The Mad Princess's Tale of Doom and Survival

 Vivian’s voice grew more intense.

 

  “Hey! Snap out of it! Lady Herot has taken care of the accessories, so what’s the point of just returning the dress?”

 

  “Ah… right. That’s true.”

 

  “Genia, calm down and think carefully. The princess doesn’t need an outing dress anyway. She doesn’t even know what’s in her own dress room.”

 

  “…No, I think it might be different now. I… I want to bring something too.”

 

  “Are you really out of your mind? Do you have any idea what happens to maids who touch their owners‘ belongings? I don’t understand why you‘re doing this. If you want to do it, do it on your own, Genia! Don’t drag me into it!”

 

  Vivian shouted and stormed out of the room.

 

  Thump, thump! 

 

   She walked briskly and froze upon seeing me.

 

  “Vivian… Vivian? Vivian! Don’t do that… Oh! P-Princess ?”

 

  Genia, who was following behind, also froze.

 

  As I stepped away from the wall, I asked Genia.

 

  “Dinner?”

 

  “Um… I-I have it prepared in the dining room. I’ll accompany you.”

 

  “Okay.”

 

  “Vi-Vivian? Let’s go quickly. We need to assist the Princess with her meal.”

 

  Genia gave Vivian a meaningful look, trembling with fear.

 

  Vivian, who had been staring at me challengingly, twisted her lips.

 

  “Princess, how old are you that you still need us to help you with your meals? Shall I prepare a chin rest for you?”

 

  “I don’t need you.”

 

  “What did you say?”

 

  “Genia is enough for the assistance. You focus on your own tasks.”

 

  “But I‘ve finished my tasks. Can’t I take a break then?”

 

  “No, there’s one thing I need to confirm.”

 

  “Ah, how bothersome… What do you want to confirm?”

 

  “What happens to a maid who touches her owner’s belongings…”

 

  “…!”

 

  “Find out by tomorrow.”

 

  Vivian’s eyes started to flicker with unease.

 

  Finally, she seemed to realize that my demeanor was different from usual.

 

  Nervously, Vivian licked her lips.

 

  “P-Princess, you’re not in a position to give such orders, are you?”

 

  “What kind of position am I in?”

 

“…”

 

  “I‘m asking. Explain what kind of position I’m in.”

 

  “Well, um… It means there’s no need for you to know about such matters…”

 

  “That‘s for me to judge. You’re not just an ordinary employee.”

 

  Vivian sealed her lips. I quietly asked her.

 

  “Are you scared? Do you think you’re in big trouble? Does your heart sink and the future look bleak?”

 

  “…”

 

  “That’s why you should have been more careful. Did you think you could live off honey forever?”

 

“…”

 

  “Vivian, take this opportunity to learn well. Nothing in this world is eternal.”

 

  The drawing room fell silent.

 

  While it was close to summer outside, the atmosphere inside the annex was chilly.

 

  Vivian nervously brushed her goosebump-covered arm and tried to defend herself.

 

  “P-Princess, it seems there’s some misunderstanding…”

 

  I raised my hand to stop Vivian’s words and turned my gaze away. There was no time to waste on absurd excuses.

 

  Genia, who locked eyes with me, flinched like a herbivore encountering a carnivore.

 

  “Genia, do we need to wait longer?”

 

  “Oh, no, no! Please come this way!”

 

  A modest meal was prepared in the dining room.

 

  “Did Genia put some effort into it?”

 

  In addition to the meager menu of soup and a few pieces of bread, there were salads and steaks. The tableware was proper as well.

 

  I took a deep breath. The exquisite aroma rushed into my nostrils.

 

  With satisfaction, I swallowed the saliva that had pooled in my mouth and hastily sat at the dining table.

 

  Then, I sliced the steak with a knife. The moderately cooked piece of meat was cut into firm, thick slices.

 

  It was by no means a prime-quality meat. Instead of succulence, it was dry and crumbly, falling apart as soon as it was sliced.

 

  Even though Genia must have done her best in cooking, this was the result.

 

  Astel never enjoyed meals. The quality of the food provided to those despised by the family was abysmal.

 

  Honestly, I didn’t have the luxury to savor the taste amid the torment of unease.

 

  The happiness, joy, and satisfaction one could feel when eating delicious food were not granted to the crazy princess Astel.

 

  I was the same. As long as my stomach was satisfactorily filled, that was enough for me.

 

  Instead, I quite enjoyed desserts, but they were expensive, so I couldn’t have them often.

 

  “It was definitely like that… Why is it different today? Side effects of possession?”

 

  It was different from before. My mouth watered at the sight of the mediocre food.

 

  “Oh, I feel dizzy.”

 

  If I didn’t taste it right now, I felt like I would go crazy.

 

  Like a person possessed, I speared a bite-sized piece of meat with my fork.

 

  Unbelievably, my hands trembled slightly out of tension.

 

  Just as I was about to put it into my mouth, the dining room door swung open, and someone entered.

 

  It was Butler Frank.

 

  ‘Why would the butler responsible for managing my nature be here?’

 

  With the steak held up and my mouth agape, I blinked my eyes.

 

  “I have brought Lord Duke. As he is coming this way, please temporarily pause your meal,” Butler Frank announced.

 

  “……Fuck it.”

 

Clang! 

 

I dropped the fork as if throwing it down.

 

— Anonymous Holy See: It exploded!!!

— Anonymous Holy See: Haha, I wondered how long you could hold it in.

— Anonymous Holy See: How does a swearer stop swearing? It’s better if a dog stops pooping.

— Anonymous Holy See: F*ck, f*ck, f*ck, hehe, you can’t do it anymore, huh?

 

 

  ‘Ah… I was in the middle of a mission,’

 

  I muttered inwardly, dismissing the mission failure notification with a snicker.

 

  ‘I don’t need the points anyway.’

 

 Meanwhile, Butler Frank gave me a stern look, hinting at something.

 

  “Princess, Lord Duke has arrived. Please rise.”

 

  “I don’t want to.”

 

  “Pardon?”

 

  “I said I don’t want to.”

 

  Just as Butler Frank was about to insist again, a deep voice resounded.

 

  “Leave her be.”

 

  It was Duke Luteous, a refined middle-aged man with silver-gray eyes.

 

  ‘He’s already over forty? But why does his face look like that?’

 

  Duke Luteous looked youthful enough to be believed if someone said he was in his mid-thirties.

 

  Unlike other middle-aged men, he didn’t have a protruding belly or thinning hair.

 

  His silver hair was slicked back like a blade with pomade. Standing at over 180cm tall, his posture was upright, and his physique was even stronger than an active knight’s.

 

  ‘Look at those abdominal muscles.’

 

  The well-defined muscles of his lower back and upper back, visible through his vest, were truly perfect.

 

  According to Astel‘s memories, Duke Luteous hadn’t wielded a sword for over twenty years.

 

 Yet, it was astonishing how he maintained such a body.

 

  He briefly scanned the table with his piercing gaze. Then, he slightly furrowed his straight eyebrows.

 

  “Clear those things away immediately and prepare again.”

 

  “Yes, Your Grace.”

 

  Duke Luteous, who issued the command, continued to gaze down at me, still seated.

 

  It was a dry, indifferent gaze, as if he were looking at an object rather than a child.

 

  ‘He probably doesn’t even consider me his child. After all, Astel was a child born eating her mother.’

 

  She was Marcella Luteous, the Empire’s most beautiful woman and won the frozen heart of Exion, Duke Luteous.

 

  Marcella Luteous, the wife of Duke Luteous, whose frail health deteriorated further after giving birth to her first child.

 

  In such a condition, a second childbirth was not a good choice.

 

  However, Marcella insisted on giving birth and died in the process.

 

  It was when Duke Luteous, who was a Swordmaster at the time, participated in the war. Upon receiving the devastating news, Duke Luteous abandoned everything and returned home.

 

  However, Marcella‘s funeral had already concluded. He hadn’t even seen the body of his beloved woman.

 

  Duke Luteous was completely broken.

 

  He spent his days locked in the bedroom, clutching Marcella’s nightgown.

 

  Then, when he regained his senses, the first thing he did was to drive Astel away.

 

  A mere five-year-old child.

 

  From that moment until now, the torment inflicted upon Astel during that long period of time was not the disdain of others, nor mistreatment as an unfortunate child. It wasn’t even a fear of people or a misconception that he was crazy.

 

  It was the guilt of killing her mother. The loneliness of being alone. The longing for a family. The sadness of not being loved.

 

  Yet, he loved them all.

 

  However, all that pain ended when I entered this body.

 

  I am Astel, but I am different from Astel.

 

  “What kind of appearance is that? Even if there’s no one to see, one must maintain dignity.”

 

  “I don’t have decent clothes to wear.”

 

  “Didn’t dresses arrive regularly?”

 

  “That’s right. Did the damn rats devour them all?”

 

  As I spoke with a sullen tone, Duke Luteous raised his eyebrows.

 

  “My Lord, the meal is ready. Please take a seat.”

 

  “Hmm.”

 

  Duke Luteous took a seat at the end of the 6-person dining table.

 

  I glanced at the spot he chose and smirked.

 

  ‘I see just how much he despises me.’

 

  He could have sat next to me, but he chose the seat farthest away from me.

 

  As he lifted his wine glass, the busy servants quietly stepped back.

 

  I turned my attention to the newly prepared food.

 

  The 6-person dining table felt narrow considering the variety of dishes.

 

  The food was incredibly extravagant. It was so beautiful that it seemed like a waste to eat. Like a work of art.

 

  ‘It seems that looks can be deceiving.’

 

  Even before tasting it, the food already had flavor.

 

  ‘But was my appetite always this strong? Why am I suddenly like this? Is it because I’ve never seen such extravagant food before?’

 

  I thought having Duke Luteous around would ruin my appetite, but it wasn’t the case.

 

  Whether he was there or not, I didn’t even register his presence. All I saw was the food. They say that when you fall for someone at first sight, you only have eyes for that person, and it was exactly like that.

 

— Anonymous Holy See: Astel, please… You’re drooling.

— Anonymous Holy See: Who starved our child! Who did it!

— Anonymous Holy See: I can’t bear to see him sufferingㅠㅠ

 

 

  I maintained an expressionless face as I picked up my fork.

 

  That’s when Duke Luteous made a strange sound, a “huff.”

 

  ‘What‘s that? Isn’t that the sound animals make when they’re annoyed?’