CH 8

[Siana’s POV]

There is a separate space to cook in the big castle, but there was no separate space to cook in the Ruby Palace.

So Siana got food from the central dining room.

Today’s dish was brown bread, round grapes, white milk, and thick grilled salmon.

It’s simple for a princess’s dinner, but it’s much better than what the maids eat. It must be delicious.’

Siana gulped and entered Aris’s room.

“Princess, I brought you a meal.”

However, Aris frowned as soon as she saw the meal.

“There are only foods that I don’t like. All right, just bring some snacks.”

“… …”

“What are you doing without bringing it quickly?”

The master’s words are absolute. Whatever the words are, they must be obeyed.

‘But… you’re too picky.’

Siana looked at Aris and at the hearty meal alternately then spoke as if she had made up her mind.

“Princess, it’s not good to eat snacks for a meal. If you really want to eat it, why don’t you eat a little before you eat?”

“Why?”

Seeing her wide-eyed face as if she really didn’t know, Siana was taken aback.

“That’s because you can’t grow up healthily just by eating snacks. Especially for a child like the princess.”

Aris raised her eyes with a look of complete disbelief.

“Don’t lie. Even if I only ate snacks, I’ve grown well so far.”

Siana had a bad feeling.

‘No way…’

Siana looked over at Aris with a hard face.

She was so skinny that she could not find any fat.

She was also small.

Siana only thought it was because Aris was young. I also thought that she was very good at speaking for such a young age.

But if that was an illusion… …

Siana asked in a slightly lowered voice.

“Princess, excuse me, how old are you?”

“I’m ten years old, why?”

You look like you’re only about eight years old!

Siana touched her throbbing forehead.

I knew Princess Aris had not been properly cared for.

Her behavior was that of a beggar, and her behavior was as rough as those of children from the back alley.

I haven’t seen her study anything all day.

‘But they should have kept the minimum.’

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It was a big problem that the child led an irregular life to the extent that she could not grow up to her age.

Something inside Siana stirred.

It was a responsibility as an elder, not as a maid.

“Princess Aris.”

Hearing a completely different low voice from before, Aris’ eyes widened and looked at Siana.

The atmosphere of Siana, who had been messing around, had changed.

Siana looked down at Aris and said.

“I’ll give you snacks when you’re done eating. So……”

“… … .”

“Eat first.”

If you don’t put this bread in your mouth right away, you’ll see something scary.

-Why does it sound like that ?

Aris’ shoulders involuntarily shrank.

* * *

Aris usually woke up long after sunrise.

It was because there was no one to wake Aris. It was only natural that she would become ferocious like an animal if one woke her up.

However, these days Aris’ morning has changed.

Tok tok.

Siana’s voice was heard with a knock.

“Princess, the morning has come when both the sun and the birds wake up. Get up.”

‘Hmph, who knew someone would wake me up.’

Aris closed her eyes tightly and pulled the blanket over her head.

Siana, who had entered the room before she knew it, continued to speak toward the immobile cocoon.

“Today’s breakfast menu is a stew full of chicken and potatoes, crispy cheese cookies, and refreshing strawberry salad… …”

“… …”

“You look tired, so I’ll have to grab a bite to eat.”

At those words, Aris widened her eyes.

A few days ago, Aris woke up from a deep sleep and asked Siana to bring her breakfast.

But all Siana brought was white milk and a thick salad.

It was a terrible meal for Aris, who hates milk and vegetables the most in the world.

“What is this terrible thing? Bring me a proper breakfast!”

“This is all for breakfast. I ate all the cream bread and grilled chicken for breakfast this morning.”

Aris’ eyes widened at the absurd remark.

Aris looked at Siana with a stunned face and shouted.

“Are you crazy? Who are you to eat my meat?”

Seeing the angry young master, Siana said with an unfair expression.

“I was just following the imperial rule. It is customary for the imperial family to eat at a set time, and then attendants eat the leftover food.”

“What?”

“Thanks to the princess not having breakfast at all, I ate it.”

-She smiled while holding the protruding stomach.

Aris screamed frantically with a furious look.

“Give me my meat! If you don’t give it out now, I won’t forgive you!”

When she beat them like this, the maids would tremble and listen to her.

However, Siana said calmly.

“Yes, go ahead.”

She only spoke politely, but her eyes said, ‘What are you going to do with me?’

And that day, really, Siana didn’t give any other food until lunchtime.

Aris, who was so hungry, had to eat salad and milk with a terrible look on her face.

Recalling that time, Aris threw the blanket and jumped up.

“Got up! I got up! Just take it back!”

“Oh my goodness.”

Looking at Siana with her eyes wide open, Aris began to munch on food in her mouth.

She looked like she would never lose even a crumb of bread.

Seeing that, Siana smiled inwardly.

‘It’s easy to feed a child.’

Once you know hunger, any child will eat well.

How do I know?

‘Cause I’ve been through it.’

Of course, it wasn’t for the purpose of improving my eating habits like now.

It was a simple punishment.

The new queen would often lock young Siana in her room because of poor dining etiquette.

At such times, Siana could not eat anything all day and would starve.

‘Of course, I don’t intend to do such a harsh thing to the princess, but this level will be fine. It’s important to ensure proper nutrient intake.’

The strategy, ‘If I don’t eat now, Siana will eat all the delicious food~’ worked well.

PLEASE Read only at PM Translations

Aris cleaned up the food in an instant. However, there was something that caught Siana’s eyes.

‘You ate it without salad.’

Vegetables are an important element for the healthy growth of children.

You have to eat well.

Siana carried out a second operation.

“Kyaaa, you left me a lot of my favorite salad in the world. I’m glad!”

“… … !”

At that, Aris began to stare at the salad on the plate.

Siana hid her smile and looked at Aris.

‘Bite it, bite.’

The young fish took the bait again today.

“I’m not done yet!”

Aris scraped all the remaining vegetables.

Then she made a triumphant expression toward Siana.

“You said the attendant would eat the leftover food after the master ate it, right? There’s nothing left. You should starve yourself today.”

[Princess Aris’ POV]

How will the cheeky maid who bothers me every morning react?

Would you be annoyed?

Would you be angry?

Would you be sad?

But Siana’s reaction was completely different from Aris’ thoughts.

Siana smiled brightly and stroked Aris’ small head.

“You did a great job. As expected, our princess is the best.”

“… …”

Siana took her hand off Aris’ head with a surprised face.

“I did something reckless without realizing it. Forgive me.”

“… …”

“Princess Aris?”

Aris’ face turned redder than the carrot she just ate.

“I’m done eating, so don’t bother me anymore and get out!”

“Yes.”

At times like these, she was as nimble as a mouse.

Step step step, Siana left the room with an empty plate.

Aris, who was alone, grabbed the head that Siana had been stroking with both hands and shouted.

“What, what the hell!”

It was too arrogant to dare to say this and that to the princess despite being a low-ranking maid.

But Siana’s insolence did not end there.

***

[Princess Aris’ POV]

“Princess~”

What Siana held in both hands, who kindly called Aris, was a soft sponge and soap.

Realizing what that meant, Aris stepped back.

“I hate touching the water. I hate making bubbles. So take those horrible things out now!”

Aris’ spirit as she glared at Siana was ferocious. If she took even one step closer, she would scratch at her.

Siana did not approach Aris any further. Instead, she spoke in a serious voice with bath items in her hands.

“Do you know what happens if you don’t wash properly?”

Aris furrowed her eyebrows, suddenly wanting to say something.

Siana continued her words with lowered eyes.

“Little bugs that like dirty things lay eggs in the body. The larvae born from the eggs gnaw at people’s hair and skin with the happiest faces in the world. They poop too. They also fart sometimes.”

Aris’ face turned pale at the terrible words.

Aris shook her head, covering her greasy hair, which hadn’t been washed for days, with both hands.

“D, don’t say nonsense. I’ve never seen a bug like that.”

“I’m telling you……. Princess, doesn’t your head tickle?”

“… …”

“Crunch crunch, doesn’t it feel like something small is passing by? It’s the insect that nibbles on it.”

Siana’s face was too serious to say it was a joke. She didn’t seem like a liar.

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At that moment, Aris’ head tickled.

“Argh!”

Aris ran to Siana and clung to her.

“Hurry and wash it up! Hurry!”

Aris had to entrust herself to Siana.

The face of Aris, who was squatting in the bathtub, was filled with fear.

Aris hated taking a bath since she was a child. The maids did not bother to wash Aris.

But not when there was an important royal occasion. No matter how bad it is, a princess is a princess.

The princess could not attend the event in a dirty manner.

So the maids caught Aris and forcibly washed her.

They roughly suppressed her petite body, which was fussing with dislike, and rubbed her head vigorously and poured water on her mercilessly.

At that time, the soapy water got into her eyes and it hurt so much that Aris had to shed tears.

‘Still, it’s better than having the whole head eaten by bugs. Let’s hold it in.’

Aris closed her eyes in anticipation of the pain to come.

“… …”

But Siana’s touch didn’t hurt one bit. Far from being painful…

‘It’s refreshing!’

It felt so good to scratch the itchy places with thin fingers.

But the hair washing doesn’t end here.

The rinse, which Aris feared the most, remained.

A towel was placed over Aris’ face, who had closed her eyes tightly to prevent soapy water from getting in.

Siana’s soft voice was heard.

“This way, you will never get soapy water into your eyes.”

So don’t be scared.

It seemed to say so.

Aris unwittingly relaxed her shoulders.

Dripping.

Warm water flowed through my hair. As Siana said, the soapy water did not flow into my eyes at all.

It was the first time that tears did not come out while washing my hair.

After rinsing her hair several times with clean water, Siana slowly removed the towel from Aris’ face.

It was covered with a towel, but in the open field of view, Siana was smiling.

“You washed your hair bravely.”

“…….”

So why are you making such a proud face.

You’re just a maid.

Aris bit her lip with a complicated face.

“It’s okay now, right?”

“Not yet. You even have to dry your hair. Bugs like wet hair too.”

“That damn bug! Why does it like so many things?”

“That’s what I want to know… Bad bug. I’ll have to give it a beating.”

Siana replied with a serious face and started drying Aris’ red hair.

She just patted my wet hair with a towel, but it felt strangely good.

So Aris didn’t say much this time, and quietly entrusted herself to Siana.

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The thin hair soon dried.

Siana looked at her silky hair and said.

“What do you say, princess? Can you feel that the bugs disappeared after washing your hair?”

It was as Siana said.

Her hair, which had always been itchy, was cool and refreshing.

Not wanting to admit it meekly, Aris stuck out her lips instead of answering.