Chapter 11

Evelyn’s voice was as calm as ever.

“You’d better stop.”

“…”

“Do you think the Emperor would so much as flinch if you killed me?”

“At the very least, she’ll learn the sorrow of losing family.”

“Family?”

This time, Evelyn let out a hollow laugh.

The traces of sorrow that had lingered on her face vanished completely.

At the sight of eyes that held no emotion whatsoever, Lilia flinched.

“If that’s your reason, then I recommend stopping all the more.”

A faint smile touched Evelyn’s lips.

“The Emperor would personally have you captured and tortured for taking away her only source of amusement. You’d probably come to think death would be preferable.”

“…”

“Ah, are you thinking of using that opportunity? Then I’d advise against that as well. Someone like you could never kill the Emperor.”

At least not by force.

With every word, the princess seemed to scrape at her nerves.

Lilia frowned.

She knew.

It wasn’t as though she didn’t know.

How could someone like her possibly kill the Emperor?

But even so—

At that moment, Evelyn spoke again.

“The same goes for me right now.”

“…What are you trying to do?”

“An ulterior motive, huh.”

Without realizing it, Lilia swallowed hard.

Evelyn was clearly smaller and more fragile than she was.

So why did she keep feeling as though she were standing before some enormous disaster?

If she was reacting like this in front of a mere princess, how was she supposed to keep her composure before the Emperor herself?

Drawing in a breath, Lilia slammed her hand onto the desk.

“……Go back. I have no intention of rebelling alongside royalty. I’ll have my revenge myself.”

Throwing the broken pen onto the floor, she rose to her feet.

Just as she turned around irritably, Evelyn’s voice caught her by the ankle.

“If you dislike royalty, then how about a traitor? Would that be acceptable?”

“What are you—”

“I’m going to stage a coup.”

The gaze that snapped back in surprise met eyes that held neither anger nor grief.

They were merely green eyes, heavy and deeply sunken, like a silent forest.

“I am.”

“…”

“And for that, I need your help. Lilia Grenzach, join me. Then someday I will make Mary Strovana kneel before you.”

The princess’s tone remained calm.

But why?

Lilia felt something resonate within her.

The woman before her was the blood sister of the person she hated most.

Nothing more than a powerless princess who had lost everything.

So why was her instinct screaming at her so desperately?

‘Seize it.’

‘The turning point of fate that will never come again.’

Swallowing hard once more, Lilia cleared her throat and asked,

“Do you have a plan?”

“I’m going to take you in as my lady’s maid.”

“A lady’s maid? Not a servant?”

“That’s right.”

Evelyn began laying out the plan she had kept hidden within herself all this time.

A while later, when she finished speaking, a heavy silence settled over the table.

Lilia’s eyes shook violently.

“What will you do?”

In contrast, Evelyn’s emerald-like eyes did not waver in the slightest.

Like a tree that had stood in the same place for ages, they merely radiated a noble, unwavering presence.

“If you still intend to do it alone, then I won’t try to stop you any further.”

“…”

“But if you choose to follow me, I will make sure your parents’ unjust deaths are avenged. That is my promise.”

Lilia quietly studied Evelyn.

‘Will this plan really work?’

Could a princess without even a proper power base truly bring down an Emperor who held absolute authority?

Could she really seize the throne?

Everything was uncertain.

Everything was precarious.

‘Then why is the princess’s gaze so full of conviction?’

Those upright green eyes, greener than the lush foliage of midsummer, kept giving her confidence.

‘You can do it.’

After a moment of thought, Lilia lifted her head.

That steadfast gaze was still directed at her.

At last, her moving lips parted.

“Very well.”

The guide to the revenge she had sought without finding even the slightest clue had appeared before her.

What reason was there to hesitate?

“I will become Your Highness’s hands and feet.”

***

Two weeks later, Mol came running into Evelyn’s room in a panic.

“Your Highness! We just received word that your new maid has arrived at the main gate, but…”

“Really? She arrived right on time.”

“Y-You really brought in a new maid? Did you receive the Head Attendant’s permission?”

She covered her mouth, her face filled with shock.

Evelyn’s eyes narrowed.

Her light-green eyes sank heavily.

“Why would I need the Head Attendant’s permission to take on a maid? Is he above me?”

“T-That’s not what I meant…”

Realizing her mistake, Mol hurriedly lowered her head.

“My apologies. I misspoke.”

“There won’t be a second time. Go and bring the new maid.”

“…Yes.”

As the flustered Mol left the room, Evelyn’s hardened expression returned to normal.

Bringing Lilia in as a new maid had gone smoothly.

‘There is an estate that my father granted me when he was alive. I visited it when I was young. From now on, you are Lilia Grenzach from that estate. Not the illegitimate daughter of House Chester.’

‘But is it really possible for someone who isn’t a noble to become a lady’s maid? Won’t the Emperor become suspicious?’

‘The Head Attendant will object, but it doesn’t matter. The Emperor won’t care.’

The Emperor who held the entire Empire in her grasp.

And Evelyn, who had lost everything.

The immeasurable gap between them fed Mary’s arrogance.

To the point where she did not even perceive a threat.

That had been true in every life.

To her, her powerless half-sister was nothing more than a target that could be pierced at will.

‘The wriggling of a worthless worm that can be crushed at any time is little more than a source of amusement to the Emperor. If anything, she’ll find it interesting.’

The only reason Mary kept Evelyn alive was to savor the suffering she would experience.

And in order to make that suffering greater, Mary occasionally threw her scraps of hope.

Just as she had appointed her head of the Ministry of Finance in the previous life.

Pretending to trust her, loosening the noose around her neck for a while, then slowly tightening it again—

that was Mary’s favorite form of t*rture.

‘But that ends now.’

‘Because I have no intention of placing my hopes in anything from the beginning.’

At that moment, a knock sounded, followed by a familiar voice.

“Your Highness.”

A man she had faced every day while running the Ministry of Finance.

A man who had stood beside Mary on the day of her execution, narrating the events as though it were a festival.

“The Head Attendant is here.”

It was the Head Attendant, Viscount Wilcock Hopnagen.

“Come in.”

“Yes.”

Though she had never called for him in the first place, the man known as another power within the Imperial Palace showed no hesitation in visiting the princess.

Before long, he stepped through the lightly opened door.

“I heard that you brought in a new maid from outside the palace.”

“That’s right. We were acquainted before, so I called her here. My heart has been rather empty lately, hasn’t it? But is there some problem? For the Head Attendant himself to come all this way.”

“…Of course not.”

Wearing his usual impassive expression, Wilcock continued in a gentle voice.

“However, someone who is not the daughter of a noble family cannot become a palace maid. It is contrary to the law.”

“Hm.”

“You should make her a servant instead.”

“A servant has too many duties. She wouldn’t be able to stay by my side. I brought her here because I want her personally attending me.”

“…As I said, under Imperial law…”

“Then how about asking Her Majesty?”

The Head Attendant’s eyebrows rose noticeably.

As though he had never even considered that Evelyn would be the one to bring up Mary first, he could not completely hide his uneasy expression.

“Her Majesty?”

“Yes. If Her Majesty grants permission, then there won’t be any problem with me taking on a maid.”

“That is true, however…”

“Then go and ask immediately.”

“…Are you serious?”

The Head Attendant’s weighty voice settled heavily between them.

“Yes, it would be best if you went and informed Her Majesty right away. Off you go.”

Looking at the Head Attendant, who remained standing there motionless, Evelyn tilted her head.

“Why are you still standing there? I told you to speak to Her Majesty. Surely you’re not expecting me to do it myself.”

“…No.”

“Then for the time being, she shall remain in my room. She’s my guest for now, after all.”

“Understood.”

Slowly bowing his head, the Head Attendant turned toward the door.

The knuckles of his tightly clenched fists had gone completely white.

Before long, he left the room.

Soon afterward, another knock sounded.

“Your Highness, it’s Morian!”

“Come in.”

Entering the room, Mol spoke with her usual bright smile.

“I’ve brought the new maid.”

Lilia entered behind her.

***

A little earlier, in the corridor.

“Head Attendant?”

The moment the door opened and she saw who emerged, Mol jumped in surprise.

Standing against the wall with her, Lilia quickly lowered her head after reading the situation.

‘So that’s Wilcock Hopnagen.’

He was one of the key figures Evelyn had specifically warned her to be cautious of.