“Whether His Majesty disappears or not, it will be difficult for the current Duke of Ashkabad to avoid responsibility.”
“...”
“But if Your Highness disappears, at least the family will survive. The level of punishment that will be meted out to the current Duke will also be different. Instead of being a rebel who manipulated the imperial lineage, he will be seen as an idiot who was fooled by a commoner woman.”
Duke Kairak's logic was exactly the same as my old resolution.
That's when I thought Laskan would live if I disappeared.
If I really weren't the Princess, then that would be the best option. But joining hands with the Duke of Kairak for him was a completely different matter.
“Should you go to the execution grounds as a traitor, or should you disappear now and save your lover’s life?”
Duke Kairak tapped his forehead with his fingertips.
“It all depends on Your Highness’s decision.”
“...How can I believe what you say about guaranteeing my identity?”
“Whether you believe what I say or not is ultimately a choice. But one thing is certain.”
A cunning snake, its eyes like a tail, took on a murderous glow.
“This is the last mercy I will bestow upon you.”
I don't know how I got back to the palace from there.
Enoch wrapped me in his thick cloak as I kept repeating that I had to meet Laskan while looking pale and exhausted. He then said that if I wanted, he would go to the North himself.
Without a second thought, I found a suitable piece of stationery and handed it to Enoch. I didn't write anything on it.
Enoch set off without delay, not even dreaming that I was doing it to get him to safety.
I leaned against the window and watched Enoch walk away, then squinted my eyes to check for any suspicious signs in the garden of the Princess's palace.
If I wanted to escape, he told me to go to any window in the Princess's palace and light a lantern twice, and then he would immediately send people to look for my escape route.
I wondered how many people had been planted. Was it the gardener who was out late tonight? Or the servants who were still carrying presents?
I felt like my footing had become very narrow. Even though I had been so selective since the poisoning incident, it meant that I had not been able to avoid Duke Kairak’s eyes.
Duke Kairak said he would ensure my safety and that of Laskan, but that meant he could turn the tables on us and frame us as traitors if he changed his mind.
If I'm lucky, my words that the judging stone was tampered with might get through to the Privy Council, but what if I'm unlucky? What if even His Majesty turns his back on me?
Above all, no matter how much I insisted that Laskan knew nothing and that I had fooled him alone... if the person in question denied everything, there was no way to clear him of the charges.
Besides, Laskan wasn't the kind of person who would sell his lover out when he was cornered.
If only that had been the case, this whole thing would have been a little easier.
“There is something I must tell Your Highness, the Princess.”
As I was standing there leaning against the window, I heard a scuffle outside.
It seemed that the Knights were strictly blocking the entry of outsiders, as they had issued strict orders not to let anyone in. If it were normal, I would have pretended not to notice... But the voice sounded strangely familiar.
“Let him in.”
At my command, the knights and attendants stepped aside from the door. A man hurried into the room, forgetting all manner of etiquette.
As someone familiar with his appearance, I couldn't help but be surprised.
“Aren’t you the chief chamberlain of the Imperial Palace? What are you doing here at this hour? How is His Majesty?”
It was completely different from his usual self, where there was not a single bit of disorder. His eyes were bloodshot, and his trembling body looked as if he was about to kneel down.
“Would you mind taking a look around for a moment?”
He stammered, even his lips turning blue, as if he had seen something terrifying...
At my gesture, the maids and servants closed the door and left the room.
“Now tell me what’s going on.”
Still not feeling reassured, the chief of the chamberlain repeatedly checked that there was no one behind the door before opening his mouth. It was almost a whisper.
“His Majesty has fallen.”
Even as I ran to the Imperial Palace, I didn't feel a bit of reality. When I arrived and opened the door, I thought that they would greet me with a grumbling voice, but they couldn't quite hide their joy.
But the sight I encountered when I entered the Emperor's bedroom was gruesome.
The blanket was covered in blood, as if he had vomited blood while unconscious, and his face looked pale, if not dark. The room was already dark, and only a few candles were lit, creating an eerie atmosphere like a tomb.
I ran to the bed in one stride, knelt down, and held the Emperor's hand as he crawled out of the blanket.
“Since when...”
I barely moved my frozen lips. I wanted to finish the sentence properly, but I couldn't ask calmly.
“It’s been about half an hour. It seems like the chronic illness has suddenly progressed, but in fact, the condition had been improving since the last competition, so I have no idea what’s going on...”
“So, what did the doctor examine?”
The attendant pursed his lips and answered with a pale face.
“The symptoms... were hidden from everyone before I met Your Highness.”
He wanted to hide the symptoms from everyone. At that moment, I had an intuition that the Emperor suspected poisoning.
“Anastasia, it’s you.”
Just then, as if he had regained consciousness, the Emperor took my hand.
“Your Majesty, have you come to your senses now?”
The Emperor's voice was murky, as if he would lose consciousness at any moment. I held onto his hand desperately, trembling as if that was the only way to keep him conscious.
I rested my forehead on the back of his hand and spoke as if it were an incantation.
“Now, now, you won’t lose consciousness again, right? Are you okay?”
Tears flowed from my eyes without me knowing. I felt the life draining from the Emperor's body.
The Emperor, who had been patting my back silently for a while, soon made me raise my head and continued speaking calmly.
“There’s no time for this. The cycle of losing consciousness is getting longer. Have you checked the results of the identification stone?”
I gasped for breath, my eyes wet with tears.
“Your Majesty, how could Your Majesty...”
“It’s too late for me to take action. You know that it’s impossible to change the results of the judgment stone that has already been fed blood.”
I took his arm and helped him up. The Emperor motioned to the chamberlain, who immediately brought a small box made of red velvet. Inside was the golden seal of the Imperial Family.
He put the seal around my neck and said,
“The one who holds this seal can move the imperial army in the east and west, or appoint new ones. It is an absolute power, so even bloodline does not matter.”
He reached out and caressed my wet cheek.
“I’m just happy for your safety.”
“...”
The realization was momentary.
How could I not know that I was receiving such a gaze? The Emperor was already convinced that I was his real granddaughter. Regardless of the results of the judging stone.
Even while giving me such a great sign, the Emperor did not say a word to me to return or to take revenge.
It was up to me to either use this authority to flee abroad or return and punish Kairak.
Maybe he just wanted me to stay safe and alive...
I held the seal around my neck tightly with my right hand.
The Emperor laughed briefly.
“From now on, it will be your fight.”
“...If I go, Your Majesty.”
“Holding your ground here is the real fight of the burden.”
“...”
“Go now, my Anastasia.”
After a while, the Emperor let go of my hand. As if his consciousness was fading away again, the old man's eyes became cold, and his heart started pounding.
I bowed to the Emperor with the utmost courtesy that I could muster.
And then I started running without looking back.
I thought about it for a long time... but there was only one conclusion. Now was the time to hide. Whether I was the real Princess or not, the judgment stone would not stick, and if I faced tomorrow like this, Duke Kairak would put all the blame on me and lock me in the dungeon. If my body were confined, the hands and feet of the forces supporting me would also be tied. There was no worse situation than that.
Dawn was approaching. When I was sure that all the maids were asleep, I slid out of bed.
And I simply packed my things in the old leather bag I had brought from George, which I had kept in the corner of the closet. The mining profit distribution certificate I had received from Laskan, my hunting clothes, a simple dress, and some roughly crafted jewelry that would not raise suspicion even if I took it to a jeweler.
And then I immediately put on the maid's uniform that I had prepared in advance over my chemise.
I wasn't even sure if I had tied the ribbon properly, but it didn't matter since I was planning on wearing the robe over it anyway. My long blonde hair was tied up and tucked into the maid's white bonnet.
I carefully opened the wooden door leading from the reception room to the hallway. The knights guarding the door had already been removed.
I put the bag in the laundry basket Lisa was carrying and covered it with laundry that looked suitable.
My steps, which had been calm until I came down the stairs of the Princess's palace, became faster and faster as I entered the garden.
I threw away the laundry basket in a suitable place and just packed my bag.
The palace was extremely spacious. I encountered several knights as I walked to the main gate, but they didn't seem to even suspect that I was the Princess.
I squeezed my way into the crowd of maids waiting in line to leave the palace.
The maids who served the royal family closely were usually employed for life, while the maids who commuted to work were often assigned to menial tasks.
What that meant was that none of the people standing in line could tell that I was the Princess.
Soon, it was my turn.
The gatekeeper asked sharply.
“What affiliation do you have?”
“I belong to the Princess’ Palace.”
“Name is.”
“It’s Lisa.”
The gatekeeper's gaze slowly scanned my face in response. My palms became clammy with nervousness.
The gatekeeper's eyes narrowed a little more.
“If you belong to the Princess’ Palace, isn’t that a lifetime position? You’re going out at this hour.”
“Her Highness the Princess has given me some very detailed instructions.”
I handed the gatekeeper a note I had prepared in advance. It was a note that assured me that I belonged to the Princess's palace, and asked me to send this maid out so that I could handle my business.
“...How do you know this belongs to Her Highness the Princess?”
“If necessary, I may call for another maid from the Princess’s palace who knows Her Highness’s handwriting.”
I acted more confidently.
“But this is an urgent order from Her Highness. If I miss the timing and cause trouble, I will tell Her Highness the name of the gatekeeper.”
The gatekeeper scratched his head and made a troubled face. He seemed to briefly discuss the matter with another gatekeeper nearby, then nodded. He seemed to have come to the conclusion that there was no need to be strict, since I was not coming in, but going out.
“You may go out.”
I nodded and pulled my hood down low.
I slowed down my pace, which was constantly getting faster. If I looked back, I thought I would make eye contact with the gatekeeper, who was still looking at me suspiciously.
“...”
“But if Your Highness disappears, at least the family will survive. The level of punishment that will be meted out to the current Duke will also be different. Instead of being a rebel who manipulated the imperial lineage, he will be seen as an idiot who was fooled by a commoner woman.”
Duke Kairak's logic was exactly the same as my old resolution.
That's when I thought Laskan would live if I disappeared.
If I really weren't the Princess, then that would be the best option. But joining hands with the Duke of Kairak for him was a completely different matter.
“Should you go to the execution grounds as a traitor, or should you disappear now and save your lover’s life?”
Duke Kairak tapped his forehead with his fingertips.
“It all depends on Your Highness’s decision.”
“...How can I believe what you say about guaranteeing my identity?”
“Whether you believe what I say or not is ultimately a choice. But one thing is certain.”
A cunning snake, its eyes like a tail, took on a murderous glow.
“This is the last mercy I will bestow upon you.”
***
I don't know how I got back to the palace from there.
Enoch wrapped me in his thick cloak as I kept repeating that I had to meet Laskan while looking pale and exhausted. He then said that if I wanted, he would go to the North himself.
Without a second thought, I found a suitable piece of stationery and handed it to Enoch. I didn't write anything on it.
Enoch set off without delay, not even dreaming that I was doing it to get him to safety.
I leaned against the window and watched Enoch walk away, then squinted my eyes to check for any suspicious signs in the garden of the Princess's palace.
If I wanted to escape, he told me to go to any window in the Princess's palace and light a lantern twice, and then he would immediately send people to look for my escape route.
I wondered how many people had been planted. Was it the gardener who was out late tonight? Or the servants who were still carrying presents?
I felt like my footing had become very narrow. Even though I had been so selective since the poisoning incident, it meant that I had not been able to avoid Duke Kairak’s eyes.
Duke Kairak said he would ensure my safety and that of Laskan, but that meant he could turn the tables on us and frame us as traitors if he changed his mind.
If I'm lucky, my words that the judging stone was tampered with might get through to the Privy Council, but what if I'm unlucky? What if even His Majesty turns his back on me?
Above all, no matter how much I insisted that Laskan knew nothing and that I had fooled him alone... if the person in question denied everything, there was no way to clear him of the charges.
Besides, Laskan wasn't the kind of person who would sell his lover out when he was cornered.
If only that had been the case, this whole thing would have been a little easier.
“There is something I must tell Your Highness, the Princess.”
As I was standing there leaning against the window, I heard a scuffle outside.
It seemed that the Knights were strictly blocking the entry of outsiders, as they had issued strict orders not to let anyone in. If it were normal, I would have pretended not to notice... But the voice sounded strangely familiar.
“Let him in.”
At my command, the knights and attendants stepped aside from the door. A man hurried into the room, forgetting all manner of etiquette.
As someone familiar with his appearance, I couldn't help but be surprised.
“Aren’t you the chief chamberlain of the Imperial Palace? What are you doing here at this hour? How is His Majesty?”
It was completely different from his usual self, where there was not a single bit of disorder. His eyes were bloodshot, and his trembling body looked as if he was about to kneel down.
“Would you mind taking a look around for a moment?”
He stammered, even his lips turning blue, as if he had seen something terrifying...
At my gesture, the maids and servants closed the door and left the room.
“Now tell me what’s going on.”
Still not feeling reassured, the chief of the chamberlain repeatedly checked that there was no one behind the door before opening his mouth. It was almost a whisper.
“His Majesty has fallen.”
***
Even as I ran to the Imperial Palace, I didn't feel a bit of reality. When I arrived and opened the door, I thought that they would greet me with a grumbling voice, but they couldn't quite hide their joy.
But the sight I encountered when I entered the Emperor's bedroom was gruesome.
The blanket was covered in blood, as if he had vomited blood while unconscious, and his face looked pale, if not dark. The room was already dark, and only a few candles were lit, creating an eerie atmosphere like a tomb.
I ran to the bed in one stride, knelt down, and held the Emperor's hand as he crawled out of the blanket.
“Since when...”
I barely moved my frozen lips. I wanted to finish the sentence properly, but I couldn't ask calmly.
“It’s been about half an hour. It seems like the chronic illness has suddenly progressed, but in fact, the condition had been improving since the last competition, so I have no idea what’s going on...”
“So, what did the doctor examine?”
The attendant pursed his lips and answered with a pale face.
“The symptoms... were hidden from everyone before I met Your Highness.”
He wanted to hide the symptoms from everyone. At that moment, I had an intuition that the Emperor suspected poisoning.
“Anastasia, it’s you.”
Just then, as if he had regained consciousness, the Emperor took my hand.
“Your Majesty, have you come to your senses now?”
The Emperor's voice was murky, as if he would lose consciousness at any moment. I held onto his hand desperately, trembling as if that was the only way to keep him conscious.
I rested my forehead on the back of his hand and spoke as if it were an incantation.
“Now, now, you won’t lose consciousness again, right? Are you okay?”
Tears flowed from my eyes without me knowing. I felt the life draining from the Emperor's body.
The Emperor, who had been patting my back silently for a while, soon made me raise my head and continued speaking calmly.
“There’s no time for this. The cycle of losing consciousness is getting longer. Have you checked the results of the identification stone?”
I gasped for breath, my eyes wet with tears.
“Your Majesty, how could Your Majesty...”
“It’s too late for me to take action. You know that it’s impossible to change the results of the judgment stone that has already been fed blood.”
I took his arm and helped him up. The Emperor motioned to the chamberlain, who immediately brought a small box made of red velvet. Inside was the golden seal of the Imperial Family.
He put the seal around my neck and said,
“The one who holds this seal can move the imperial army in the east and west, or appoint new ones. It is an absolute power, so even bloodline does not matter.”
He reached out and caressed my wet cheek.
“I’m just happy for your safety.”
“...”
The realization was momentary.
How could I not know that I was receiving such a gaze? The Emperor was already convinced that I was his real granddaughter. Regardless of the results of the judging stone.
Even while giving me such a great sign, the Emperor did not say a word to me to return or to take revenge.
It was up to me to either use this authority to flee abroad or return and punish Kairak.
Maybe he just wanted me to stay safe and alive...
I held the seal around my neck tightly with my right hand.
The Emperor laughed briefly.
“From now on, it will be your fight.”
“...If I go, Your Majesty.”
“Holding your ground here is the real fight of the burden.”
“...”
“Go now, my Anastasia.”
After a while, the Emperor let go of my hand. As if his consciousness was fading away again, the old man's eyes became cold, and his heart started pounding.
I bowed to the Emperor with the utmost courtesy that I could muster.
And then I started running without looking back.
***
I thought about it for a long time... but there was only one conclusion. Now was the time to hide. Whether I was the real Princess or not, the judgment stone would not stick, and if I faced tomorrow like this, Duke Kairak would put all the blame on me and lock me in the dungeon. If my body were confined, the hands and feet of the forces supporting me would also be tied. There was no worse situation than that.
Dawn was approaching. When I was sure that all the maids were asleep, I slid out of bed.
And I simply packed my things in the old leather bag I had brought from George, which I had kept in the corner of the closet. The mining profit distribution certificate I had received from Laskan, my hunting clothes, a simple dress, and some roughly crafted jewelry that would not raise suspicion even if I took it to a jeweler.
And then I immediately put on the maid's uniform that I had prepared in advance over my chemise.
I wasn't even sure if I had tied the ribbon properly, but it didn't matter since I was planning on wearing the robe over it anyway. My long blonde hair was tied up and tucked into the maid's white bonnet.
I carefully opened the wooden door leading from the reception room to the hallway. The knights guarding the door had already been removed.
I put the bag in the laundry basket Lisa was carrying and covered it with laundry that looked suitable.
My steps, which had been calm until I came down the stairs of the Princess's palace, became faster and faster as I entered the garden.
I threw away the laundry basket in a suitable place and just packed my bag.
The palace was extremely spacious. I encountered several knights as I walked to the main gate, but they didn't seem to even suspect that I was the Princess.
I squeezed my way into the crowd of maids waiting in line to leave the palace.
The maids who served the royal family closely were usually employed for life, while the maids who commuted to work were often assigned to menial tasks.
What that meant was that none of the people standing in line could tell that I was the Princess.
Soon, it was my turn.
The gatekeeper asked sharply.
“What affiliation do you have?”
“I belong to the Princess’ Palace.”
“Name is.”
“It’s Lisa.”
The gatekeeper's gaze slowly scanned my face in response. My palms became clammy with nervousness.
The gatekeeper's eyes narrowed a little more.
“If you belong to the Princess’ Palace, isn’t that a lifetime position? You’re going out at this hour.”
“Her Highness the Princess has given me some very detailed instructions.”
I handed the gatekeeper a note I had prepared in advance. It was a note that assured me that I belonged to the Princess's palace, and asked me to send this maid out so that I could handle my business.
“...How do you know this belongs to Her Highness the Princess?”
“If necessary, I may call for another maid from the Princess’s palace who knows Her Highness’s handwriting.”
I acted more confidently.
“But this is an urgent order from Her Highness. If I miss the timing and cause trouble, I will tell Her Highness the name of the gatekeeper.”
The gatekeeper scratched his head and made a troubled face. He seemed to briefly discuss the matter with another gatekeeper nearby, then nodded. He seemed to have come to the conclusion that there was no need to be strict, since I was not coming in, but going out.
“You may go out.”
I nodded and pulled my hood down low.
I slowed down my pace, which was constantly getting faster. If I looked back, I thought I would make eye contact with the gatekeeper, who was still looking at me suspiciously.
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