Chapter 12
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 12
She rose from her bed and stood before the mirror, staring at her haggard reflection for a long time.
I look exactly like that sewer rat I found in my stew.
A dry laugh escaped her lips at the thought. Just then, the maid assigned to her morning grooming entered the room.
“You are awake early. Come here. I shall assist you with your washing.”
“I don’t need it.”
At the cold dismissal, the maid’s sharp eyes narrowed. She looked down at Thalia with an overbearing gaze and began to lecture her.
“Your Highness is obligated by Imperial law to maintain a flawless appearance at all times and in all places. This childish petulance is—”
“Nanny!”
The maid flinched at the sharp cry and fell silent. Thalia brushed past her and began to ring the bell hanging by the bed violently.
“Nanny! Nanny!”
A moment later, the nanny, who had been oversleeping in the adjacent room, burst through the door in a frantic rush. Thalia pointed at her and spoke with an air of cold arrogance.
“From now on, Nanny will be in charge of my grooming. Mother said I could have it so yesterday. You, leave us.”
“But…”
“Are you suggesting you will defy the Empress’s orders?”
As Thalia snapped at her, the maid, who had been looking down at her with a doubtful expression, finally exited. It seemed she had no desire to struggle with the princess if it meant she was relieved of her duties.
Thalia turned her sharp gaze toward the nanny, who was still rubbing her swollen, half-asleep eyes.
“You heard me, didn’t you? From now on, washing and dressing me is your responsibility. Keep your wits about you and do your job.”
“I understand, my lady…” the nanny replied with a wide, half-hearted yawn.
Thalia raised her arm and ruthlessly slapped the woman’s plump cheek. Stunned by the sudden blow, the nanny stared at her with wide eyes. Thalia perfectly mimicked the expression her mother often wore when her rage had reached its peak.
“How many times must I tell you to address me as ‘Your Highness’ before it sinks in?”
The nanny’s brown eyes went round with shock. Thalia looked straight into those eyes, emphasizing every word as if spitting them out.
“If you call me ‘my lady’ one more time, expect another slap.”
She then hurried the dazed nanny along to begin her grooming.
Because the nanny was so slow-handed, several hours had passed by the time the preparations were finished. Thalia felt as though she might collapse at any moment, having barely eaten for weeks, but she stepped out of the room with her back held rigidly straight.
In the hallway stood a man with a gloomy face, dressed in black. Thalia stiffened, startled to find a stranger guarding her door, but she soon remembered her mother’s words. It seemed this ghost-like man was the ‘useful guard’ she had mentioned.
Thalia gave a slight jerk of her chin, signaling the man to follow, and made her way toward the dining hall. Several servants cast displeased glances her way, as if they had been waiting a long time for her to descend.
Ignoring their glares, Thalia sat at the end of the long dining table. She gestured with an arrogant tilt of her head.
“Serve the food.”
The servants, who had been lingering with indifferent faces even after hearing her command, eventually brought out various plates.
A maid in her mid-thirties supervised the entire process. Under her direction, the servants set down silver plates in order, and finally, a bowl of soup was placed before her.
Thalia stared intently into the bowl. The murky broth was filled with beans and meat. It looked fine on the surface, but she knew the contents would be anything but.
Thalia picked up her spoon and stirred the thick liquid covered in white cream. As she scraped the bottom of the bowl and lifted the spoon, a sparrow with a snapped neck emerged.
It must have been dead for quite some time; several thin, thread-like maggots were wriggling in the bird’s rotted eye sockets.
Her stomach churned as if she might vomit then and there. However, Thalia desperately hid any sign of agitation and shouted sharply at the maid who had brought the soup.
“You! Come here and sit down.”
The woman looked bewildered by the sudden order, but her expression soon shifted to one of wariness. After a brief pause, she spoke in a stiff tone.
“I apologize, Your Highness, but I have much work to do.”
She turned as if to leave the dining hall immediately.
Usually, this woman would linger nearby after serving the food, watching in silence as if to enjoy Thalia’s reaction. Seeing her try to leave in such a hurry today, Thalia sensed that the maid knew exactly what was in the bowl.
Thalia lunged from her seat and grabbed the brass kettle sitting on the table. With all her might, she swung it at the head of the arrogant maid who dared to ignore an Imperial Princess’s command and turn her back without permission.
Though she possessed only the strength of a scrawny child, the impact of metal against bone was significant.
With a piercing scream, the maid collapsed onto the carpet.
Not only the victim but all dozen or so servants in the dining hall froze as if paralyzed. Some of the maids gasped and covered their mouths.
Thalia, however, remained indifferent to their horrified stares. She gave an arrogant nod toward the man standing like a shadow in the corner of the room.
“Seat this woman in the chair next to me. Now.”
The man, who had been standing still and staring intently at her face, walked over slowly and hauled the half-conscious woman to her feet.
The maid tried to resist as she regained her senses, but she was no match for the strength of a trained man. Dragged along, she was forced into the chair at the table.
Thalia returned to her own seat and stared at the woman’s face. Her scalp had been torn where the spout of the kettle had grazed her, and dark red blood trickled down her temple, leaving two long stains on her pale cheek.
Unfazed by the gruesome sight, Thalia pushed the bowl of soup containing the dead bird in front of the woman. The maid’s confused eyes dropped to the soup before returning to Thalia.
Thalia forced a spoon into the woman’s fingers, which were damp with cold sweat.
“As a token of my appreciation for your hard work in preparing my meals every day, I’ve decided to share my meal with you. For the sake of my sincerity, make sure you finish every drop.”
“Y-Your Highness, I…”
“Eat.”
Thalia spoke with cold authority, forcing the maid’s hand over the bowl.
“You brought this for me to eat. Why should there be any reason you cannot eat it yourself?”
“I… I was just…”
The woman’s lips trembled violently as she cast pleading looks around the room for help. But everyone else stood frozen, not knowing how to react to this sudden shift in power.
Thalia barked fiercely.
“Eat it, now!”
The maid flinched violently and roughly shook off Thalia’s hand. She tried to stand up and flee, but the man held her firmly from behind, making it impossible for her to move.
Looking back and forth between the man’s grim face and Thalia’s expression of pure coldness, the woman began to sob and beg.
“I… I… I was wrong… It will never… n-never happen again. So please, just this once, forgive me…”
“If you do not empty this bowl, you will not be walking out of here on your own two feet.”
The maid’s face turned deathly pale. Her eyes dropped to the waist of the man holding her. She had clearly seen the sword hanging there.
Gasping for breath, she cried out desperately.
“Please, please… mercy…!”
“I am showing you mercy right now,” Thalia said indifferently. “I could kill you this very instant. But am I not giving you a chance to live?”
The woman’s body began to shake uncontrollably.
Thalia pushed the soup with the rotting bird carcass closer to her.
“If you understand, then shove it all into your mouth.”