Chapter 5

“You’re not joking, are you? Please tell me it was a joke.”

“You’re so clumsy that I think I am going to face a big trouble someday. Ugh, just why did His Majesty pick up this girl!”

Things like planning to meet her brother and renting a room had now been blown away from her head.

She looked around the Royal building once again, which was lined with corridors. Compared to the colorful buildings of Golddina, this one attracted viewers from a sharp vertical angle.

Now she understood everything. Golddina, the great magic kingdom she lived in, was a place where the King of Kings could disappear from the map if he wanted to.

Her master was not there to just drop by the Imperial City. He was the sole ruler of the Empire with the most prosperous and widest territory in the world.

‘I feel sleepy.’

While her mind was not at all calm, she listened to all the arguments the woman made about the rules of the Imperial City.

Always walk along the right wall when you walk in the hallways, hold your skirt and bow when you face the nobles, do not meet their eyes, do not raise your head unless they allow it and always treat His Majesty with a smile. The greatest adult in the Imperial City is the Empress Dowager.

She listened carefully to the rules, thinking that there was nothing she could lose if she followed them, and that she would also get cheap food when needed. However, the list was not complete. More historic inscriptions were engraved on the structure of the building from the past, which explained many incidents. There were also some guidelines that told about how someone should be treated.

She was extraordinarily clever. She remembered every word the maid had said. However, there was no way a person could memorize so many rules at once.

The maid, named Serena, must have been doing the ‘dirty work’ of introducing new servants to the Imperial City beside other works.

‘Why? Is it because I am a slave?’

There was no one in this building who could be her ally. No matter how much Serena hated her, she needed to persuade her with all her heart.

And fortunately, after spending a long time in the service industry, she knew how to live lightly.

Observing the opponent and saying what they want to hear the most. The maid was very neat from head to toe even when she dressed up in her own way. Her hairstyle was well-groomed, very different from what was trendy in Golddina. This was the same with her nails and eyebrows. Celestia would also have to be very careful every time she would attend to His Majesty.

Serena only cared about “how the ruling and opposition parties viewed a person working in the Imperial Family.” If she liked the work, there was no problem. She was rather a good person, but not open-minded. If such a woman of integrity was open-minded, she was bound to be good to her.

That was the reason she did not like the fact that a high-ranking King bought such a slave on impulse.

She did not want a “purchasable item” to be a maid only because she was suddenly sold as a slave!

Taking advantage of Serena’s silence, Celestia smiled and called her.

“Excuse me, Miss Serena.”

“What’s wrong? Did I say too much at once?”

“…No, it’s not like that. It’s so wonderful and amazing here. Miss Serena really seems to be proud of this.”

She nodded as if she was saying such obvious things.

“Of course. Anyone who works here, works with pride.”

“I…uh…I am from Golddina. I also consider this place to be great, and I think you are a good person. So, if I have to rely on someone, it will be you.”

Serena shrugged her shoulders.

“How on earth are you going to do that? His Majesty allowed you to rest today, so I will let you go. But you have to begin your work right away from tomorrow.”

She, who was hungry, did not have much complaints about her work.

“This is a place where only young girls work, who have been educated beforehand. I don’t know what is going on. His Majesty has never been so erratic before.”

“Am I the first one?”

“You think it is common for us to buy labour?”

She inquired amply.

“And don’t you remember the thing that I explained? If you talk nonsense…..”

“I remember everything.”

“What?”

“I said I remember everything.”

“Ha! That’s ridiculous….. Then tell me the name of the court official and the location of the court.”

“Isn’t it the Count of Jehira? He manages the officials of the Imperial Palace Court. The court is located in the second room on the third floor, right next to the staircase, and every court official carries a purple badge.”

Serena’s eyes widened, perhaps surprised.

This was nothing to her as compared to the difficult incantations with which Celestia helped Serek. That idiot did not know anything about magic. Celestia was the only one to teach him everything.

“What about the chief of the royal treasure department?”

“The treasurer of the Imperial Palace is Chief Go and he manages the accountants. If you go up the stairs to the fifth floor, you’ll find him sitting inside the only room, wearing a badge with nine jewels on it.”

Serena’s face, which seemed very dissatisfied until now, became softer. She did not hate Celestia, but she did not like the unqualified people who came in for a job she was so proud of. If Celestia did her best, she would gradually win Serena’s heart.

“….Did you really hear it once and memorize it all?”

“It’s nothing. It’s all thanks to Miss Serena’s wonderful explanation that I could remember all of them.”

“Oh my, you’re really a…. These are only taught to the candidates for a month by an educational institution. How did you become a slave when you’re so smart?”

Celestia laughed bitterly. It’s because she remembered the bastard who betrayed her.

“There were some hardships.”

“…I see.”

Serena went back and forth silently, preparing for the supplies and clothes that Celestia needed.

“You can wear them from time to time, so you shouldn’t go to a shabby place. Try to dress perfectly, okay? There is a bathroom next to the room. Go wash yourself and put on your new clothes…..”

“Yes. Miss Serena.”

“Just call me Serena since we will be working together. But why did His Majesty pick you up?”

To treat the negative reaction. The adverse side-effects of harnessing mana.

But Celestia was silent. When she first pointed it out, the King glared at her and asked her from where he had heard it. He must have been reluctant to let people know about the disease.

‘If you don’t have anything, you have to be quick-witted and kind for joining the society to live long.’

“I’m sorry. I will….ask for His Majesty’s permission and then let you know.”

When she said “I’m sorry.”, she smiled. Serena might have thought that Celestia was good at keeping secrets.

Serena hurriedly disappeared for her other work before telling Celestia to take a rest. She would have to wake up at 6.30 the next morning.

She, absentminded, sat on the bed of an empty room, brooding over the missed opportunity to talk about her brother. Serena did not seem to have the authority to handle it.

She was worried about her new life.

‘The scale of the work should be quite large…. Be it the Castle or the aristocratic….’

Standing up, she looked around the room. The room seemed to be a workman’s room. It was not a room for anyone else but for herself. It was a great deal considering that so many people were needed to manage such a large building.

The bed was made out of finely cut straw and the small room next to it had a bathtub.

“Wow…!”

When she dipped one of her legs in the tub, some of the water spilled out.

‘Oh my!’

She felt like the nobles of Golddina did not even enjoy this kind of luxury. Gulping, she pulled out her leg.

‘She told me to wash up and rest, right?’

For the past few days, she had been together with other slaves in a wagon, and worse, she was touched by the slave dealers. She washed her body and face properly in a hurry.

After carefully locking the door and pulling the sheets of the windows, she took off her shabby clothes and went to soak herself in the tub.

“I love it…”

She was so happy that she felt like her body was melting away. The warm water seemed to cure all her fatigue. Her body was completely immersed in the water while her long, red hair floated over the water.

After cleaning up her hair and body after a long time, she really felt like she was going to live. She was drying her hair with a towel, wearing a thin gown, when she heard a knock on the door.

“Serena?”

Her voice must have been heard outside, but there was no answer.

She should have asked Serena what she would do if somebody knocked on her door.

‘Should I just ask her now?’

She ran to open the door. She was told that no one else would bother her today, so it must have been Serena.

But it was not Serena who was standing at the door. She saw a wide chest of a man at the place where she had expected to see Serena’s face. She stepped back and looked up. It was none other than the raven haired Emperor. Now, she fully understood the meaning of that purple dress. The towel fell off her hand.

The Emperor waved his hand sideways, as if it was annoying to see her standing at the door. She hurriedly stepped aside.

“I don’t have to ask for your permission, do I? Since it’s my own palace.”

‘Arrogant and talkative. Yeah, I’d love to treat you.’

Previously, she was a person to watch people come in alone, closing the door and sitting in one of the chairs inside her shop.

The Emperor looked at her with his strangely warm red eyes.

Remembering about the quick lesson that she was given, she stepped back and sat down on the floor.

“Now that you’ve freshened up, I can see why the slave traders were much reluctant to give you up. You’re pretty.”

“What do you mean, Your Majesty?”

“Did you feel bad?”

He asked her as if he did not care about her feelings. He continued before she could even reply back.

“Anyway, I did not come here for this nonsense. I’m afraid there is something I should be ashamed of…..”

“I am not a kind of person who would go around talking about that. I will keep silent about your illness, Your Majesty. But, I want something too.”

“What do you want? Ah, your brother.”