Chapter 24 - CHAPTER 22. MESSED AROUND A LITTLE

“Oh right, I heard from our mother. She said you did a great job meeting with the envoys’ wives? Our mother admired you so much.”

“Ah…”

Patrizia awkwardly blurred the end of her sentence. She naturally remembered the day. That day, she couldn’t work hard on the actual meeting. Nevertheless, she was relieved that they had taken to her well. At that time, Patrizia’s attention was focused solely on Rosemond.

Patrizia wondered whether to tell her sister about what happened that day and Petronilla, who noticed as if she was a ghost, motivated her disclosure.

“What is it? Did something happen?”

Her twin sister asked her with such pure eyes, Patrizia answered with a contemplating expression. Then Petronilla looked at Patrizia with a serious look she rarely made.

“Why are you like this, Lizzy. We are sisters. We have to tell each other everything. Why, is it something bad?”

“It wasn’t something good, Nil. I don’t know if I can tell this to my sister.”

The only person that knew it was Rafaella. At those words, Petronilla asked her with a more curious look in her eyes, “What is it?”

“Lady Phelps messed around a little.”

The word ‘Lady Phelps’ hardened Petronilla’s face. She asked Patrizia in a stiff voice, that was quite different from the previous one.

“What does that mean?”

“Lady Phelps turned the beef that was to be cooked into steak with pork. Fortunately, I was watching out for the Vain Palace in advance, so I managed to block it… Even if I think about it right now, I feel chilled to the bone.”

“Oh, my word…”

Petronilla could not shut her mouth due to shock. Patrizia regretted for a moment when she saw how shocked her sister looked. She shouldn’t have told her? Her sister was already worrying about her so much as it was.

“That crazy Rosemond finally, again…”

“Calm down, Nilla. Nothing had actually happened.”

Even Patrizia’s words could not hide Petronilla’s anger. Rather, she spoke to Patrizia with a firmer voice than before.

“You’re peaceful, younger sister Majesty. You should know how serious this matter is.”

“I know. That is why I still warned her. To mess around like this again. If that happened, I would not stay still either.”

“… scary.”

Petronilla spits out some words after a while, “Lizzy, are you really okay?”

“I am okay, Nilla. I wouldn’t have told you if I knew Nil was going to worry like this.”

“You’ll be in trouble.”

She looked up and made a scary face as she lectured Patrizia, but Patrizia just smiled like a child and kissed her sister’s cheeks.

“I’m fine. I will stay quiet as a Queen, but that doesn’t mean I will be stupid and become the victim. My words… you know right?”

“…”

However, Petronilla never answered Patrizia’s question and looked on with a serious expression. Then Patrizia, who was watching out carefully, asked Petronilla, “Nil, are you perhaps angry? However, there is no useful evidence, and there might have been diplomatic friction …”

“Lizzy.”

Then Petronilla silently called out Patrizia. When Patrizia swallowed her dry saliva for some reason, making a nervous expression, Petronilla continued, “The truth is, coming here was not just about seeing you.”

“Then?”

“A suggestion… is not quite what it means, and there’s something I wanted to say.”

“Tell me, Nilla.”

At the end of Patrizia’s words, Petronilla stared closely at Patrizia’s pupils. Then, not much time had passed, before she opened her mouth again.

“I’m thinking of becoming your maid.”

“… What?”

After a moment of being taken aback, Patrizia’s eyes shook greatly. What was this… With Petronilla’s sudden announcement, Patrizia asked with a startled look, “What are you talking about? Suddenly a maid?”

“I did not suddenly decide when I listened to you just now. It’s been what I’ve been thinking about since you became Queen.”

Petronilla’s expression was so determined. But Patrizia couldn’t guess the reason as to why she was suddenly saying that she would be her maid.

In the past, she was a person who had refrained from entering and leaving the Imperial Palace, let alone being a maid. When she came back with this life, her sister was suddenly saying that she would be her maid. Patrizia had no idea whether to look at this as good or as bad.

“But even if you say so…”

“As you already know, historically, becoming a sister maid wasn’t so strange in the Marvinus Imperial Family. Plus, I’m not going to take on the role of a maid for a lifetime, and I plan to quit before I end the best time for me to get married. During that time… I just want to be completely by your side.”

“Then it would be a year or two at best. It would be so hard for me later on.” Because she missed her. Petronilla laughed at Patrizia’s words.

“What do you mean missed? Even if I got married, as long as there was nothing special going on, I would be in the city. How did you suddenly become so emotional like this?”

“Then, how did Nilla suddenly lose her love. So are you really going to become a maid?”

“Yes.”

Petronilla nodded calmly, and Patrizia was troubled. Anyways, she was the Queen, and her sister would marry someone else. So, as in the past, Nilla falling in love with the Emperor, at first sight, would not happen, but even if it did, her sister would not try to take over her position as her own.

If Nilla was there for her by her side, she would certainly feel more supported than she did now. Of course, she might also end up revealing a side to her that she didn’t want to show her…

“Okay, then.”

Nevertheless, Patrizia had absolutely no reason to refuse her. Anyways, she thought that the number of maids was a little short, and had been thinking about filling them in more. At the permission of the Empress, Petronilla made a small smile and expressed her joy.

“Ah, good. So I can stay with you all day long from now on?”

In the case of Petronilla, there was a high probability that she could freely commute because she would not enter officially as a lifelong maid like Mirya. Patrizia smiled and replied, “Yup. Maybe you can start coming to work next week.”

There was not much time left until next week. Patrizia smiled unconsciously, staring at her sister’s face, where she discovered both seriousness and joy at the same time.

Petronilla revealed her will to her parents in the evening when she returned to the estate of Marquis Grochester. Of course, the Marquess of Grochester had to be shocked by her words.

“Nilla, is everything I heard just now true?”

The Marquess of Grochester asked in a blistering voice. Of course, it wouldn’t be so unfortunate for Nilla to help Lizzy help her to live on in the Imperial Palace.

However, she did not want her daughters to become so closely linked to the Imperial Family and was hoping this wouldn’t happen for her. Petronilla’s sudden decision was enough to upset her.

However, in response to the Marquess’ reaction, Petronilla was still adamant.

“Yes, Mother. I’m going to enter that maid. You aren’t going to be against it?”

“No way. But it is surprising. You surely didn’t even want to be a Queeness a while ago. I thought you were thinking of building a wall against the Imperial Palace like Lizzy had done.”

“…”

My mom seemed to still be ignorant of the events, but her heart was still unchanged. She still did not like the Imperial Palace, and she did not intend to step in officially. However, there was only one reason she had made such a bold decision.

‘Patrizia.’

Lizzy was alone in the bloody Imperial Palace, and she felt uneasy to leave her sister alone there. She didn’t feel comfortable at all, so if that was the case, she thought that it would be better for her to keep her sister’s side as a maid.

Anyway, it wasn’t too bad either since she was not the Queeness or the Queen. It wasn’t a place where the maid could get married to the Emperor as well.

“It’s not that I’m going to be a maid for a lifetime, and I’ll be able to work freely, Mother and Father. I don’t know what you’re worried about, but nothing will happen.”

“I didn’t think of it like that, Nilla. As I said before, I was just a little surprised. Like… You seem to have become a different person.”

“…”

Petronilla laughed bitterly. On that day, the situation might have been different if she hadn’t seen what she did at the Imperial Palace. But she was already a witness, so she couldn’t ignore it. Petronilla said only in a volumeless voice.

“I guess I have gotten old too.”

Petronilla immediately entered the palace as soon as her sanction came through. It wasn’t that complicated, because Patrizia had taken care of it. There were no required conditions when allowing the Empress’ relatives or sisters in as maids because it was not such a special thing in the Marvinus Empire.

Petronilla, who first entered the Empress Palace as a maid, happily greeted Rafaella, who was guarding Patrizia’s side as a knight.

“Ella, I’ve heard the news, but it really is good news. It’s even better to see you here like this.”

“Me too, Nil. This is the first time since our Empress’ wedding reception?”

Rafaella lightly embraced Petronilla and greeted her warmly.

“Welcome to the Empress Palace. And more welcome to you who entered as a maid.”

Actually, she had been bored these days because there weren’t any maids her own age. Petronilla chuckled and smiled towards Rafaella who was giggling. Rafaella was still the same.

“Is it possible to know a little bit about my sister’s Majesty’s day, Mirya?”

However, it was Patrizia herself, not Mirya, who returned with the answer. She said in a bored voice, “There is nothing special, sister. I work all day, drink tea sometimes, then work again. I often take a walk and chat with the maids.”

Thankfully. Mirya, who was standing next to her as she made that comment, laughed and added one thing, “You read books often. Thanks to this, I have become very close to Lady Berthling these days.”

Viscountess Berthling was a noblewoman who was in charge of the library as the librarian. At the end of Mirya’s words, Patrizia smiled and then put an end to the topic.

“That’s all, Nil. Most likely, Nil won’t have anything to do with these.”

“The work, it isn’t hard?”

“It was difficult at first. Now, it is doable.”

Anything for the first time was difficult. In fact, Patrizia had never encountered the affairs of the Imperial Family in the past, so it was a great challenge for a beginner like her. Anyways, they said time was medicine, and now she was gaining some freedom from this tight life.

“I haven’t prepared for anything other than the last meeting with the wives of the envoys. Ah, no I have one more thing soon. Right, Sir Rafaella?”

“…”

“Sometime soon, a hunting competition will be held by the royal family. You probably know this as well Nil, but the prize is 100 billion gold.”

She was a little excited. Like the knight she was, it seemed to be quite interesting for those in this side. Patrizia smiled and asked her jokingly, “Can I look forward to this time, Sir Rafaella?”

“Don’t expect too much, Your Majesty. But I will try my best.”

For Your Majesty’s honor. Rafaella, who had answered energetically, remembered something and asked Patrizia with a slightly wide-opened look.

“Right, but will Your Majesty also participate this time?”

“Me?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. You know how to ride a horse. You know how to handle archery.”

“Oh my, really Your Majesty?”

Mirya asked in amazement, and Patrizia laughed awkwardly. Rafaella’s words were true. She knew she could ride a horse, and she could shoot with a bow. Of course, she wasn’t very good.

“I learned briefly in the past. With Nil. Right, Nil?”

“Yes indeed. But it wasn’t that good. However, Her Majesty was at a high level.”

“Oh my, are you serious?”

Petronilla’s exaggeration made Patrizia’s cheeks blush. She could just do a little bit. Shamefully when compared with Rafaella. Of course, Rafaella jumped around when she heard this.

“I’m not a Lady, but Your Majesty’s escort and knight, so I have to be more skilled than Your Majesty. If you are at a level comparable to me, Your Majesty should go with me to the military exercise hall right now and practice with me.”

“That’s right, Your Majesty. Aren’t you greedy? Sir Rafaella is not an unskilled fighter.”

For some reason, Patrizia laughed awkwardly at Mirya who looked at her with a warm smile and scratched her head. Soon after, Rafaella asked her as if urging her, “So, Your Majesty, are you going to participate? Perhaps the Emperor will also participate if there were no surprises.”

“…”

At those words, there was a silence that spread amongst the four people.