RPL 32

Chapter 32

What are you staring at, you embezzler?

That was what I was thinking, but I opened my mouth anyway.

My life had really taken a strange turn.

“It’s fin—”

“Hey. What are you doing? Why aren’t you moving?”

But Kiseira spoke before I could.

“What kind of useless maid are you supposed to be…?”

“Kiseira.”

“Did I say anything wrong?”

Yunid called her name as if trying to calm her down, but Kiseira refused to back down.

Maybe my decision to become a troublemaker wasn’t something I came up with out of nowhere. Maybe it’s just written into my DNA.

Watching Kiseira, that thought suddenly crossed my mind.

“You don’t serve a member of the imperial family properly, you don’t even understand basic criticism, and most importantly, who gave you the right to look down on royalty like that?”

The thing was, there wasn’t actually anything wrong with what she was saying.

Kiseira glared at Lydia with narrowed eyes.

“I-I’m sorry.”

Lydia’s face turned bright red as she stammered out an apology and bowed.

I couldn’t help laughing.

Even when she’d been trying to win me over, she’d never shown this level of respect.

So that’s the kind of person she is. Weak before the strong and strong before the weak.

If she’d been assigned as Kiseira’s maid, she probably would have devoted herself to serving her without a single complaint.

I clicked my tongue as I watched Lydia walk away to fetch some water.

“Why can’t you even manage a single maid properly?”

Kiseira looked at me with obvious disapproval.

“My mother said people who don’t do their jobs properly don’t deserve respect. So you should just do what I did and—”

“Kiseira.”

Once again, Yunid cut her off.

Kiseira pouted.

Her expression practically screamed, Why won’t you let me talk?

“But wait. You don’t even drink tea?”

Apparently deciding to change the subject, Kiseira spoke again.

“Kiseira.”

And once again, Yunid interrupted her.

“Ah! Why do you keep—”

“Yeah. I just don’t like the taste.”

I quickly cut in before another argument could start.

Tea actually contains a surprising amount of caffeine.

I didn’t think caffeine would be good for a young, frail body like mine.

Of course, the amount varied depending on the type of tea, but I didn’t know enough to tell the difference—and I had no interest in learning.

So I’d simply decided not to drink tea at all.

“Of course you don’t like it. The tea here is terrible.”

Kiseira, who had been staring at me, suddenly spoke as if she’d never been yelling at Yunid in the first place.

“I should’ve brought you some high-quality tea leaves as a gift.”

“And that would have been an excellent idea.”

Yunid accepted her comment as naturally as if nothing had happened.

As I listened to them, I picked up the cup of water Lydia had brought me.

Which brings me back to the original question—why are you two here?

I took a sip, trying to swallow both my uneasiness and my complete inability to understand this situation.

“…”

“…”

At the exact same moment, both Yunid and Kiseira stared at me with expressions of complete shock.

A few seconds later, Kiseira frowned.

“Are you not receiving an education?”

Now what was that supposed to mean?

“I haven’t heard anything about a tutor being selected for Princess Reijina, so…”

Yunid set his teacup down gracefully.

“Shouldn’t a maid at least be responsible for basic education?”

Then he smiled pleasantly at Lydia.

“After all, that’s one of the reasons maids exist.”

Kiseira immediately turned toward Lydia.

Lydia had gone pale.

Apparently, being criticized once again wasn’t something she’d expected.

“W-Well, that’s…”

She glanced at me with an aggrieved expression.

She probably wanted to say that it wasn’t her fault I was an uncivilized little beast who couldn’t even be educated.

But if she said that, Kiseira would probably start another uproar over someone disrespecting a member of the imperial family.

“Lady Reijina isn’t ready to begin her education yet.”

After a brief pause, Lydia finally answered.

“Ready? What do you mean, ready?”

Unfortunately, the carefully chosen response only seemed to irritate Kiseira even more.

Her deeply furrowed brow made that much obvious.

“What kind of preparation does a member of the imperial family need? And even if preparation was necessary, how would you know anything about it?”

“N-No, that’s not what I—”

“Hey! You’re looking down on her, aren’t you? You are! How dare you treat royalty like this—!”

“Because of my health!”

As Kiseira jumped to her feet, I raised my voice and interrupted her.

Both Kiseira and Lydia immediately turned toward me.

“My health hasn’t been very good, so I decided I’d start studying after I recovered.”

I certainly wasn’t saying that to save Lydia from having Kiseira grab her by the hair.

I only wanted to keep the argument from escalating and accidentally revealing that Kiseira had been visiting me.

“That’s right! That’s exactly why!”

Lydia quickly agreed, turning toward Kiseira.

No matter what her motives were, I was the one who had just helped her.

And yet, instead of showing even the slightest gratitude, she was busy trying to win over the very person who’d nearly attacked her.

Honestly, she wasn’t a very likable woman.

“…”

Kiseira looked back and forth between the two of us before finally sitting back down.

From everything I’d seen of her personality, I’d expected her to ask, Why is your health so bad?

But instead, she pressed her lips together and said nothing.

For just a moment, her face looked strangely dark.

Hmm. I don’t understand her at all.

She was supposed to be the villain who hated me.

And I’d already earned her resentment.

There was even a budding hostility between us.

It made no sense that she kept coming to see me.

And the way she seemed genuinely angry on my behalf was even harder to understand.

For my sake?

I let out a dry laugh and finished my water.

Kiseira took tremendous pride in being a member of the imperial family.

So even if she disliked me, she probably couldn’t stand seeing another royal being treated with disrespect.

That had to be the reason.

“Even if formal education hasn’t started yet, I’m doing everything I can to help Lady Reijina recover.”

Lydia quietly moved to the seat beside me.

Then, while cautiously gauging Kiseira’s reaction, she began talking nonsense.

“As you can see, the conditions here are quite poor. Lady Reijina also dismissed all the palace staff. So I have to take care of everything myself, one thing at a time…”

Lydia kept rambling, clearly trying to explain away all the situations that had made her look bad in front of Kiseira.

Watching her, I suddenly remembered something she’d said before.

“You can’t treat guests that rudely.”

“I’ll keep it a secret, but tell them to come again next time. And apologize for how rude you were today.”

“If they come back, I wonder what kind of tea I should serve them.”

Lydia had been sent here under the Empress’s orders.

Of course she wanted to make a good impression on Kiseira, the Empress’s daughter.

And if Lydia had accepted this assignment in hopes of currying favor with the future heir to the throne, that only made even more sense.

Which meant she might be using this unexpected encounter to leave a positive impression on Kiseira.

Well, well…

A crooked smile spread across my face.

So she’d wanted this, too.

And yet she’d still used my request as leverage to manipulate me.

Still, I wasn’t about to take any unnecessary risks.

If I could afford to gamble, it wouldn’t be a real weakness in the first place.

I need something safer. Something more reliable…

My eyes darted back and forth between Lydia and Kiseira.

Lydia had come here to earn the Empress’s favor and secure greater rewards in the future, especially once Kiseira eventually became Emperor.

“Isaac… the family willing to cut open the goose that lays golden eggs.”

Just as Yunid had said.

Her father was a greedy man.

And if greed was her weakness…

“It’s hard to find a maid as capable as me, don’t you think, Lady Reijina?”

After talking endlessly, Lydia finally turned to me as if asking for my agreement.

“…Yeah. I guess so.”

My half-hearted response made Lydia narrow her eyes for a moment.

Then she quickly softened her expression.

“Oh, you’re making me blush, Lady Reijina.”

And then she laughed shamelessly.

A capable maid? Please.

You’re an embezzler.

* * *

“Ah…”

Lydia stared across the table with a horrified expression.

Reijina was shoveling food into her mouth so aggressively that she looked ready to bury her entire face in the bowl.

What is wrong with her? Seriously.

For days she’d barely touched her food, picking at it so little that it ruined everyone else’s appetite.

And now this?

“Cough!”

Reijina suddenly started choking after stuffing too much food into her mouth.

There really was no middle ground with that princess.

Reluctantly, Lydia pushed a glass of water toward her.

If she threw up and collapsed again, Lydia would be the one stuck taking care of her.

“Thanks.”

Reijina gulped down the water and grinned, her face smeared with sauce.

The sight was enough to destroy whatever affection Lydia might have had left.

She’s getting worse and worse.

Had she simply given up after realizing Lydia had gained leverage over her?

At some point, Reijina had started treating Lydia much more casually.

Like a real child.

Completely unguarded.

Was that why she kept doing these rude, uncivilized things that irritated Lydia so much?

When I first heard that the Empress was looking for a maid for Princess Reijina, I never imagined she’d be like this.

Remembering that moment, Lydia let out a deep sigh.

If she’d known even a little more beforehand, she never would have listened to her father.

“Listen carefully. This is an opportunity.”

To some extent, Lydia agreed with the nickname people gave her father:

Isaac—the man willing to cut open the goose that lays golden eggs.

Her father was definitely too greedy.

But this time, even Lydia thought it was a worthwhile opportunity.

The Empress had begun gathering supporters and strengthening her position long ago on behalf of the young imperial heir.

Before Reijina escaped her confinement, Kiseira had been the only imperial grandchild.

Because of that, the Empress’s faction had grown rapidly until it was practically overflowing with supporters.

Even if Princess Kiseira eventually becomes Crown Prince and ascends the throne, the rewards we’ll receive at that point will be insignificant.

That was why Lydia’s father wanted to act now, while there was still a chance to gain something greater in the future.

“Why do you think the Empress is really looking for a maid for a princess she considers nothing more than a thorn in her side?”

The strange rumors and newspaper articles might have forced the Empress to worry about public opinion.

But was that really the only reason?

Could it truly be as simple as wanting someone to take care of an unwanted princess?

“This could be dangerous. But the rewards for our family will be equally great. Never forget that, and act carefully.”

As soon as Lydia agreed, her father sent her to the Empress.

And that was how she became Reijina’s lady-in-waiting.

“…”

Lydia closed her eyes tightly as she watched Reijina scooping food into her mouth with both hands.

Reijina was a beast.

Plain and simple.

Even so, Lydia had tried to follow her orders.

After all, Reijina was still a princess of noble birth.

Maybe, with a little guidance, she could change.

At least, that’s what I used to think.

But Reijina wasn’t simply a beast.

She was a wild animal.

One that couldn’t be educated.

And one that couldn’t be tamed.