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nAstelle was a little perplexed for a moment.

nIt was doubtful whether she heard it right.

nHowever, Kaizen apologized again to Astelle, who was standing blankly.

n“I should have asked you for permission in advance, but I was rash. I am sorry. It will never happen again.”

n“……”

nIt was to the point that she thought he was being highly sarcastic right now.

nBut Kaizen’s expression was serious.

nThere was not a hint of anger.

nLooks like he meant it.

nHow can Kaizen admit his mistake so easily?

nIt was surprising considering his usual behavior.

nAstelle thought she was going to have a big fight with Kaizen this morning.

nJust a day ago, Kaizen was furious because of Florin’s secret letter.

nBut now, Kaizen was looking at Astelle with a calm face.

n“I don’t think I will be able to stay here because I have a lot of work to do for a while.”

nAstelle was surprised again.

n‘You’ve been sleeping here every night. Why all of sudden…..?’

nOf course, the emperor doesn’t have to sleep in the empress’ palace every night.

nHe has a bedroom in his own palace.

nIt’s been over a month since they’ve been married, so even if they’re apart for a while, it won’t be strange in the eyes of others.

nStill, it was a very sudden change of attitude.

nEspecially considering they just had a fight yesterday over the secret letter.

n‘Is it because he’s still angry?’

nHowever, Kaizen still had a calm face.

nThere was no sign of anger.

n“All right, Your Majesty.”

nFor Astelle, it was good for Kaizen not to stay here.

nPutting the emperor to sleep on the sofa made her uncomfortable.

nBut if something like this happens right after the secret letter incident happened, others may think strange things.

nAstelle also couldn’t force the emperor to sleep here, even though he would do so.

nA dark shadow appeared in Kaizen’s red eyes as Astelle replied positively.

nAs if trying to reassure Astelle, he added, “But….., don’t worry too much, I’ll stop by in the evening.”

nI’m not worried.

nIndeed, it was obvious that rumors would be inflated if he completely stopped visiting.

nBut if he stopped by at night, people gossiped less.

n“I’ll be back in the evening.”

nSaying those words, Kaizen turned around and walked out.

nAstelle stood silently looking at his back.

nIt was reconciliation.

nIt was a rather uncomfortable reconciliation.

n***

nKaizen came to the empress’ palace every evening since that day, and he returned before nightfall.

nSeeing him playing with Theor, he didn’t seem angry.

nHe also treated Astelle as usual.

nAstelle didn’t mind because it didn’t bother her, but she was a little worried about how others would see.

n“The courtiers of the imperial palace are talking about the two of you.”

nHannah heard a rumor among the courtiers of the imperial court.

n“What do they say?”

nHannah looked at Astelle with worried eyes.

n“They think you two had a fight.”

nIt wasn’t quite wrong.

nSome of them might have heard of the quarrel between the two of them in the imperial palace on the day Naen came to testify.

nFrom that day on, Kaizen slept in his own palace.

nAnyone who sees it would think that they were still having a fight.

n“No worries. The courtiers here don’t say such things, do they?”

n“The servants and maids of the empress’ palace have been taught not to speak recklessly.”

n“It’s fine then.”

nYou can’t stop people from gossiping anyway.

nJust don’t let Theor hear anything.

n“Your Majesty, Miss Naen has come.”

n“Tell her to come in.”

nAs the maid opened the door, Naen in a plain dress came in.

nNaen bowed with a frightened face.

n“I greet you, Your Majesty the Empress.”

n“Miss Naen.”

nAstelle brought the girl to the empress’ palace and left her alone for several days.

nAstelld looked at the pale and tired Naen, and spoke softly, “How are you feeling? Are there any inconveniences?”

n“I am fine, Your Majesty.”

n“If you have any inconvenience, let the maids know.”

nNaen looked at Astelle in confusion.

n“……Y-Your Majesty……”

n“Why?”

nHearing Astelle’s calm question, Naen couldn’t continue her words.

nOfficially, Naen’s fault was to spy on the duke and send a fake secret to the palace as if it was real.

nIt wasn’t a serious crime that deserved the death penalty, but it wasn’t a minor misunderstanding either.

n‘I thought I’d be sent to a place like a convent.’

nBut the empress brought her here, saying that she would punish her by herself.

nFor the past few days, she had been unable to relax for a moment for fear that the empress would call her and punish her at any moment.

nBut Astelle who she met again seemed calm and relaxed.

nShe didn’t seem mad at her, nor did she try to bully her.

nNaen wondered, ‘What are you trying to do with me?’

nNaen took courage and asked, “Didn’t you say you would punish me?” stutteringly.

n“Of course, Miss Naen should be punished here.”

n“……”

nNaen was afraid of what the punishment would be.

nShe swallowed dry saliva as she tensed up.

nBut Astelle said something she never imagined.

n“The punishment for Miss Naen is to work in the empress’ palace.”

n“I beg your pardon…..?”

nIt was unexpected. Naen opened her eyes wide.

n“H-here?”

nAstelle explained in a calm voice, “It was common in the past for noble girls to work in the empress’ palace.”

nIn the old days, it was a very honorable thing for noble girls to be able to work in the imperial palace.

nWhile working with the empress, they were able to learn court manners and how to manage the household.

nAs the times changed, the custom gradually disappeared, now daughters of poor noble families often worked as maids in the imperial palace.

n“You will not work as an ordinary maid, but a lady-in-waiting. A lady-in-waiting is paid and works only for a set time. She has to come every time I call and do as I tell her.”

n“Um, what does a lady-in-waiting do…..?”

n“A lady-in-waiting does chores while helping with my work. She also helps organize the paperwork. Have you ever studied accounting?”

n“Yes, yes, I have.”

nWhen you get married, you have to take care of the household.

nThe noblewomen also studied accounting and managing documents along with etiquette and the liberal arts.

n“Then it will be helpful enough. I’ll tell you what you don’t know.”

n“Is….., is that all?”

nNaen asked in disbelief.

nAstelle asked back, raising one eyebrow slightly.

n“Why? Do you want another punishment?”

n“Oh, no, no.”

nNaen hurriedly shook her head.

nAstelle smiled a little at Naen’s cute behavior.

n“T-thank you, Your Majesty.”

nNaen was a little puzzled.

nShe was afraid the empress might be up to something else.

nBut for now, she had to say thank you.

n“Let’s start today. Go to the library and find what I asked for.”

nNaen headed to the library with the note that Astelle had written for her.

nThe note had the titles of several books written on it.

n‘She is…… very different from what I thought.’

nShe thought the empress was a very scary person.

nNaen thought Astelle was a villain who framed Marianne and put her in prison, and framed her mother and exiled her to the North.

nShe thought she was a scary and evil woman.

nHer bad image was further cemented as her mother cursed Astelle every day.

nBut when she met her in person, it was very different from what she expected.

nThe empress who smiled calmly at her was very kind and dignified.

nThere was not the slightest hint of the evil woman that Naen had imagined in her neat appearance.

nNaen looked back at the note in her hand.

nThe touch of dry paper brought back memories of yesterday.

nThe maid of the empress’ palace told Naen that she could bring her clothes and belongings from the Marquis’ mansion if she needed them.

nUpon hearing this, she contacted her house to send a change of clothes.

nBut there was a small note inside the dress that was sent from her house.

nIt was a letter from her second sister, Florin.

nFlorin said she knew that Naen had been staying at the empress’ palace, and she asked her to let her know what was going on there.

n“Tell me what you saw and heard while you were there.”

nFlorin also wrote the name of one of the maids working in the palace.

nNaen was told to write down a note and pass it on to the maid.

nBut Naen hastily burned Florin’s note in the fireplace.

n***

nVellian stood at the corner of the hallway, and as soon as he heard the door open, he hurried out to the other side.

n“Oh, Mr. Aide?”

n“Mr. Butler.”

nThe butler, who was coming out of the hallway, found him and stopped.

nVellian smiled sweetly and spoke to him.

n“You’re very busy these days, right? Last month, we had a hard time because of the national wedding. Is there anything I can do for you?”

n“No, thanks.”

nThe middle-aged butler answered bluntly, but Vellian drew closer to him with an unwavering smile.

n“Actually, there is something I’d like to ask you to do. One of my relatives has a daughter, and she wants to work as a maid in the imperial palace. Would you please hire her?”

n“You mean as a maid of the imperial palace?”

nThe butler seemed a little reluctant but agreed in the end.

n“……Okay. I will do that.”

n“Thank you. I will never forget your help.”

nThe woman Vellian asked to be a maid was a candidate for the emperor’s concubine, which he decided after discussing with the ministers.

nAlthough she was a noble, she was not a daughter of a high-ranking family.

nSo, the idea was to make her a maid and naturally meet the emperor.

nIf the agenda was officially raised, the emperor would clearly oppose it, so Vellian thought there would be no problem if the woman became a maid of the imperial palace.

n‘If it doesn’t go well, I’ll just have to send her back.’

nFor Vellian, it was no big deal.

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