Chapter 10.2

“Their wedding’s just around the corner, and the two of them are still so cold toward each other.”

Said one of the maids as she stripped the pillowcases. Her name was Donea, a veteran who had worked in the imperial palace for eight years.

“They’re getting married?”

Annie, one of the newer maids, gasped in surprise. She’d previously worked in the kitchens and hadn’t yet caught up with the palace’s latest gossip.

“The ceremony’s in two weeks.”

“Oh my… I had no idea. There hasn’t even been an official announcement.”

“It’s right around the anniversary of Princess Portia’s passing. And yet, Princess Esha still insisted on holding the wedding then. His Majesty only agreed because he had no other choice.”

Donea replaced the bedding and moved onto folding the blankets, taking initiative to help Annie, whose duties had recently shifted from kitchen to cleaning.

“Besides, the diplomatic situation is a mess, and things between the two of them are strained. The palace isn’t exactly in the mood for celebration.”

“Then why would Princess Esha… choose to hold her wedding near her sister’s… um, death anniversary?” Annie asked, confused.

Donea answered without missing a beat, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

“Princess Esha was terribly jealous of Princess Portia. No matter where she went, everyone always compared the two, but you can hardly blame them. Princess Esha… well, she doesn’t resemble the late Empress Deina in the slightest. She’s tall, her figure is a bit much, and her hair color is dull.”

“She is… quite tall, yes.”

“Exactly. I thought she’d never get married. But then Princess Portia died, and, well, that’s the only reason she’s getting married now—”

Before Donea could finish her sentence, the door swung open.
The mistress of the room had returned two hours earlier than expected. Donea froze where she stood, unable to even manage a greeting.

“P-Princess. We have yet to finish—”

“Cleaning?”

Esha leaned against the open door, tilting her head slowly.

“That’s strange. All I could hear was your chitter chatter.”

Donea felt as if her lungs had turned to stone. Without thinking, she stumbled forward and dropped to her knees before Esha.

“I’m sorry! Please forgive me, Your Highness! I spoke out of turn!”

Her shouts rang through the corridor. The other servants passing by quickly averted their eyes and slipped away.

Esha looked down at Donea, crouched and trembling like a dog at her feet. The woman’s shaking head almost inspired pity.

“You. The one in the back. Come here.”

Esha said, crooking a finger at Annie.

Still clutching the duvet cover in her hands, Annie hurried forward, visibly panicked.

“Do you agree with what she said?”

“P-pardon me?”

“Do you think I’m tall? That my figure’s too imposing? That my hair is dull, and that I don’t resemble my mother in any way?”

Annie shook her head violently, her twin braids swinging with the motion.

“Is that so? Then why did you just stand there and listen?”

Esha asked with a soft smile.

Annie couldn’t answer. The sheer force of Esha’s presence had left her mind blank.

Esha reached out and grabbed another maid passing by in the corridor. Gesturing at Annie, she gave her order.

“Take her away,” she said with cold precision, “and cut out her tongue.”

⋆༺˖° ♛ °˖༻⋆

“Prince Johan!”

Donea burst into Johan’s office, breathless. She had shoved past the guards who insisted she couldn’t see him without an appointment, throwing open the doors without permission. The one responsible for Princess Esha’s hysteria was also the only one who might be capable of stopping her.

She fell to her knees before Johan, who sat behind his desk, expression blank. The knights who had followed her tried to seize her by the arms and drag her out, but Johan’s quiet command to leave her made them release her at once.

“Your Highness, Princess Esha means to cut out a maid’s tongue! Please, you must stop her. I beg you…!”

At the sound of his fiancée’s name—so rarely spoken these days—Johan flinched. But the reaction was brief, and his expression quickly returned to its usual stillness.

“If it’s a matter concerning a maid, then it falls under the princess’s authority. It is not my place to interfere.”

“The girl’s name is Annie, Your Highness. She’s been in the palace less than two months, and she only just turned sixteen… Punish me if you must, but please, save Annie. I beg you.”

Donea’s voice trembled violently. The thought that her careless words might cost a young girl her tongue made her sick with guilt.

“Please, Your Highness…”

She slammed her forehead against the carpet. She hit it so hard that blood started to trickle down from a cut in her skin.

Johan lowered his gaze. It had been two years since he last saw Esha properly. Even if he did speak to her now, there was no guarantee she would listen.

But for someone to come begging, even to a powerless prince of a conquered state, it could only mean the situation was dire.

After a pause, he spoke.

“Let’s go.”