Chapter 7. What to do so that you’ll never show up in front of me again?
****
"What kind of crazies is fooling around with firewood?"
Dalton's fierce voice echoed through the basement, where most of the servants and maids who worked in the castle stood with their heads down. This was their place of work and rest.
Harsh words spilled out of Dalton's mouth, the gentlest of them all.
"Do you want me to bury you alive in a snow pit and break every bone in your body? Or do you want me to use your blood in my boar hunt?"
Dalton's mouth was very rough, though he looked like he couldn't kill an ant. Of course, to the uninitiated, this was a reminder that appearances can be deceiving.
"The king has entrusted me with the task of wiping out all those who have brought the kingdom into disrepute with their shenanigans."
Of course that was not quite true. A moment earlier, the king had said.
“I have a small problem with firewood.”
That was all he said. Dalton was taking matters into his own hands.
He had the servants and maids who were in charge of the firewood stand up and make a big ruckus of it.
He didn't stop there, he threw them out of the castle. Most of the people involved in this were Duke Havilt's cronies.
It was a very good thing, because there was a lot of heat in the room. So Dalton didn't have someone else do it, he did it himself. He wiped the floor with the rest of them.
But he was still angry that the king, who hadn't been able to sleep since the former King's death, had been bothered with such a trivial task.
"Straighten up, everyone, if you don't want to be left behind."
Giving the remaining men another stern look, Dalton turned away.
***
"You've been here for a while, and you didn't ask to see me, so I made the first move."
The Princess of Alta cast sarcasm in the guise of politeness at Trisha for stumbling into the late breakfast gathering. The very fact that a princess of her station would hold such a gathering was proof that there was a considerable amount of internal bribery going on.
Although the small dining room was set up for the three princesses, this was unbecoming of a princess. But one could only go so long without seeing their faces. Even if she had come out just to see their faces, she could recognize their purpose as soon as she sat down.
Moreover, the two princesses who came first seemed to have already formed a relationship and were quite friendly.
Ah. So you two are going to chase me away.
Her head tilted to the side leisurely.
"Thank you for inviting me.”
Trisha was equally polite, her voice dry. The way the two princesses exchanged glances made her draw a line in the sand. It was all too familiar. That stare, that look. No, this was nothing new. Worse had happened before.
So their behavior didn't really bother her.
That was the worse part. It was the two princesses who were agitated. Perhaps she should have been embarrassed on purpose.
"But the princess, in a most unusual way, has attracted the attention of Kalos, nay, the king."
"I saw it, too. When you went to the barn."
It seemed now that if Princess of Alta led the way, Princess of Yoner would follow. So she was in charge.
Moreover, by dropping the name Kalos, she was subtly hinting at a close relationship. A princess calling the king's name in public like this. It was impossible, even if she had a purpose.
"And twice, too. That's a lot of enthusiasm. I guess I should learn from that. ......."
"Still, I don't want to stand out by doing something so dangerous."
She must be referring to something that happened the first day she arrived here. Come to think of it, Kalos had said something similar. And to think that he'd been watching all this time, even these maidens. What idle maidens.
They didn't stop sneering at Trisha, who ate in silence, using her gracefulness as a cover.
They saw her as competition. As a consecrated princess, she must obey the king's orders if he called her, but she didn’t have to.
"Ah. I wonder if you know that. I heard that the first day you came here, you were punished for something. I don't know the details, because no one will talk about it, but you were the only one punished."
The story of that day did not seem to have spread through the court. Of course, Kalos was the one who knew the most details, so it was not like it was something to tell people about.
But there was something about Princess of Alta words that bothered her. Was she (Trisha) the only one who received it?
"You said it was a punishment?"
"Yes. A punishment, a very severe punishment."
When Trisha reacted for the first time, Princess of Alta’s excited voice continued.
"We were welcomed with great hospitality without such punishment, so I don't know what was going on with you.”
"Yes. We were very worried that you might have been hurt, but now that you're here, we're relieved."
Their oddly packaged words rang true to Trisha.
There was no way they would have welcomed a mere princess in this harsh, cold north. Instead, they had entered quietly and without punishment. They weren’t worried or relieved.
Trisha couldn’t say she was worried or relieved, but she would like to wring the neck of the one who lied and said she was 'replaced by another princess' when she got the chance. No, she was most angry with Kalos for enforcing such a childish punishment.
Still, it passed. She got away with it.
Dwelling on the anger of the past makes you do everything wrong. It was more important to keep her head on straight going forward. And the fact that he did so showed how much he resented Queen Catherine. His resentment was understandable, even if it was only because she was the one who was punished instead of Flora. In fact, it was for the better. It would keep him from calling her to his bedchamber.
And it was clear from this little conversation that there was a great deal of exaggeration and bravado in Princess of Alta’s words. Princess of Yoner was not the kind of person to initiate unless Princess of Alta initiated.
After failing to elicit any other response, the two princesses lost interest and grew sullen.
And so ended the worst breakfast ever. Except it was Trisha who finished it.
"You'd better be careful, Princess."
Tanya whispered quietly as soon as they were back in the room. She'd been snooping around, gathering information. Tanya's affinity for her was remarkable. She had gotten to know the other princesses' maids and had heard their stories.
"They say that the two princesses are here to seduce the northern king, and that it would be good for their country if they give birth to a son so that they could be crowned Empress."
Ah. So two people with the same goal became three. Huh... Trisha was tired just listening to it. She wished they would leave her out of it.
"I'm very unhappy with the Princesses dragging their maids around at random times to meet with the northern king."
So many women suffered in this cold place.
"Those two princesses don't like us very much, so be careful, and I'll see what else I can find out."
Tanya whispered in a small voice, and Trisha smiled softly and stroked her hair.
You've been busy, not me.
She had someone so young, but so strong by her side. Trisha’s discomfort was slowly melting away.
****
"What happened?"
"I don't know."
When Trisha returned from the study late in the afternoon, there was a beautiful stack of firewood in each room.
Whatever it was, it was a relief. No more laborious trips to the barn.
Tanya had been out for a while, and she'd come back with something else she'd learned. She was quick.
"The Princess of Alta has asked the king for a favor. I heard the maids say so."
Yes. She did a great favor. Trisha was almost sorry she didn't think much of her. She would be sure to thank them later.
Trisha sat with Tanya in front of the roaring fireplace, feeling liberated from the daily grind of heavy labor, and the logs piled high beside it looked more precious than any jewel.
Life here wasn’t so bad after all.
She may be a princess, but she was more like a maid, and as the daughter of the reigning Queen Catherine, the king wouldn’t call her to his court. The main palace was off-limits, but there didn’t seem to be many other restrictions.
Trisha watched the flames roar and enjoyed a moment of peace.
***
Late at night, Kalos found the stables.
He often visited the stables near the north palace, next to the training grounds, to stroke his stallions and soothe his mind.
It was one of those nights when he couldn't sleep easily. He was used to wandering around at this time of night, if only to catch a glimpse of the dawning light outside. He had many loyalists who worried about him, of course.
Dalton had all sorts of good herbs and poison-tested medicines at his disposal, but his insomnia was not improving.
So there he was, petting his horses, passing the time in silence.
Rustle.
A sound that shouldn't be heard in this place right now. Ha!
That's it?
Anger was beginning to dawn in Kalos's eyes.
This was amazing. She was a very good woman, almost too good to be true, which only made it all the more pathetic that she would put this much effort into something like this.
He snorted and his lips curled.
He wondered what he could do to her so she would never show herself in front of him again.
Kalos stomped furiously toward the source of the sound.
"Come out."
His stern command stirred the person from her hiding place in the corner.
This time, he wouldn't let her get away with it.
But the person who appeared in front of him was... Tensing his teeth, Kalos was momentarily at a loss for words.
****
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Write a comment
Lolwtin (Tuesday, 30 July 2024 21:15)
I hope he found her in her natural form.
This is very exciting!!