NSRA CHAPTER 54

Chapter 54

“You’re doing another useless thing, Your Majesty.”

A sweet rebuke flowed from the crimson lips.

Every time the well-manicured fingertips lightly brushed the delicate paper, the attending handmaidens flinched and kept an eye on the Princess.

In the middle of the spacious, gold-plated bathtub, hot steam billowed, and the faint scent of perfume lazily drifted through the humid air.

On the side of the bathtub, Raphnel’s hand dropped a card.

The invitation stamped with the Emperor’s seal became hopelessly crumpled as it touched the damp floor.

With her eyes closed, Raphnel murmured as if in a daze.

“Pour more perfume.”

The handmaidens obediently poured more perfume into the bathtub. The expensive fragrance sank into the water like it was dissolving.

“This is a new scent.”

“Yes, Your Highness. It’s perfume imported from the East, and it’s only being supplied to the imperial household for now.”

“Is that so?”

Unusually, a satisfied smile graced the Princess’s lips. Raphnel carelessly dropped the pearl bracelet on her wrist, just as she had done with the invitation earlier, in front of the handmaid’s feet.

“From now on, bring me only things that even the women of Nexus don’t have.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The handmaid quickly bowed her head.

Raphnel took a deep breath. She was quite pleased with the thought that only she would be able to exude a scent that no other Nexus woman could.

Blinking her moist eyes, she rose from the tub, and the handmaidens quickly surrounded her, wrapping her bare body.

The curvaceous figure walked to her chamber without a hint of shame, uncaring of the dripping water.

Raphnel did not keep aristocratic ladies-in-waiting. She had whispered that she only wanted to share friendships with the young ladies at the noble ladies’ tea parties, but the reality was different.

Rather than showing her true self to the self-serving daughters of noble families, it was better to have commoners by her side.

After all, there was no one ashamed to bare themselves before dogs or pigs.

“Shall we start the grooming, Your Highness?”

Raphnel nodded lightly.

Soon, the familiar hands began skillfully tending to her face.

“It’s already bustling.”

“Yes, we just received a message that the troops have arrived in Wayne. The imperial palace is also in the midst of preparing for the banquet.”

“Is that so?”

Raphnel quietly gazed at her reflection in the mirror.

Her eyes, like deep blue abysses, and the golden hair that symbolised the splendour of Nexus.

“You really resemble Arthur.”

A small, self-deprecating laugh escaped her.

“How fortunate.”

As the layers of makeup were applied to her bare face, the image of the well-known Princess Raphnel took shape.

“Wait.”

Raphnel slightly tilted her head. The handmaid painting her lips hurriedly backed away, thinking she had done something wrong.

The crease between Raphnel’s brows deepened as she looked in the mirror. An unwanted face was etched in her mind.

Beth Jane, with her dreadfully black hair and shockingly pale complexion.

“I told you to groom me, not make me look vulgar.”

At the icy tone, the handmaid trembled.

“I-I’m sorry, Your Highness. I was just doing it as usual-”

“As usual?”

“Ah, no. I’m sorry, Your Highness. I’m so sorry.”

The handmaid dropped to her knees, begging profusely.

Raphnel, as if ignoring the grovelling woman, snatched the silk handkerchief from the vanity. Her ruthless movements as she scrubbed her lips showed no mercy.

In an instant, her lips were reddened. Yet, the Princess did not even blink an eye, despite the mess on her face.

Only the observant handmaids were frantically glancing at each other, unsure of how to react.

“Look at me.”

Raphnel finally turned her head.

The young maid’s eyes were trembling with fear. The Princess before her was so dazzling, and her beauty was as sharp as it was breathtaking.

“Don’t make me look vulgar. Understand?”

The Princess gently caressed the maid’s cheek.

“Do it again. No one in the imperial palace has the same skill as you.”

Raphnel closed her eyes, trying to suppress the throbbing headache.

The Emperor always held a banquet to welcome the returning troops, boasting of their victory. But this first evening was meant solely for Debert. Under the guise of celebrating Debert’s return from the war, it was a way to keep him in check.

The dinner invitation, sent only to the imperial family and Debert, was a testament to Emperor Hoyden’s ambition and distrust.

But the Emperor himself was the only one unaware of this farce.

“Your Highness, this is the new necklace we’ve brought in.”

The handmaid presented a purple jewellery box.

“It’s something that no other Nexus woman has yet to possess.”

The pride in the maid’s voice was palpable.

Raphnel looked at the necklace with an indifferent expression. It was a familiar necklace. Delicately crafted diamonds were evenly set in the pure white platinum chain – ‘that necklace’.

“It’s not that no other Nexus woman has it, but that no one else possesses it.”

Raphnel’s fingertips traced the line of small gems.

“That’s why I can’t let go of you.”

No matter how precious the item, the fact that it had first been in Duke Debert’s hands infuriated and excited Raphnel at the same time.

She was confident that her position was better than that of a mere Princess. This time, she would not be wrong.

“I’m bored of the necklace.”

The woman who held the most powerful man in her hands could not possibly want for anything.

Raphnel began removing the ornaments from her meticulously styled hair.

“Perhaps the eyes watching are too dull.”

As she caressed her slightly dishevelled hair, she recalled the night at the field hospital.

Her own pathetic display, swaying with the slightest breeze of Debert, was still vividly etched in her memory.

How many nights had she spent in the carriage, biting her lips and cursing the foolish Debert, the innocent-looking Beth, and her own self, who could only watch?

But now, even that felt hazy. What use was the wind, when it didn’t matter to that war-demon of a man?

Raphnel sneered.

As long as that man handed over the Cliff estate to her, everything would be fine.

As long as she became Raphnel Cliff, instead of just Raphnel Meiner, she didn’t care about anything else.

“Bring the dresses.”

The handmaid held up a few dresses that she thought Raphnel would like. The blue eyes slowly scanned them, finally settling on one.

“The colour is lovely.”

The maid’s face brightened, the same girl who had just moments ago panicked while painting the Princess’s lips.

“But I’m not yet so pathetic as to wear this.”

“Still, you’ve worked hard,” Raphnel murmured in praise, gesturing to the lemon-coloured dress that matched her own hair.

Suddenly, a rhythmic knocking on the door was heard.

At Raphnel’s signal, the door opened, and a woman in slightly different attire than the other maids entered.

Once the dressing handmaids had discreetly slipped out, the woman approached Raphnel.

“Your Highness, the Duke has arrived.”

“He won’t come directly here, I suppose.”

“No, he first said he would inspect the troops before coming.”

Of course. That man would not simply obey and come straight to the imperial palace.

“Refusing the Emperor must be his greatest pleasure.”

Raphnel spoke those words as if they were nothing, and the woman listening was used to the Princess’s manner of speaking.

“What about that kid?”

“Ah, there has been an unusual development.”

“Unusual?”

Raphnel composed her hands calmly.

The Princess’s impeccably neat appearance was so graceful that it was hard to believe she was a despicable snoop.

“She has disappeared, they say.”

“Disappeared? Where? With whom?”

The questions came out a little urgently.

“No one knows. Rumour has it that the Duke and Duchess Molly are searching, but they haven’t found her yet.”

“And Debert Cliff?”

“He also… seems to be unaware.”

Raphnel couldn’t hold back a chuckle.

The great Duke Debert Cliff losing just that one girl – the thought of his ridiculous predicament made her feel lively for the first time in a while.

“But I can’t fully believe that.”

“What? You don’t trust… me?”

The face of the person who was like Rapnel’s limbs hardened into a pale expression.
Belle had been by Raphnel’s side since the Princess’s social debut, attending to her in various ways, including secretly investigating others and witnessing the Princess’s true self.

The clever princess always paid the price of keeping secrets without hesitation, and Belle lived with the pride that she was different from a mere maid.

But to say she couldn’t be trusted? The concern that her usefulness had been exhausted darkened her expression.

The quick-witted Raphnel did not miss this.

“No, not you, but that man.”

She soothed her attendant with a kind smile. After all, one doesn’t discard a useful dog.

Raphnel adjusted her attire. Due to the lighter makeup and her long, loose natural hair, she looked unusually like the old Raphnel Meiner.

The Raphnel Meiner from when her mother was still alive.

Raphnel’s voice grew softer, tinged with nostalgia.

“It could also be that man’s own fabrication. He might have locked her away in some basement, keeping her to himself.”

Despite the calm tone, the words were chilling.

Raphnel fell deep in thought. The opponent was Debert Cliff. That wolf cub would not simply let the pitiful prey go.

“For now, let’s just observe a little more. I’ve gained the leisure to do so as well.”

The melody heralding the start of the banquet resounded loudly through the closed window. The encroaching darkness was already deeply staining the sky.

Raphnel gazed at her garden, drenched in a beautiful purple hue. That space was hers alone, the beautiful garden that no one could intrude upon, and she loved it dearly.

Only when everything was shrouded in darkness and the lamps surrounding the garden were lit did she move her stiff legs.

In the night when all is cloaked in darkness and lies shine,

“I wonder what expression you’ll have as you sit there.”

Raphnel had no doubt that this night belonged to her.