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Chapter 11




“Oh my God, it’s already time.”
The sun was already setting before I knew it.
Senior Maid Wember opened her mouth while slightly pulling me.
“The maid is going to serve Her Majesty’s meal so we can have our dinner first.”
“Can we do that?”
<b>“</b> Of course, there’s no one who starves in the Empress’ Palace.” the senior maid answered with a mischievous smile.
She patted my shoulder gently.
“You can look forward to today’s dinner.”
“Pardon?”
“The Imperial Palace’s cuisine is well-known for how delectable it is. You won’t be disappointed.”
‘That’s amazing!’
‘If she said that, then it must be very delicious, right?’
My eyes brightened with anticipation.
“You’re hungry, aren’t you? Let’s go.”
“Yes!”
Wember burst into laughter upon seeing my excitement.
Her chuckling ceased as she walked ahead, guiding me to the dining hall as I followed after her.
* * *
Meanwhile…
At the center of the spacious dining room, the Empress sat absentmindedly.
She showed no interest in the food set before her.
Instead, she asked, “How is Charlize doing?”
“Pardon, Your Majesty?”
At the sudden question, Hayden, the head maid standing beside her, tilted her head in confusion.
The Empress asked once more.
“It’s her first day at this palace. Do you think she’s adapting well?”
“Yes, it seemed so to me.”
“Oh…”
The Empress’ expression seemed to relax at the answer.
Lady Hayden smiled and added, “She’s an adorable child. She’s very friendly and quick-witted.”
“…right, Charlize really is an adorable child.”
On the Empress’ frigid face, a vague smile spread for the first time.
The head maid, looking at her smile, spoke carefully, “But I think the child’s growth is a little late.”
At that remark, the Empress’ face turned sour.
In general, children over five years old were mostly articulate unless they have problems in their early years.
Children, especially girls, tended to develop their linguistic skills very quickly, however, Charlize’s verbal ability was still lacking.
“Although, I think her vocabulary level and judgement is far superior to her peers…”
The head maid continued in a suspicious tone.
“It’s just a lingual ability. Is there something wrong with it?”
“That’s…well, it’s much better than before.”
The Empress let out a sigh.
“When I first met Charlize, her speaking skills were clumsier than they are right now.”
“What do you mean, Your Majesty?”
“It turned out, she’s been neglected in the maids’ education hall.”
At first, the Empress didn’t hold much interest in Charlize.
She just thought the young maid was interesting.
<b>(TL/N : Italic signifies flashback.)</b>
She had felt pity for Charlize, who was smiling innocently at her.
After that day, the Empress had investigated Charlize’s background.
From the investigation, she found out that ever since Charlize’s mother, a maid, had abandoned her, Charlize has been living a dreadful life as a maid.
The people of the maid education hall were too busy with their work and Charlize’s presence seemed like a nuisance to them.
When the child would try to speak, someone would scold her.
“You useless mute, you’re a waste of space in our education hall!”
Ever since she heard their harsh remarks, Charlize chose to keep her mouth shut. As time passed by, the child’s speaking ability continued to deteriorate.
And in such a state, she met the Empress.
“I think Charlize is afraid to talk to anyone.”
“…Your Majesty the Empress.”
“So I drove out the probationary maids who were harassing Charlize…”
The Empress narrowed her eyes.
They were all maid-in-trainings, yet they kept ordering Charlize to carry out their chores.
The moment she heard Charlize cry, her logical side was long gone.
So she made her own decision.
She sent in a head maid and transferred the probationary maids who were harassing the child.
But despite doing such measures, Charlize’s life remained miserable.
“It was my mistake.”
“What do you mean, Your Majesty?”
“When I exerted my influence, it only made Charlize suffer even more.”
The Empress might have been able to prevent some of the harassment from happening, but even if she had done so, she still couldn’t prevent the persecution that Charlize faced behind the head maid’s back.
“Besides, it seems that Charlize doesn’t want me to get involved in her problems.”
Thus, the Empress changed her mind.
She took Charlize to her own palace, where her eyes could reach.
Also as a way to reveal her identity as the Empress, however, her identity wasn’t revealed the way she had planned it to be.
The Empress sighed once again.
Charlize’s face paled from shock was still fresh in her mind.
‘I never wanted to disappoint her.’
‘What if she had revealed her identity from the beginning? Would the result differ?’
Her desire to get along with Charlize seems to have ruined their relationship.
The Empress bit her lips in exasperation as she asked Hayden a question.
“Anyway, do you think she likes the palace?”
“It seems so, Your Majesty. On the way to the palace, she was looking at the palace with great excitement.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
Inside her dark green eyes, there was a hint of relief.
The Empress murmured, “Well, Charlize has only lived in the probationary maids’ education hall so far…”
It was heartbreaking to think that Charlize had lived in that poor environment for five years.
The Empress, who shook her head to shake off her thoughts, asked again.
“What kind of room did you give her?”
“As you’d ordered, I’ve assigned the best room.”
“You’ve arranged all the furniture, haven’t you? Beddings too?”
“Of course,” Hayden said, nodding her head.
The Empress hesitated for a moment.
In fact, there was a question she really wanted to ask.
But to bring this question up… she felt guilty.
Charlize might have thought that she was bribing her, trying to flatter her with materialistic things.
“So…she liked it?” the Empress eventually asked.
“Yes, she seemed very pleased.”
The maid answered in a dull manner, not sparing much thought to it.
Only then did the Empress’ expression lighten.
The head maid unconsciously spoke.
“I felt better when I saw her smiling.”
“Did you?”
“Yes. As you’ve said, I don’t think she has ever been cared for.”
Head Maid Hayden continued on; lowering her eyes as she recalled the little girl’s expression.
“So I felt a bit sympathetic for her…oh my.”
The head maid soon frowned.
It was because she thought that she had spoken for too long.
She bowed her head in apology, “I feared that I have talked too much. My apologies, Your Majesty.”
“No, you can speak freely of Charlize,” the Empress waved her hands, relieving the head maid from the bow.
The head maid looked at the Empress sideways.
It felt strange.
‘It’s been a long time since the Empress had such an expressive demeanor.’
The head maid recalled the time when the Empress was just a small girl.
She was the nanny who had raised the Empress since she was young.
The Empress had been extremely restrained ever since she entered the palace.
She did her responsibility as the Empress, though she had no affection for her husband.
‘But after she met Charlize, the girl seemed to add a little bit of color to her life.’
Although she seemed to be heartbroken now, Hayden deemed the emotion itself positively.
It’s the first time the Empress showed that she was worried, happy, and curious about someone ever since she entered the palace.
The Empress asked once more, “What about supplies such as clothes and boots?”
“Do not fret, Your Majesty. I am thinking of providing her with enough supplies.”
“Yes, I see. What about her dinner?”
“She’ll eat with Senior Maid Wember first.”
The Empress slightly pouted her lips at the remark.
She stabbed the salad with the fork in frustration.
“I want to have dinner with Charlize too.”
“Pardon, Your Majesty?”
“Nothing.”
The Empress pretended as if she had said nothing and turned her head away.
After a while, the Empress spoke again, “She will do well on her own, so I won’t say much, but please remember.”
“What do you mean, Your Majesty?”
“Charlize, she’s a very cute, nice, and innocent child.”
‘…?’
The head maid was speechless when she heard the Empress’ words that resembled a doting parent.
The voice of the Empress soon turned fierce.
“So you should never upset her, is that clear?”
“Yes, I’ll keep that in mind.”
The head maid replied anxiously.
She hadn’t even touched her meal yet.
“Then you should also eat.”
“No, I don’t have an appetite.”
“When Charlize finds out that Your Majesty has been skipping her meals, she’ll surely be upset.”
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The Empress’ shoulders stiffened at the remark.
She quietly raised her head up.
“…she wouldn’t, would she?”
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Nox
Diya
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