Chapter 9

Chapter 9

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“L-Leaving the palace?”

The  head maid’s eyes had an eerie light in them.

Riv shook her head and made excuses.

“I went out for a walk, madam.”

“Even if you want to leave the palace, it’s not time yet.”

“What do you mean? So, when can I get out of this palace?” Riv had wanted to go out since she was the queen’s maid.

Rather than liberating Riv, the queen had sent her to be her daughter’s maid.

“Until Princess Marianne marries, you must faithfully fulfll your role as the princess’s maid. Remember.”

She could not leave the palace until Marianne was married. If she violated the rule, even if she was alive, her body, her limbs wouldn’t be intact.

The head maid said, “The Queen is aware of Riv’s behaviour.”

Riv stared at the head maid, pretending to be terrified.

She, like Riv, was an old hand and worker of the queen. Her words were the will of Queen Selina.

“Riv Katana, there’s no way you’re getting out of the palace.”

“……”

“I don’t think it’s time yet.”

After she left, Riv was left alone in the princess’ parlour. She laughed helplessly in vain.

“Ha ha. Ha ha ha ha.”

Her eyes gazed at Marianne’s homework, which she hadn’t even done half of. Her hand, clenching the feather pen, was shaking wildly.

The black ink that fell from the pen spread over the paper.

‘Why should I live like this?’

Riv didn’t want to die. She only wanted to grab a chance. She didn’t want to die, trapped in a place like this all her life.

Princess Marianne woke up at the urging of the maids, as she did not have much time left. It was too early in the morning for her to fall asleep. Marianne, who was lying on the bed, was shaken up.

“Princess, you have to get up.”

“Why? I’m sleepy.”

When Marianne whined, the maid said in a troubled voice, “Queen Selina sent teachers.”

“My mother sent teachers?” Marianne thought her ears were wrong.

“W-What teachers?”

The head maid spoke up, “Queen Selina sent these people to educate you before you get married to Duke Sentoren. They’re waiting for you.”

“Why are the teachers here all of a sudden? Why did Mother send them?”

Marianne had a point.

“Is it because of what I said to Lionel at the banquet?”

Marianne’s sleep flew away, but she didn’t plan to get out of bed.

“Well, he did apologize to me and sent me a gift.”

“That’s right.”

“It’s a good thing I didn’t throw it away.”

“Yes, princess. Get up.”

“Can’t I just rest?”

“No, please get up. The queen will be angry.”

She forced Marianne to dress and groomed her. After a while, Marianne, sitting at her desk in the drawing room, started sulking.

In front of her was a pile of boring books.

“Why should I learn these things?”

The teachers were completely indifferent to Marianne’s whining. A couple of hours after the class began, Marianne was exhausted.

Every time she got something wrong, four maids were physically punished till they collapsed. Marianne pretended not to care whether the maids cried or shrieked in pain.

“Why do I have to learn these things!”

At best, if she was going to be a duchess, she didn’t have to learn foreign languages. After the foreign language class, Madame Hatasha was in charge of the court etiquette class. Marianne’s childishness didn’t work for her.

“You must not use such vulgar language.”

“Ugh!”

After barely passing Madame Hatasha’s class, mannerism and embroidery classes awaited. One light lunch later, music class followed without a break.

Marianne headed to the music room.

In the music room, there was a teacher; a young pianist, Trojan, who was waiting for Marianne.

“……!”

Marianne looked sideways at him and was conscious of the gaze directed at her.

“Princess Marianne, I’m Trojan, in charge of music. Today, I’m going to talk about manners and appreciation at the concert.”

Marianne was rarely this silent. Trojan was a handsome boy with blond hair and slender build and was popular among ladies.

She sat at the piano, watching him. Trojan also settled next to her. He gave a cheery smile.

“You look very tired for a beautiful princess.”

“Ah, I am.”

“Can you listen to my performance instead of practising today?”

“Alright.”

“I was inspired by a beautiful princess and wrote an Ode to the Angel.”

Only then did Marianne regain her vitality. She beckoned the maids at the entrance to the music room to go out.

They were the only ones left in the music room.

“I need Trojan to play something more than the piano. How about me?”

When Marianne grinned, fluttering her long eyelashes, Trojan responded.

Riv happened to come near the music room. She stopped when she heard a strange sound.

“…!”

In the music room, only a woman’s moan sounded, instead of piano notes.

The maids had hurriedly kicked her out and stomped their feet.

“……!”

Riv accidentally came near the stairs to the music room and hid herself when this noise entered her ears.

“Haaa.”

She hurriedly fiddled with her mother’s portrait necklace.

‘Yes, Marianne was having an affair with a pianist.’

Even the stunning pianist was just one of Marianne’s lovers.

This sight had been seen by her in the past.

Riv ran away from the music room.

***

In front of Lionel, a list of people was placed, suspected of being close to Marianne among male nobles who frequently entered the palace.

“Are these all Marianne’s lovers?”

“Probably, yes.” Butler Carl nodded.

“Hmm, Princess Marianne has an acquired taste. Young, slender blond men.” Lionel muttered in deep thought. “Is there any clear evidence that Marianne and those men were acquainted?”

“No, Princess Marianne and Queen Selina’s maids won’t be able to tell you because they’re afraid of the consequences.”

“Well, what’s the evidence that they are related to Marianne?”

“These names were selected from the list of those who visited the palace. It was written by the guards themselves.”

“Then, the guards may know the private life of the princess.”

“Yes.”

He thought Carl would do a better job of investigating.

Lionel’s forehead wrinkled.

“And what about Madame Katana?”

Butler Carl skimmed through the report.

“Madame Katana’s real name is Orivia de Katana.”

“So, Madame Katana actually exists. She’s not fake.”

“Yes, she’s quite known inside the palace.”

“Continue.”

“Madame Katana entered the palace seven years ago and soon after, she became Queen Selina’s maid. As for Princess Marianne, she has been her maid for over a year.”

“Hmm, how old is she?”

“She was 14 years old when she entered the palace as Count Katana’s adopted daughter. Even if it’s not accurate, she’s probably in her early 20s.”

Lionel knew the existence of Count Katana. The story of Count Katana losing his family fortune gambling and falling in love with women, to eventually get emancipated by his son, had circulated in the society.

“How many years ago did Count Katana die?”

“Maybe around three years ago. He had a lot of problems.”

Count Katana also continued to have scandals involving women. Twenty years ago, a scandal was pulled down after he married a woman and her daughter was adopted as his foster daughter.

“Count Katana remarried a woman from the estate, but she gave birth and died a few months later. The child she gave birth to is now Madame Katana, not the Count’s biological daughter.”

The story afterwards was nothing special.

The accident made him unable to have children. Since then, the count had completely fallen, and Count Katana blamed his daughter for all his misfortunes and beat her up. He sold his adopted daughter as a maid of the royal family.

He even squandered all the money she had earned from the palace.

“Count Katana died three years ago. Madame Katana, who became an adult at the time, sold the mansion and handled the remaining debts.”

“Where’s the eldest son of Count Katana?”

“Philip Katana became a priest twenty years ago after emancipating from his father. It would have been difficult for Madame Katana to contact him because he is currently missing.”

Lionel had a question there.

“Is she married?”

“She’s single.”

“But then, why Madame Katana?”

“It’s a nickname she got from the palace. Probably a nickname for her ugly appearance that makes her look a lot older than her age.”

“Ugly appearance?”

Lionel recalled the Madame Katana he had met. According to that report, Madame Katana is 21 years old and seven years younger than him. Madame Katana, whom he met, looked mature but still in her early 20s.

“What’s ugly about her? I don’t know why she deserves to be called Madame Katana.”

Butler Carl broke into a cold sweat at his words.

“Madame Katana is a strange woman with a huge body and pale face. She always wears mourning clothes.”

Perplexed, Lionel questioned, “Then, who the hell is the Madame Katana I met?”

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