Chapter 10

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter: 10

Chapter Title: The Crown I'll Steal from You

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Medea turned away from the window, where she had been watching the Royal Head Maid's subordinates depart.

"Did you know, Your Highness? That the Royal Head Maid would make such a move?"

"Yes."

A simple answer. But the meaning behind it was anything but.

The words the princess had spoken while coaxing the maids came back to her.

"Borrowing hands at this price is a steal."

She never imagined the borrowed hands would belong to the Royal Head Maid.

Let alone that they would cleanly sweep away every single one of the princess's maids without any burden.

'So it was already set in motion from back then...'

Neril stared at her in a daze.

"The masters of those banished maids will now be wary of the Regent Duke. And once he learns what his own subordinates did, he'll grab the back of his neck in shock."

Only then did Neril nod.

"Who will our uncle blame? His rivals? Or the Royal Head Maid? Either way, it won't be me."

Medea would just be the pitiful victim here.

"Your Highness, are you planning to pit them against each other?"

Instead of answering, a faint smile played at the corners of her lips.

"You don't seem like the princess I knew anymore..."

The Medea she remembered had shone more with the innocence of a person than the dignity of a princess.

"You're right. The Medea you knew is gone."

The princess acknowledged it calmly.

"I brushed close to death once and realized something. I can't stay naive forever."

Medea looked at Neril.

Her green eyes gazed at her, yet somehow seemed to peer elsewhere.

Solemn, as if delving through deeper, darker abysses.

"What about you, Neril? Do you dislike a master like this?"

There was no flicker in her eyes.

As if nothing would change, whether Neril accepted it or not.

'It's just like the first time I met the late king.'

Neril dropped to one knee.

She understood the girl's words about not being able to stay naive forever.

In this den of demons, standing alone on those small feet demanded change.

"No matter what you become, Your Highness, I will stay by your side."

The princess's lips curved faintly upward.

"I'm glad."

A cold face devoid of expression. A calm voice.

None of the traits she once knew remained, yet Neril thought it was more befitting of Baldina's bloodline than ever.

She hesitated a moment before voicing her lingering concern.

"...I hope the Royal Head Maid realizes her mistake and holds back, but I doubt it. If she tries another foolish move..."

"It's fine."

Medea patted Neril's shoulder.

"Once you know your opponent's nature and past actions, you can predict them. What they'll think, what they'll try."

The Royal Head Maid, her uncle— she'd dealt with them plenty in her previous life. They were all within Medea's foresight.

What gave her pause was

the unknown she hadn't encountered before.

Something like...

Crash!

A sharp shattering sound rang out as the teacup overturned.

The pale-faced Mariyu hurriedly poured tea into a fresh cup.

"Your Highness, I just..."

She had personally brewed the tea in an attempt to curry favor with the princess.

'I need to win back the princess's heart before these new maids catch her eye.'

Earlier, she had seen the Royal Head Maid's people drag away every maid in the Princess Palace.

If she hadn't hidden quickly, she would have been hauled out like a dog alongside them.

Mariyu pushed down her anxiety and tried to appeal to the princess.

She knew exactly what moved the affection-starved princess, what touched her heart.

Besides, when she arrived, the princess hadn't sent Neril away but had kept her there.

Though she'd been cold lately, it was surely a sign of growing tired of that wooden girl's clumsiness and wanting Mariyu back by her side.

Steam rose gently from the cup she had brewed.

"It's berry tea. You said mine is the best."

Mariyu sat beside her and offered the cup.

Medea glanced indifferently at the teacup and froze.

Dark navy liquid. So deep it was impossible to see the bottom. Like the poison she drank before dying, diluted with just a few drops.

Dizziness hit her in an instant. Veins bulged briefly on the back of her hand gripping the table's edge.

"...I'm not in the mood now. Later."

Mariyu grew anxious as Medea, contrary to expectations, refused to even take the cup.

Why? Was the princess still angry?

Hadn't it all blown over by now?

"I cooled it just right. You prefer it slightly lukewarm over too hot, remember? Shall I feed it to you?"

"Later."

"Aww, Your Highness, please. I went out at dawn and picked these berries until my knees were soaked. At least for my sincerity."

She thrust the cup forward insistently.

"Just one sip."

There was something forceful in the way she brought the cup to Medea's lips.

The dark tea swayed before Medea's eyes.

"Pour it already! What are you waiting for!"

Her throat tightened. Her vision darkened.

"I said enough!"

Without another thought, she knocked the cup away.

Crash.

The teacup Medea struck flew and shattered.

The air grew icy.

"How many times must I tell you?"

"Y-Your Highness, I just—"

"Do my words not even reach your ears?"

"Forgive me, Your Highness. It was my mistake."

The quick-witted maids grabbed the pleading Mariyu by the arm and dragged her away.

"Your Highness! Please forgive me. Don't hate this poor Mariyu anymore. You're all I have!"

Bang!

The door slammed shut.

"Haa."

Only after confirming she was truly alone did Medea exhale.

Her pale hand trembled as it touched her throat.

"..."

She stared down at the spilled tea.

Dark liquid.

The suffocating revulsion lingered.

Medea reached out.

Not for the tea, but for the clear glass of water beside it.

It was fine. From her lips down her throat, no issues at all.

"So only colored liquids won't do."

The trauma of her previous life's miserable death, poisoned and poured into her.

The aftereffects seemed limited to dark liquids.

"It's okay. As long as no one finds out."

In the pallid silence, Medea murmured softly.

"Your Highness, are you alright?"

Neril rushed in at Mariyu's scream and checked on Medea.

The room was a mess of shattered teacups.

Neril frowned at the spot where Mariyu had been dragged away.

"What gives that one the nerve to act so bold? If she weren't Your Highness's..."

She touched the scabbard at her waist.

"Wait a little longer. With all the maids replaced, no one left to vent on, and me ignoring her, she'll explode soon enough. When the time comes, we'll deal with her completely."

Medea patted Neril's shoulder.

"Keep a close eye on Mariyu."

"Yes, Your Highness."

Deep into the night, with all lights in the Princess Palace extinguished, Mariyu slipped out secretly.

"Samon!"

Under the dim lantern light, she saw her lover pacing anxiously.

Mariyu threw herself into his arms.

She buried her face in his chest, rubbing her cheek as if to release all her longing and sorrow.

"Shh."

Samon Claudio.

The Regent Duke's eldest and only heir.

He hurriedly grabbed Mariyu's arm and pulled her inside.

"Mariyu."

The only light in the room came from faint moonlight filtering through a small window in the wall.

Shadows fell across the man's face.

Slender build. Ash-brown hair. Delicate features.

Among Baldina's young nobles, Samon was considered quite handsome.

But upon closer inspection, his thin lips seemed sly. His dark, gleaming eyes in the shadows had a rat-like stinginess.

To Mariyu, though, he was the most beautiful man in the world.

"Samon, I missed you so much."

Mariyu spread her arms wide, but she didn't feel his usual tight embrace around her waist.

"What the hell happened?"

After so long apart, her lover's first words were laced with irritation. Mariyu's smile froze.

"What do you mean?"

"All of Medea's maids got replaced. What the hell were you doing?"

"Darling, I couldn't help it. The princess suddenly pushed me away—what was I supposed to do?"

Mariyu had been worrying about the same thing. She needed to reclaim the princess's favor before the new maids did.

She'd visited daily, fawning over her every way possible, but the princess's heart remained unmoved.

Pouting, Mariyu showed off her calf.

"Look at this. She sent me to the Royal Head Maid, and now—"

"Wait, Medea pushed you away?"

Samon's eyes flashed.