RXN 07

Chapter 7

She couldn’t speak the language, the lifestyle was unfamiliar, and above all, as nothing more than a mere slave, there seemed to be nothing she could do. If her destined fate was to live out a wretched existence as a slave here and die miserably, Roxanne had no intention of simply accepting her fate. Even if it meant breaking her entire body, she would throw herself against the wheel of Fortuna, the goddess of fate. She would survive by any means and return to Shengart to make those who had driven her father and brothers to their deaths pay the price in blood.

> *Roxanne, who had been mulling over the names of her enemies one by one — the King of the Kingdom of Rein, his half-brother Marquess of Crottin, and her own uncle the Grand Duke of Altenburg — suddenly remembered what the red-bearded pirate had said.*

– I heard that the Duchess will soon receive the King’s approval and marry Marquess of Crottin.

Roxanne shook her head.

‘No, my mother would never remarry the man who killed my father and brothers. That’s absurd.’

Nevertheless, a sense of unease lingered in a corner of her heart. If even her uncle had betrayed her father and sided with them, then a forced marriage, regardless of her mother’s will, was entirely possible for the sake of power. Whether voluntary or not, the mere thought of her mother remarrying Marquess of Crottin made her shudder. But for now, escaping this place and becoming free was the top priority, so she decided not to dwell on that matter any further.

‘But can I really escape from this place?’

No matter how tight the security, there must be a gap somewhere. The easiest method would be to bribe one of the people coming and going to get out. As Roxanne was mentally searching for escape routes, the door opened without a sound and Melis entered. Seeing Anna still asleep, unlike Roxanne who was already awake, she struck the floor loudly with her staff. Throwing a displeased glance at Anna, who startled awake and sat up, Melis spoke.

> *”From today, the two of you will learn to read and write in the Run language, as well as sewing, embroidery, singing, dancing — all the skills that can captivate the master. You will not be permitted to see the master until you can do all of these perfectly.”*

Roxanne was dumbfounded.

“So what changes when I meet the master?”

At Roxanne’s tone, which carried a clear note of impertinence, Melis shot her a sharp, warning glare.

“Of course, you will still be the master’s slave. But if you can hold his attention, you will escape this cramped room and rise to the highest place in the world. The fate that unfolds before you depends entirely on the master’s will. Of course, no matter how perfectly prepared you are, if the master does not desire you, you will not even see the hem of his robe. If that happens, you may remain locked in this room until you grow old and die.”

“If I find favor with the master, can I gain my freedom and escape the status of a slave?”

At Roxanne’s bold question, Melis smiled.

“What do you think freedom is?”

Looking at Roxanne, who could not answer readily, Melis replied.

> *”Freedom is power. Only those with power can oppress others, and only those with power can free themselves from everything that oppresses them. You do not have the power to escape this place now, but the master has the power to kill you or save you with a single word. So the only way for you to gain freedom is to make his power your own.”*

A meaningful smile spread across Melis’s face as she looked at Roxanne, who had fallen into deep thought with a most serious expression after hearing her words.

“It will be interesting to watch your attitude from now on.”

Murmuring as if to herself, Melis spoke to Anna and Roxanne.

“First, go to the great bathhouse at the end of the corridor and bathe. The servants there will help you wash and groom. Then come find me. And it would be wise for you to learn to bow that stiff neck of yours — no matter where, when, or whom you meet. Everyone here is either one of the master’s women or the attendants who care for them, and all of them are your superiors. Disposing of one or two newly arrived slave girls is as easy as bending a finger for them. So be especially careful not to earn anyone’s ill will.”

As Melis turned to leave, Roxanne stepped forward and asked urgently.

“Where is this place where I am standing right now? And who is the man you call your — and my — master?”

Turning around, Melis looked at Roxanne as if pitiful and clicked her tongue.

“Surely you haven’t been running your mouth all this time without even knowing where you are?”

“No one taught me. I only guessed that this was a very large estate, and that he might be a high noble, an official, or a wealthy merchant.”

> *”The place you think is an estate is the summer palace where the Emperor of the Run Empire resides, and where you are standing right now is the harem in the northern part of that summer palace.”*

“What?”

Roxanne thought she must have misheard. She doubted whether she was still dreaming and hadn’t woken up, but clearly, it was no dream.

“Then the person who brought me here that day — the one you call the master — is he the Emperor of the Run Empire?”

“Yes. He is the master of you and everything in the empire.”

“Good heavens!”

Dumbfounded, Roxanne tried to remember his face, but nothing came to mind. All she could recall was that the slightly upturned line of his lips was masculine, and his amber eyes looking at her. As Melis turned away, Anna followed her with quick, short steps, but Roxanne, still in shock, stood there blankly.

Suddenly, she remembered the stories she had heard about the cruel succession law of the Run Empire. The Run Empire did not guarantee primogeniture or the status of crown prince. Any son of the emperor, regardless of his mother’s status, could ascend the throne. However, to do so, he had to prove his own strength and ability. When the princes reached the appropriate age, they would gain political experience in various regions of the empire. Then, upon the emperor’s death, all the princes would compete with each other, and the most capable — that is, the strongest — would succeed the throne.

All the other princes who failed to become emperor, as well as their sons — even male infants — were put to death. The women were spared execution, but pregnant women were placed in sacks and thrown into the sea, just in case the child in the womb was male. This kind of kinslaying was extremely cruel, but it was an old unwritten law of the Run Empire, observed long before it was inscribed in law, to protect the emperor’s safety from rebellion — and it was certainly effective in suppressing treason.

In that sense, the current emperor was a fortunate man. Unlike his father, who had killed all nine of his brothers to seize the throne, he was an only son, so he could ascend without experiencing the horrific tragedy of bloodshed among kin. Thanks to this, while the previous emperor was feared and called the “Bloody Conqueror,” neighboring countries quietly harbored the prejudice that the new emperor, who had ascended without bloodshed, must be young and weak.

Of course, that was merely the wishful thinking of neighboring countries who did not want a strong neighbor — and it soon became clear. As soon as he ascended the throne, he ruthlessly turned his sword against vassal states that showed signs of breaking away from the empire’s control. By swiftly subduing rebellious forces that sought to exploit the chaos of the power transition, the young emperor firmly stamped his strong impression — no less than his predecessor — upon the empire and its neighboring nations from the very beginning of his reign.

Roxanne tried to recall every scrap of knowledge she had heard about the Emperor of the Run Empire. When she had overheard her father and brothers talking about the new emperor in the drawing room of Shengart, he had seemed like nothing more than a character in a story — unreal. But now, her fate lay in his hands. Though she had never dreamed of it, perhaps, on the other hand, this could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If she could make the emperor of this vast empire that ruled the southern continent her man, he would become the sharpest sword of vengeance against her enemies. Of course, there was no guarantee she wouldn’t be cut by that sword herself, but Roxanne, who had already lost so much, had nothing left to fear.

As Melis had said, even getting to see the emperor’s face would be difficult as a slave. But one positive thing was that the emperor had at least shown enough curiosity to personally bid for her at the auction. That was not a bad start. Roxanne resolved to stake her fate on the amber eyes of the emperor who was now her master.

> *’I will have the emperor. I will make his amber eyes look only at me. And I will use him and his empire as the source of power for my vengeance.’*

With her goal set, unlike before when she had wandered aimlessly not knowing what to do, she felt her heart grow firm.

Entering the great bathhouse with Anna, following Melis, Roxanne was so amazed by its grandeur and splendor that she let out an involuntary gasp. In the center of the domed space was a large, wide tub from which water continuously sprang forth, and shelves were installed along the walls — beautifully decorated with ornate tiles — for placing clothes and belongings. There were hot baths and steaming baths filled with hot vapor, as well as cold baths where one could wash off the sweat after working up a good sweat — all fully equipped.

It was completely different from the traditional sauna of Shengart, where one built a log cabin by the river, placed heated stones inside the chamber, and splashed cold water on them to create steam that warmed the body — then, when one could no longer bear the heat, opened the door and leaped into the river, breaking the ice. But in any case, the principle of sweating out impurities from the body was the same.

Throughout the spacious bathhouse, dark-skinned servants wearing wide cloths around their waists were noticeable. They washed the bodies of the women who came to the bathhouse, gave massages, dyed hair and nails with henna, and helped with makeup and grooming. When the women grew tired from bathing, they would sit in the small but cozy reception room beside the entrance of the bathhouse, eating cakes with sherbet or drinking coffee and chatting.