“Open it.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Clatter. Click.
The door, which had remained shut no matter how much the master of this palace wept and clung to it, opened easily at a single word from the man.
The man pushed the rusted door open once the chains—which made the Princess’s Palace look desolate just by sight—were uncoiled and the heavy latch was released.
Screeeech.
How long had it been since it last moved? A spine-chilling noise echoed inside and outside the palace. It was proof of just how long the Princess had been imprisoned here.
Stepping inside, the man surveyed the interior. The curtains that should have hung at the windows had fallen to the floor, having lost their purpose long ago. Threadbare carpets and dust-covered ornaments lay scattered everywhere.
‘It’s time to clean this place up.’
As the man scouted the interior, he sensed a presence from the second floor.
“……”
“……”
Standing at the top of the stairs, leaning against the railing like a wax doll with a vacant expression, a woman looked down at him.
“Aileen.”
“…Lucas.”
The man curled the corners of his lips and called her name intimately, as if they had just met yesterday.
“It’s been a very long time, hasn’t it?”
“…What brings you here?”
The man asked after her with a beaming face. Aileen, seemingly displeased by his arrival, displayed her wariness.
“It’s almost our birthday. I came to give you a present.”
“Were you always the type of child who thought of such things?”
A hollow laugh escaped her. This man, who hadn’t shown her a shred of interest—let alone remembered her birthday—since she was locked in this palace, had suddenly appeared with a “gift.”
“Hahaha. It’s a specially prepared gift. I truly hope you accept it.”
“I’m certainly looking forward to seeing what kind of gift you’ve prepared.”
It was the moment Aileen, the master of the Princess’s Palace, and her twin brother, Lucas, faced each other for the first time in seven years.
Screeeech.
“So noisy…”
A noise unbefitting of the Princess’s Palace broke the silence, disturbing her deep sleep. This palace was supposed to be quiet as usual, so where was that sound coming from?
Having read books late into the previous night, she had fallen into a slumber, unaware that the sun was already high in the sky. Since there wasn’t much to do here, reading was her only routine. The books she had collected as a hobby before her imprisonment were finally serving their purpose.
“What time is it?”
In a palace that was always silent, one could never tell the passage of time. She only knew another day had passed when the sun rose and the dark night fell.
“Did something happen?”
It was the loudest noise she had heard in the seven years she’d been trapped here. In a place where no one ever visited, she forced herself up from the bed to investigate the source of the sound.
She lightly washed her face with the water she had brought in at dawn and entered the dressing room. It looked empty, with only a few wearable dresses left. She hadn’t been this destitute when she was first exiled, but over time, her possessions vanished one by one until only the bare minimum remained.
The maids assigned to this palace had embezzled the meager budget and secretly sold off her dresses; now, even the days she could eat a proper meal were rare. Even now, the maids were likely divvying up the ingredients brought into the palace among themselves.
Without a maid to attend her, she undressed herself and changed out of her tattered pajamas into a dress so faded its original color was unrecognizable. She smoothed the fabric with her hands and looked into the mirror in the corner.
“……”
In the mirror stood the Empire’s only Princess, dressed in a gown worse than a servant’s uniform, staring back with a stony expression.
“Whew.”
She took a deep breath to shake off the lingering drowsiness and stepped out of the room.
Rustle, rustle.
“Sigh…”
Perhaps because she hadn’t eaten a single meal in three days, she lacked the strength even to walk. Dragging her heavy feet to the second-floor railing, she saw a man in the hall below, his short golden hair neatly slicked back.
At the sight of that face, her brow furrowed instinctively. It was Lucas, her twin brother, who hadn’t sought her out once in seven years. Sensing her presence, Lucas looked up.
Except for the slight droop in his eyes, his sharp nose and his heterochromatic eyes—one gold, one blue, said to be blessed by the sun and the sky—were identical to hers, as if pressed from the same mold. But other than their faces, everything was different. Unlike her dull, stiff hair, his golden locks were sleek and shimmering, as if woven from melted gold thread, testifying to the entirely different lives they had led.
“How many years has it been? I imagined you’d be an adult as much as I’ve grown, but you look quite grand.”
Aileen spoke to Lucas in a voice devoid of emotion. Too much time had passed to show him any feeling.
“I have been too distant from you, sister.”
Aileen burst into a hollow laugh at his words and descended to the first floor.
“You, who never even thought of me as a sister. That title ‘Sister’ rolls off your tongue quite easily.”
“Even if we are twins, it is a fact that you were born before me. Calling you ‘Sister’ once in a while isn’t a difficult task.”
Lucas, who put extra emphasis on “once in a while,” had grown so tall it was difficult for her to even look up at him. A small tremor shook her lips.
“Right. So, how does it feel to have lived well all on your own while leaving your twin sister exiled in this cold palace?”
“Locking you away was not my intention.”
“Your eloquence has improved. You say such amusing things.”
On the day of her once-in-a-lifetime coming-of-age ceremony, she was dragged here and imprisoned on the grounds that she had deceived both the Emperor and the nobility. Because she was locked up during the lifetime of her father, the previous Emperor, she had hoped she would be released once Lucas ascended the throne. But Lucas never even cast a shadow near the Princess’s Palace.
For seven long years, the door to this palace had never opened. Until today. The memory of the terrible betrayal she felt back then made her gaze cold as she looked at him. At that look, Lucas furrowed his straight brows and spoke.
“Aileen.”
He said ‘once in a while,’ but he goes straight to my name. Impudent brat.
She gathered her waning strength and rebuked him.
“Do you think that because you’ve become Emperor, you are above me?”
“……”
Lucas fell into a momentary, pensive silence before slowly opening his mouth.
“There was a time when we were on good terms. Wasn’t there, Aileen?”
“Are you referring to when we were infants?”
“……”
At her thorny remark, Lucas fell silent again, his lips pressed thin.
“If you have nothing more to say, please leave.”
She turned her body, which had grown tired all too quickly.
“Aileen, we’ve met for the first time in ages. Won’t you treat me to a cup of tea?”
“You’re asking me to serve you tea?”
Lucas said something absurd, seemingly having no intention of leaving. Was he mocking her? In this palace where she couldn’t even eat properly, there was nothing she could possibly serve to anyone. The fact that he asked despite knowing this could only mean he intended to ridicule her.
“Lucas, there is no such thing as tea for you in this palace.”
She replied with a voice full of exhaustion, wishing he would just leave.
“Your Majesty, please come inside. I have prepared everything.”
However, as soon as she finished speaking, a servant Lucas had brought with him announced that the tea and refreshments were ready and guided them to the drawing room.
“So I hear. Shall we go?”
“Ha!”
Looking at Lucas’s brazen behavior as he turned to her as if he’d been waiting for that exact moment, she could only let out a gasp of disbelief.
It had been years since she last stepped into the drawing room. She wondered when it had been cleaned, as the interior was spotless without a speck of dust. In the center of the room, a table was lavishly spread with various desserts and a steaming teapot. It had been so long since she’d seen such fine sweets; looking at them made her realize once again how wretched her life in the palace had been.
“I suppose even this palace wasn’t entirely mine.”
At her muttered words, Lucas smiled slightly and sat on the sofa before her.
“Aileen, go ahead and try some. I brought these from a place famous for its craftsmanship in the Empire.”
“……”
Lucas spoke as if he were being generous, placing the plate of desserts in front of her. Thinking that he had pulled this stunt while asking her to “treat him to tea” killed her appetite instantly.
“Surely Your Great Majesty didn’t come all the way here just for a cup of tea.”
She sat opposite Lucas without even glancing at the desserts.
“Aileen, if there is a next life, I hope we meet as friends, not twins.”
“Our connection ends with this life.”
“Haha. That’s quite hurtful.”
Lucas prattled on with a face that didn’t look hurt at all.
“So, the reason you came here is—”
Thirsty from having just woken up, she took a sip of the warm, steaming tea and prepared to continue.
At that moment—
“Gah!”
A sensation like her insides were being twisted forced her back to arch, and the teacup slipped from her hand.
Shatter!
The cup fell to the floor, breaking into small shards.
“Ugh!”
Fragments sprayed under her short dress, cutting her ankles, but she couldn’t even feel the pain.
“See, I told you to eat the dessert first.”
Lucas leaned deep into the sofa’s backrest and spoke casually.
“Urgh…!”
She tried to cover her mouth as a lump of something surged up, but she couldn’t stop what was already rising through her throat. Red blood flowed between her fingers, soaking the front of her dress. The poison in the tea was so potent that the crimson gore spilled from her mouth uncontrollably.
“Aileen, do you like the gift I prepared for you?”
“Gasp… You!”
She could read nothing on Lucas’s face as he watched her. Shivering violently, she looked at her hands, which were drenched in blood. Between her weakened physical state and the poisoning, she couldn’t maintain consciousness. The poison had already spread through her body, and her vision began to blur.
“Haha…”
A laugh leaked out at the thought that she could finally escape this prison-like palace.
Aileen vomited another surge of blood and closed her eyes.
