TCORIYH - Chapter 16

However, Judith could not openly defend Mary Anne. Other maids were no problem, but Helen, the Marchioness, was the problem.

She stayed by Judith's side and watched her from time to time, looking for something to tell the Queen. She said that Judith, who was busy embroidering dozens of handkerchiefs one by one, had been sent by the Queen, and urged her to memorize the genealogical chart of the Rotair royal family. She also gave an unnecessary speech about the etiquette she should follow as the Prince's wife.

Judith endured all the tyranny quietly and as if nothing had happened. She had already noticed that the maids brought in by Helen were harassing Mary Anne, but she did not scold her or call Mary Anne to stay with her.

It's impossible to waste all your attention on petty fights. If you want to uproot the weeds, you must gradually rake up the weeds that have grown unevenly.

“Have you memorized the genealogy chart?”

Helen came up next to Judith, who was drinking tea to rest her sore throat from embroidering with her head down for a long time. Judith folded her small hands on the table and looked up at her quietly.

I hate these eyes. Helen thought.

As she had the status of a Marchioness and was the Queen's right hand, there was no way she would be afraid of such a pale princess. In reality, she was not afraid of Judith, but her indifference, which was not befitting her age, was somewhat disturbing. Helen blamed the unexplainable discomfort on Judith's quiet eyes. Those eyes that say I won't care what you do or what you do to me.

“I memorized it all, so why are you asking that?”

Helen looked visibly embarrassed at Judith's answer, but soon stiffened her mouth.

“You memorized everything?”

“Didn’t I say so?”

This is unbelievable. Helen thought Judith was lying. The genealogy chart of the Rotair royal family was so complex that, if laid out, it could easily cover the long table in the drawing room.

Even just looking at the direct lineage and not the collateral lineage, it would have taken several days to memorize it or not, but it was only yesterday morning that she gave Judith the genealogy chart. Judith only looked at the genealogy chart for a short time and the rest of the time she was embroidering.

“Your Highness, memorizing the royal family tree is a duty that you must fulfill as a member of the Rotair royal family, and because of the seriousness of this duty, the Queen Mother has given you a solemn command. But why do you tell a lie in front of me, who conveyed the orders of the Queen Mother?”

“How do you know whether what I say is false or not?”

“That’s it..."

Helen was momentarily speechless. It was an order that made no common sense to give her just a few days to memorize the entire complicated genealogy chart. However, if she admits that fact, the Queen would be giving an unreasonable order to the Princess who had just become a member of the royal family.

Helen didn't want to believe that Judith had calculated such a thing. Helen thought that the young girl was just stubbornly insisting because she didn't want her pride to be undermined.

“Then would you mind checking it?”

“You mean that?”

A sneer appeared on Judith's lips as she looked up at an angle.

“If you really memorized everything, what’s there to worry about?”

“There is nothing to hesitate about. However, you seem to think that I cannot even memorize the entire genealogy chart and that I am lying. However, even if I prove to you that I have memorized the entire genealogy chart, I wonder whether it will be properly conveyed to the Queen Mother.”

“Princess, what do you mean? Do you think I would intentionally tell a lie to the Queen Mother?”

As Helen's voice suddenly grew louder, the maids who were watching began to whisper. Judith glanced at the old woman’s puffy face and lightly shrugged her shoulders.

“Unless the Queen Mother has ordered you to check whether I have memorized the entire genealogy tree, there is no need for me to obey your words. If you are wondering whether what I am saying is false, go right now and tell the Queen Mother that I have memorized the entire genealogy chart. Then the Queen Mother will call me and check.”

“Princess!”

“I know that you are here to assist me under the Queen Mother’s orders, so I also want to respect you.”

Suddenly, Judith's voice took on a sharp tone. It was a moment when Helen's spirit faltered as the atmosphere was completely different from before.

“You are the mistress of a historic Marquis and a maid who served the Queen Mother, and I have only just arrived here. I knew the difference, so I knew you were treating me like this but didn’t say anything, but if you’re going to keep treating me this way, I have my own thoughts.”

“No, what is that...!”

Helen's narrow face became red. Just as she was about to shout out what she was saying, one of the maids walked in quickly, looked at the two of them and said,

“Oh my, the Princess. A guest has arrived.”

“Who did you say you were?”

“This is the daughter of the Marquis of Ebelta, Your Highness.”

Judith's eyes sparkled when she heard the maid's words. Helen looked at even that with suspicions. Although she had never personally met the daughter of the Marquis Ebelta, she was familiar with the rumors circulating in social circles. It is said that the Marquis took care of his only daughter and raised her with such care that even when she reached the age before the coming-of-age ceremony, she was as immature as a colt.

'What kind of relationship do you have with the Marquis of Ebelta?'

The Marquis was not a man of poor judgment, but he was also not a very ambitious person. The Queen tried several times to attract him, who owned part of the salt sales rights, but she never succeeded. However, Helen understands that he is not connected to the Duke of Vergy. But why would the daughter of the Marquis Ebelta come to see Judith alone?

“Please bring the guest to the parlor.”

“Yes, Princess.”

Judith stood up, deliberately pretending not to see the confused Helen. The door from the inner bedroom to the drawing room was closed, and as soon as she reached for the doorknob to open the door, her eyes began to flutter and her nose felt stuffy.

What kind of face should I see her with? 

In her past life, Judith received countless help from Cheraan. As Franz lost his sanity, it was Cheraan's power that supported Judith, who was naturally in danger. She couldn't even repay that gratitude, and Cheraan ended up losing her life.

In this life, I will repay that debt. 

Judith pressed one of her hands to her chest and opened the door to the drawing room.

The tall back and round red hair caught her eye first of all. Cheraan turned at the sound of the door opening, and her face looked younger than Judith remembered. Judith's efforts to calm her mind were broken down by the lively smile of Cheraan.

“Greeting, Princess!”

As soon as she saw her, Cheraan saw Judith shedding tears and came running to her with a bewildered look on her face. The hand that hurriedly took out the handkerchief and wiped her cheek was as gentle as her sister or her mother, and Judith sobbed, covering her face.

***

“Are you calm down?”

The two were sitting across from each other with a steaming cup of tea in front of them. Judith smiled humbly, rubbing the corners of her bright red eyes and the tip of her nose.

“I was rude when we first met, Miss Ebelta.”

“Call me Cheraan.”

Judith's expression became a little brighter at Cheraan's words.

“Cheraan.”

“I was really surprised. When I heard that Your Highness the Crown Princess showed your tears as soon as you met me, my mother would beat me again. I was so rude that Your Highness must have been so surprised.”

“That’s not it. It's just nice to meet Cheraan... I started crying without realizing it.”

That was only true to a certain extent. These were heartfelt words for Judith, but Cheraan did not know that fact, so she only understood her words fragmentarily. She must have been quite lonely for a young girl to be a foreign Princess, so when she saw a girl her own age, Cheraan thought she must have suddenly become homesick.

“I couldn’t even say hello properly because I was in a hurry. Thank you for inviting me today, Your Highness.”

“You don’t know how grateful I am that Cheraan came. Marquis Ebelta must have been embarrassed by the sudden invitation...”

“My father also told me to leave with a happy face, so don’t worry.”

Cheraan, who recalled the embarrassed face of her father who was trying to tell a lie, laughed and said. Judith also guessed that her words were somewhat exaggerated, but she pretended not to know and nodded her head with a grateful face.

“By the way, Your Highness, this may be a presumptuous question, but where is the maid who serves you?”

“Oh, that’s..."

Judith deliberately avoided eye contact, lowered her eyebrows, and smiled quietly. Cheraan's complexion darkened slightly, looking like a child enduring loneliness.

“Surely the Queen hasn’t even given you a maid yet?”

“It’s not like that. It just hasn't been decided yet... The Marchioness who served the Queen Mother is here temporarily.”

Cheraan remembered Helen's face peeking through the door leading to the drawing room. She was so offended that Helen was spying on her with her eyes shining like an eagle as if she was not very pleased to see Cheraan, and was thinking of shooting a few words on the way out. Such a grumpy old woman can't serve such a delicate Princess properly.

“If she is a maid who has served the Queen Mother for a long time, it would be difficult to serve the Princess who is still young. I think a maid of your own age would be a better fit for you.”

“I know that Helen is trying to be a faithful servant to me. It’s not easy for me to deal with Helen, but I can’t help it.”

As Judith said that, moisture formed around her eyes again. Cheraan was so sad that she couldn't bear it. Queen Gilsis' poisonous face came to mind, and her lips twisted. She seems like a mean woman. Like this, she is so anxious that she can't even catch and eat the little Crown Princess.

“I will come visit often and be a companion to Your Highness. So don’t look so lonely.”

“Really, Cheraan?”

“Of course, really. Your Highness, do you know how to ride a horse? I just received a very gentle horse as a gift a few days ago. Would you like to go riding with me in three days?”

Previous            Next