Chapter 52

Chapter 52

“Do you mean to say that I should believe that you were summoned by the Empress?”

“While I was waiting for all the time, it was His Highness the Crown Prince who allowed me finally to leave the Empress’s Palace.”

Having heard the unexpected statement, Alderuan’s expression changed dramatically.

“If what you said is a lie, I’ll have your throat cut.”

“Yes, Your Majesty… It would be better if Your Majesty should hurry.”

The knight did not say much, but he just looked at the Emperor with faithful eyes.

Looking at those eyes, which contained a strange feeling, the Emperor suddenly felt a terrible foreboding.

Unconsciously, he looked toward the Princess’ Palace where Siervian was.

* * *

The Empress’s visit was sudden.

“Princess. Aren’t you going to tell me what happened?”

Siervian couldn’t get rid of her nervousness as she watched the Empress approach her bedroom.

She just barely escaped the Harmin garden, now she had to deal with the sudden visit of the Empress.

[ Cybelle Erveldote ]

Favorability: -100

Mood: Enraged

Thoughts: Why on earth was Annabelle dragged away? His Majesty has no answer, but he’s not the kind of person who would interfere in others’ businesses. I’m sure this wench got another…!

As if Annabelle’s persecution was nothing, the image of the Empress seemed to be stuck.

In her previous life, the Empress had never visited the Princess’s Palace.

‘Come to think of it, She’s never been here to see how I’m living. How come I didn’t notice this earlier?’

She realized it too late after such a rush.

“Princess.”

The Empress had been acting as if persuading Siervian for a reasonable amount of time and soon hardened her face.

Even though the Empress always acted as though she was kind, Siervian’s young body readily flinched.

As the voice lowered, Siervian’s sadness and desperation from her past flowed out without realizing it.

“A-Annabelle forced me to drink.”

As soon as this answer came out, the Empress raised her eyes fiercely for a moment, but quickly corrected her expression.

“…So, you couldn’t drink Harmin tea today?”

“……”

[Cybelle Erveldote ]

Thoughts: How, how come you didn’t drink it?!

Her words were soft, but her innermost thoughts were the opposite.

Was it because the specialist was someone from the duchy and he did it for their sake?

“Princess, it’s because I’m worried. Come on, answer me.”

“Yees.”

For some time, the maids of the Princess’s Palace stomped their feet in regret.

They could’ve rebelled against the chief lady-in-waiting, but that was impossible to do in front of the Empress.

Ellie managed to pluck up some courage and took a step forward.

“Your Majesty, a while ago, the Chief lady-in-waiting Annabelle was about to…”

But just before the end of the sentence, the Empress’s cold voice cut through.

“How dare you open your mouth when I have not allowed you to?”

“I’m sorry. But, Your Majesty, the Princess, please…”

As the maid replied, the Empress slammed the table facing Siervian.

“Take that arrogant mouth of yours and get out immediately. Grand Chamberlain!”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

The newly appointed Grand Chamberlain of the Empress’ Palace, who looked more like a mercenary than an attendant, frowned beside the Empress.

“I will punish this arrogant girl myself.”

“Y-You cwan’t, Your Majwesty”

As soon as Ellie got caught by the rough hand, Siervian sprang to her feet.

Everyone in the Palace was quiet, but the Empress was merciless toward her subordinates.

“Princess. Didn’t I always tell you to behave like a member of the Imperial family?

“B-but.”

There was a particular rumor that the maids were sometimes whipped in the basement of the Empress’s Palace.

But it was Siervian who got blamed for all that.

‘No, Ellie is going to be hurt.’

Siervian had no choice but to hold back her tears and beg the Empress.

She didn’t know what the Empress desired, but she wanted to protect her people.

“I-I’m sowwy, I made a mwistake.”

“Do you think so?”

“Y-Yes, Your Majwesty.”

As she begged for forgiveness as obediently as she had been in the past, the Empress’s emotions seemed to ease slightly.

Still standing after all the commotion, the Empress squinted her eyes and looked at Siervian, who had her head bowed down and her hands folded.

“For the time being, please sit down and we will bring it.”

Ellie was overpowered and held by the Empress’s Grand Chamberlain in the corner of the bedroom.

Siervian’s mind was busy the entire time as Ellie was taken hostage.

To protect her people, it wouldn’t be too hard to get out of this situation with your head bowed down for a moment.

“Here, I have prepared this especially for you.”

But as soon as they put it in front of her, Siervian’s head went blank.

‘Harmin tea? Why…!’

Regardless of what Siervian had avoided the most, the Empress brought out Harmin tea again as if she had received it from the duchy.

“I don’t understand how you didn’t drink the tea, even when you brought His Majesty to the garden.”

“……”

Her heart thumped as the white steam rose from the very hot tea.

Even harder now that her mind was playing tricks on her, making her think that the steam was making her skin itch.

[ Cybelle Erveldote ]

Thoughts: Apparently Annabelle was trying to make her drink tea, but this girl was making a fuss about it. Bothersome wench.

‘You must’ve made a fuss again Princess, she said, but did I get it wrong?’

Much different from the truth, Siervian nodded quietly.

She didn’t ask for the truth now because she already knew the truth.

“You must not think that even though His Majesty the Emperor may be gentle on the outside, Princess, because he is not so kind on the inside.”

Knowing her father’s warm heart, Siervian unconsciously looked at the Empress in astonishment.

But what’s really weird were the Empress’s thoughts.

[ Cybelle Erveldote ]

Mood: Nervous

Thoughts:This Harmin tea must be drunk. At all costs.

Despite this suffocating situation, Siervian managed to come up with a question.

It’s not anger, it’s nervousness. But rather, shouldn’t Siervian, suffocated by her allergies, be nervous?

‘Why do I have to drink this urgently?’

It’s not like she will die of mana scarcity just because she didn’t drink Harmin tea right now.

Only this morning, Siervian had been certain that the Empress, who was a member of the Duchy, was fully committed to her sacred duty, but that idea was shattered here.

Because she knew there was something in the tea the duchy’s specialist had brewed.

[ Cybelle Ervelote ]

Thoughts: I should have gotten the drug from the doctor. So, first, I’ll have her drink this today, and next time I’ll…

Fortunately, this time, the unidentified drug did not seem to have been added.

She couldn’t understand why the Empress was nervous when she did not add the drug on purpose.

But of course, the biggest problem right now was that Harmin tea itself was like a poison to Siervian.

“What are you doing, Princess?”

“La…ter…”

Siervian struggled to speak and to somehow escape from this complex situation.

Then the Empress’s gaze turned to Ellie, who was often detained.

“The reason why the Princess can’t tell the difference between heaven and earth is because her subordinates can’t take care of her.”

“No, but…!”

“That’s why I told His Majesty that you should not have an insignificant woman as a Chief lady-in-waiting.”

The Empress held Siervian by the shoulder, and it felt similar to how Annabelle grabbed her earlier.

“I will have her replaced and give you a proper lady-in-waiting soon, everything would be alright if you trust me, Princess.”

“Tea, no, I cwan’t…!”

In the end, Siervian burst into tears half-crying, and the Empress was unable to control her expression.

[ Cybelle Erveldote ]

Mood: Extremely jittery

Thoughts: You can’t just keep rejecting tea like this. I must have you drink this today.

At that instant, the Empress grabbed Siervian’s cheek. It was slightly scratched because of the Empress’s large ring.

“Why are you so disobedient? This is all for your sake, Princess!”

The Empress forced Siervian to let the Harmin tea flow onto her mouth, and after having almost no time to react, the tea flowed down little by little.

“Ugh!”

The hot liquid ran down her throat causing tears to drop.

“What on earth are you doing!”

The loud noise shook the whole bedroom.

Startled, the Empress dropped the teacup she forced on Siervian to drink, and thanks to this, Siervian did not swallow all the tea.

The teacup eventually fell to the carpet, rolled and reached the feet of the enraged Emperor.

“Empress! I am asking you what this is about!”

The Emperor quickly strode forward and took Siervian away from the Empress and shouted.

She had never seen her father so angry.

Perhaps dumbfounded, the Empress first stepped away from the Princess.

“…Your Majesty is here.”

“How could you do this…!”

“It’s just proper discipline, Your Majesty.”

However, the Empress was very quick to smooth her features.

Even with a benevolent smile, she whispered to the Emperor thinking she had done nothing wrong in this situation.

“Discipline? Now, did you just say that this is discipline?”

“Your Majesty knows best how important it is to drink Harmin tea. I was just a little impatient seeing the Princess missed her opportunity and may suffer in the future.”

The smooth flow of words were like the whispers of a snake.

But upon hearing those words, the Emperor shouted unaware in his anger.

“Don’t spout such nonsense! You were abusing her just now. True discipline takes place first with being honest with the child and persistently asking for her understanding. What you just did was forcefully grab her and make her drink that tea!”

“But the Princess was so fussy…”

Siervian thought that this was probably the only way to avoid the situation, but the Empress was stubborn.

“Uuurk!”

However, Siervian, who was sitting in a chair, felt her vision darken.

In her previous life, she definitely felt the same symptoms after drinking that cup of tea.

‘Did my allergies get worse?’

Her sight swirled as she immediately felt the swing of vertigo.

Her body was sitting on the chair, but she soon collapsed. She fell to the ground.

“Siervy?”

And as she forced her head up, she saw the face of the frozen Empress.

Even as her consciousness crumbled, Siervian tried to read her status window.

Would she be upset or angry again?

[ Cybelle Erveldote ]

Emotions: Surprised

Thoughts: …An allergic response? She’s allergic to it? How could this happen? No, NO!

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