had not been able to sleep properly.
It must have been because of the investigation into last night's poisoning incident.
"You are up early."
"I naturally have to be."
I divided the documents, receiving some and lifting them into the air with magic power.
The Head Maid's face bore a different emotion from yesterday. Fatigue, vigilance, and suspicion.
If yesterday the latter had been more prominent, today the former was stronger.
'It was only natural for her judgment to become clouded.'
Yesterday's incident had clearly given her a great shock.
A sense of self-reproach—that despite having served the Demon Queen for so long, she had not detected such a dangerous attempt at all.
And even consternation—that a newly arrived apprentice maid had noticed it, and that she might actually be pushed out of her position.
But that vigilance was far too late.
"What about the maids? Head Maid."
At some point, I had seized the initiative in our relationship.
She did not notice because I cloaked it in formality and courtesy.
Her eyes shook.
It was as if she was recalling the words I had conveyed to her yesterday evening, after my private audience with the Demon Queen had ended.
[Detain those involved under a different pretext, and watch them more carefully.]
[But, Your Highness...!]
[This is for the best.]
In the end, we decided to cover up the poisoning incident.
After all, while it was certain that the culprit was one of the Archdukes, finding decisive evidence would be difficult.
'As the Demon Queen thought, there was also no certainty the culprit was the Jealous Duke.'
It could also be a ploy by one of the Archduke of Pride or the Duke of Lust to ensure they drew the Jealous Duke firmly to their side.
"For now, the culprit has been confined. None of the children seem to act as if they sense anything amiss."
"There may be someone skilled at hiding their true feelings."
Since we had decided to cover up the matter, we could not keep the maids confined forever.
So, under the pretext that the food had spoiled, we temporarily confined all maids involved with the cheesecake that had been poisoned.
This measure was comparatively merciful.
After all, it was confinement within the citadel, not a prison.
"Is the culprit truly among those we have confined...?"
Even considering her anxiety, the Head Maid's face was not bright.
It was only natural. If they were kitchen maids who directly prepared the Demon Queen's food, they would be individuals whose trustworthiness had been verified over many years.
Yet among them, among the personnel the Head Maid directly managed, someone had appeared who put poison in the food.
"The probability is high."
"...How could something like this happen?"
"Is there not a saying that one can never truly know a person's heart?"
We walked toward the Demon Queen's chamber. At my words, the Head Maid bowed her head.
"But among the suspects, there are children I personally selected and raised. How could I..."
"It is not your mistake, Head Maid. The fault lies with those who repay kindness with enmity."
I looked her straight in the eyes as I spoke. So that my sincerity would be conveyed.
Foolishness is not a sin. Ruining everything with stubbornness while knowing you are incompetent is the sin.
In that respect, she was not the worst.
"Head Maid."
In front of the Demon Queen's bedchamber, I spoke to her.
"Starting today, it seems I will also be preparing Her Highness's tea together with you."
"But that is..."
The Head Maid's expression hardened.
She had entrusted the preparation of other refreshments to the maids, but tea was something she had always handled personally.
What rose in her eyes, as one hand stroked the other wrist, was clear suspicion.
She might have thought that such a heavy responsibility could not be entrusted to someone she did not trust, and she might even suspect me as one of the culprits.
She also had a justification to oppose it. Even if I was a Direct Attendant, I was still an apprentice maid.
"It was Her Highness's instruction."
But her opinion crumbled with that single sentence.
"Hah..."
The Head Maid let out a sigh, the tension draining from her shoulders.
When I took hold of her hand, she flinched and hunched her shoulders in surprise.
I stroked her hand and smiled at her affectionately. Like a niece comforting her aunt.
"Head Maid. There is no one who knows Her Highness as well as you do. But currently, there are more things you can do. I wish to help you, even just a little."
A calm sense of frustration flickered across the Head Maid's face.
No one could doubt her loyalty. Her worry for the Demon Queen was undoubtedly just as great.
As I stroked her hand, I made use of my youthful appearance, as if I had just reached adulthood.
The faint hint of charm, friendliness, and respect at the corner of my lips.
Considering the composed image I had shown so far, she might have found it strange, but stereotypes about young maidens applied even at times like this.
"Miss Joanna..."
"Under your guidance, Head Maid, I want to serve Her Highness well."
I bowed my head politely.
I could feel her tension gradually easing.
"If you would permit me, Head Maid, I want to learn how to prepare Her Highness's tea. So that I may look after Her Highness's health, just as you do."
As I continued to emphasize her position, moisture welled up in the middle-aged woman's eyes.
Faced with the justification of serving the Demon Queen, her wariness began to crumble piece by piece.
Soon, she would come to regard the reduction of her own authority as nothing.
"I understand. I will help you."
In the end, the Head Maid nodded.
Just as I had wanted.
"Thank you."
Answering her words with a smile, I recalled the conversation I had had with the Demon Queen the day before.
[I trust you.]
The conversation between us had ended quite desirably.
- 2 -
The previous evening, immediately after Libertas had reported to the Demon Queen about the poison.
The moment Libertas finally revealed her true self fully, Stella's gaze was completely fixed upon her.
'Good heavens.'
From the moment she had first met Libertas, Stella had intuitively sensed her uniqueness.
Her violet eyes and pale skin perfectly embodied the dignity of a demon realm aristocrat.
A beauty that could only be described as a crystal blooming alone deep within a dungeon.
But now that she saw her again, she had assumed the shock would not be as great as the first time.
That assumption was easily overturned.
Thump.
Her heart began to beat irregularly.
'Calm down.'
Stella repeated to herself inwardly.
She had witnessed countless pretenses and acts of fate.
Having lived her entire life as a power holder in the Demon Realm, how many false kindnesses had she faced?
Yet somehow, it was difficult to stay cold toward the pretense this young Dungeon Lord displayed.
"I came to hear the answer as to why Your Highness wishes to keep me so close."
A serene smile had risen on Libertas's lips.
A smile imbued with a cool elegance. In that figure, Stella discovered a nobility that resembled her own, and...
That fact clouded Stella's reason.
'That is not sincerity.'
To her, Libertas was the first younger sister she had met in decades.
But to Libertas, she... was nothing more than a stranger connected by blood.
Recognizing that difference, Stella struggled to remain composed.
"I think you already know, Libertas."
"What do you mean?"
"That we are half-sisters."
Though their conversation in the garden had not properly concluded due to Semira's interference, she had already given her what could be called a clue.
If Libertas had not yet grasped that, it would actually be stranger, Stella had predicted.
And as expected.
"..."
Seeing Libertas's quiet smile, Stella was certain her assumption had been correct.
But what she felt in this moment was not joy.
It was dismay.
'It might have been better if she had not known.'
Stella was convinced that Libertas learning they were family was a negative factor in this negotiation.
Because her half-sister was an existence 'thrown out' into the world.
At least, as far as she knew.
"Your Highness would also know. What a Dungeon Lord is."
Having seen through Stella's thoughts, Libertas wore a calm expression.
A calmness where the ends of her eyebrows were slightly lowered, so that the beholder would feel a subtle sadness.
The Demon Queen's eyes shook unstably.
"Are we not existences that begin in solitude?"
Once, she too had resented being thrown out into the world like that.
She would not be human if she did not resent the existence that had made her lose everything she originally had in the world.
"A child born in the Demon Realm, or a completely modified fetus entrusted to a dungeon core to perceive the world. That is what we are."
Therefore, a deep sorrow flickered on Libertas's face as she gazed out the window.
But it was not 'resentment toward the bloodline that left her alone,' as Stella imagined.
'Resentment for what was taken away, on the other hand, I cannot say for certain.'
Moreover, the current Libertas did not even harbor such feelings of resentment.
Because there were other people who loved her.
It was just that Stella had no way of knowing that.
"In that place, we are raised to pursue 'power'."
Libertas's deeply subdued voice was calm, yet held a profound sadness.
She felt that sadness burrowing into Stella's heart, as if she were stroking it directly with her fingers.
"The price is heavy. For we begin our lives completely isolated on the surface."
Libertas stopped speaking.
She perceived a multitude of emotions flickering through Stella's eyes.
Sympathy, guilt, and... even some emotion she was hiding.
"The dungeon core and the first summoned creature. That was my everything. The core taught me three things."
Hostility toward humanity.
The instinct for endless growth.
And the basics of using abilities.
The teachings of the dungeon core did not provide nurturing akin to a mother to a child who knew nothing, but rather training befitting a ruthless soldier.
Of course, this was a story that did not apply to her.
"Libertas..."
The end of Stella's words lost its strength.
Libertas nodded calmly.
"But rest assured, Your Highness. I do not resent such things."
A statement that further etched the debt into Stella's heart by denying the indebtedness she felt.
Watching hardened eyes shatter instead, Libertas smiled with a consoling meaning.
Now, it was time to stitch those shattered pieces of the heart back together.
Centering around a single piece: Stella's heart toward Libertas.
"Therefore, there is no need for Your Highness to feel sorry toward me."
Libertas did not take her eyes off her.
Meeting the cool violet eyes so similar to her own, Stella fell into the illusion that her gaze was caressing her heart.
"...I understand, Libertas."
Emotion vanished from Stella's voice. Her shattered heart was reforming into one.
Firmly.
But her gaze upon Libertas was different.
The perfect beauty clouded Stella's reason, and the more it did, the deeper her guilt and affection grew.
"What do you think, Your Highness, is the reason I came here?"
Libertas walked toward her desk.
Footsteps imbued with restrained elegance and a classical grace.
The closer the distance between them became, the larger the rift in Stella's breathing grew.
Libertas did not miss Stella's wavering.
"To assess the factions, I imagine. Enemy and ally."
Complex emotions were entangled this way and that within Stella's eyes.
Beneath the sympathy and guilt toward her half-sister, a certain emotion toward her was quietly growing.
"Correct. For someone who grew up in solitude like myself... it is difficult to trust anyone."
At the calmly spoken words, Stella's heart surged once more.
In the flickering gaze, Libertas was certain that her feelings were blossoming.
"So... I have a proposition for you."
Stella rose from her seat.
In her eyes, which examined Libertas as if appreciating beauty, reason wanting to grow cold and warm emotion were mingled.
"For a while, please serve as the maid who prepares my tea."
The voice of the most exalted woman in the Demon Realm was calm as befitted her station, but deep agitation hid within it.
She knew well how dangerous this proposal was. She was entrusting a position responsible for her own life to a stranger.
But she had no other choice.
'Am I really doing the right thing?'
Stella's gaze toward Libertas wavered.
Was this child truly her younger sister? Or was she nothing more than a poisoned flower that had bloomed from the dungeon?
With all those thoughts jumbled together, her gaze naturally followed Libertas's form.
'Think rationally.'
Libertas's existence was like a treasure held within a glass bottle filled with acidic solution.
Something that, even knowing the danger, left her utterly unable to endure without reaching out her hand.
Reasoning that, even while knowing it was a target to be wary of, she fell helplessly into the enchantment the existence provided.
'There is no reason not to trust her.'
Stella murmured as if rationalizing to herself.
Because she was family. Because she was kin by blood.
But that was merely an excuse.
The sympathy Libertas had planted had already taken deep root.
Stella was mistaking that feeling for affection toward her younger sister, and reason was already being dragged along by emotion.
"In that position, all the information you desire will gather."
Hearing Stella's proposal, Libertas's lips drew a soft arc.
The Queen believed she was trying to use Libertas, and that she felt guilt over that.
Though the reality was the opposite.
"Are you seeking to give me your trust, Your Highness?"
Libertas mixed a subtle tremor into her voice.
Permitting a momentary crack to appear in her perfect expression.
Stella's eyes did not miss that instant.
A certain impulse boiling up, the Demon Queen took one step closer toward her half-sister.
A distance close enough to hear each other's heartbeats.
"Of course. I trust you."
Stella's hand cupped Libertas's cheek.
In that moment, various emotions intermingled within her heart.
Long-suppressed resentment toward her father.
Anger toward the factions pressuring her.
And the hope that the existence before her eyes now offered.
With all manner of conditions as kindling, emotion was rising like wildfire.
"If not me, who else in this vast, empty court could exchange trust with you?"
In Stella's low voice, an affection she could not hide even if she tried was clearly present.
'It's done.'
Hearing that, Libertas was certain the matter was settled.
'I must protect this child.'
At the same moment, Stella realized that her heart had been captivated by Libertas for a long time already.
- 3 -
Thus, the morning after mutually pledging trust with the Demon Queen was today.
"Head Maid."
While moving to prepare the tea, I called out to her as if a thought had just occurred to me.
"Yes, Miss Joanna."
Her voice was still dark.
She was still wary of me, someone who might yet take her position from her.
"Regarding what Her Highness mentioned last night..."
At those words, the Head Maid's steps halted. Beyond her stiffened face, her tension was evident.
I lowered my voice. As if whispering a secret.
"Her Highness... told me to follow you as I would an aunt."
A hint informing her that I had become the Demon Queen's close aide, but also that she would absolutely not be driven from her position.
"I... wish to serve Her Highness better. Please teach me well."
The woman's expression visibly softened.
In our meeting gazes, almost all wariness had disappeared.
There was no reason for me to tell a lie that could be exposed simply by asking the Demon Queen directly.
And there was no way the Demon Queen would fail to corroborate such a statement.
"[...I'm counting on you. Libertas.]"
My steps carrying the dark tea toward the Demon Queen's bedchamber.
Suddenly, I recalled the moment her touch had reached my cheek last night.
It was a slightly bewildering moment.
I had not expected her to approach so rapidly.
'Even for the first young blood kin she had met in decades, such passion was strange.'
In this Demon Realm, such things were extremely common.
Like sibling relationships differing in age by hundreds or thousands of years.
Therefore, I could quickly guess that the fondness she held was not that of family.
Though I was not sure if she herself recognized it.
At the same time, to me, this was...
'Merely a play of fate.'
My objective was, ultimately, establishing power in the Demon Realm.
Uncovering the secret of my origin was merely incidental.
I had laid that foundation.
Now it was time to organize things.
The time had come to erase the First Demon Queen's influence from Stella.