~Chapter 10~
After a long silence, Jane finally spoke up.
“Princess, really… wow… why did you keep hiding your face all this time? I thought maybe you had a big scar on your forehead or near your eyes! I saw the color of your eyes for the first time today—they’re just like a clear stream! Truly beautiful!”
Her sudden gush made my face burn.
“Stop with the nonsense. You’re probably busy, so go on—”
“May I fix the back of your hair too? I actually have a few hairpins with me.”
Jane rummaged through her apron pocket and pulled out a few simple pins with green ribbons. I tried to decline, saying she shouldn’t use her own, but Jane was firm.
Soon, she braided my hair into neat sections, twisted them up, and secured them with the pins.
It had been a long time since I’d worn my hair up like this. Before I was sold as a hostage, this was how I always styled it. It felt as if I’d returned to my childhood days as a princess of the Kingdom of Iote. I found myself smiling without realizing it.
“Wow, you look like a real princess! Oh, not that you didn’t look like one before, I mean… Princess Josephine has always been so elegant and graceful!”
Jane scrambled to cover her blunder, watching me nervously.
I took ten coins from the safe in my room and handed them to Jane. That should be more than enough for the hairpins and her effort. She bowed repeatedly in thanks before leaving the room.
Once again, I was alone.
I stared at myself in the mirror for a few seconds.
My facial features were delicate and quite pleasing to the eye. The only thing I’d ever been praised for over my younger sister, Joanna, was my looks.
My father used to boast in foreign tongues when envoys visited: “At least my eldest daughter, Josephine, is pretty. She’s not so shameful I can’t marry her off.”
Too bad he ended up selling me to the empire as a political hostage.
‘Ugh, I don’t have time to stand around like this.’
I needed to get to the imperial library to meet with the records officer. I wanted to see if I could take on any translation work from general texts.
If one escape route is blocked… then I just need to find another.
Wearing a lace-trimmed blouse and a deep navy skirt, I left Ruby Palace.
As I passed through the front yard and exited the main gate, I ran into one of the officials in charge of imperial communications.
“Excuse me, are you Princess Josephine?”
The official approached me hesitantly.
“Yes, that’s me. What is it?”
“There’s a letter I’ve been asked to deliver to you.”
“…Where’s it from?”
I was a little puzzled. I didn’t have anyone I was close with lately, and no one I could imagine sending me a letter.
“It’s from your homeland, the Kingdom of Iote. Look—the seal proves it.”
He pointed to the wax seal stamped on the envelope.
It was unmistakably the royal seal of Iote.
I thanked him and returned to my room with the letter.
After breaking the seal, I skipped over the greeting and dove into the body of the letter. The handwriting was my father’s.
“A birthday banquet will soon be held at Tristum’s imperial palace for His Highness, Third Prince Javier. It seems the purpose is to select a bride. Your younger sister Joanna has also been invited in her capacity as the crown princess of Iote.
During the banquet, I expect you to assist Joanna as her elder sister and chief handmaiden. I trust that your outstanding beauty has helped you build a strong rapport with His Highness the Third Prince over the past five years.
I also intend to attend personally. It will be good to see your face again. Until then, stay well.”
It was the first letter I’d received from my father in the five years since I came to Ruby Palace.
The content was dry and to the point. He wanted me to assist my sister Joanna at the upcoming birthday banquet for Third Prince Javier.
It caught me off guard. It wouldn’t be difficult to serve as Joanna’s maid, but…
‘He wants me to play matchmaker between Joanna and the prince. Father must want Javier to become his son-in-law.’
But contrary to Father’s assumptions, I had little to no relationship with the prince. I’d only greeted him formally once, back when I first arrived at Ruby Palace at fifteen.
Surely, the third prince wouldn’t even remember me.
I let out a deep sigh.
Marrying into Tristum’s imperial family wasn’t a good idea—not for Joanna, and not for the future of Iote.
Third Prince Javier was just as promiscuous as Crown Prince Carlos. The princesses who had shared a bed with him recoiled at the mere mention of his name.
Even setting aside his personal life, the prince wasn’t known for his character. He often staggered around drunk in broad daylight, and if irritated, he’d draw his sword and injure subordinates. He once beat a fencing instructor for speaking too frankly and was punished with house arrest by the emperor.
I’d heard all this from the birds that nested throughout the palace.
Birds don’t lie. They have no reason to deceive humans.
And if he marries… do you really think he’ll change his ways?
I often felt inferior around my capable, confident sister Joanna.
But I’d never wished her misfortune.
Joanna’s marriage, as crown princess, was not only personal—it was a matter of national importance. It wasn’t something that should be decided just because the groom came from a powerful empire.
And most importantly… Joanna already has a fiancé.
If I remembered correctly, she was quite fond of him.
I pulled a quill and ink from my desk drawer and laid out a piece of my cherished parchment to write a reply.
“Yes, I will happily assist Joanna at the banquet for the Third Prince.
However, I remember her having a longtime fiancé. I’m curious what became of that.
Also, I have concerns about some of your current plans and hope to discuss them with you in person.”
I didn’t know if he’d consider my concerns, but it was better to send the message quickly. I sealed the letter with wax and left the room.
As I left Ruby Palace, I spotted three princesses chatting on the terrace near the entrance: Tilla, Guinevere, and Elodie.
Our eyes met. I gave them a slight curtsy.
The princesses stared at me in surprise. Tilla blinked rapidly. Guinevere tilted her head.
I overheard Elodie whispering to Tilla, “Who is that? Her clothes say Josephine, but she looks… different.”
It seemed the three princesses weren’t sure if I was really Josephine.
Well, my appearance had changed overnight. I’d cut my bangs to reveal my full face and pinned up the long, unruly hair in the back.
I hadn’t even applied powder to dull my lips. The natural color probably made me look healthier than usual.
I walked past them without a word. I hadn’t greeted them to expect anything in return.
I stopped first at the communication office to send my letter back to Iote, then headed to the records office in the imperial library.
The head librarian came rushing out into the hallway, drenched in sweat.
“Princess Josephine! If you’re looking for a religious text, I’ll fetch it right away!”
“No, I don’t read religious texts anymore.”
I had visited the library frequently in the past to translate foreign religious books at a priest’s request.
But that priest had been removed, and now I needed to find other work.
Anything that doesn’t involve selling my body to a prince would be fine.
“I can read Setavian. I was wondering if I might be of help.”
The librarian, Sir Gomez, lit up at my words.
“Ah, of course! You’re from the Kingdom of Iote!”
“I don’t have the gift for listening and understanding languages, but I studied reading and writing quite a bit. If you don’t believe me, you can test me.”
I peeked past Gomez into the records room. The translators inside were buried in mountains of dictionaries, hard at work.
Last night, the owl Luna had told me the imperial library was struggling due to a shortage of Setavian translators.
I’d heard Second Prince Jose recently ordered a massive botany encyclopedia translated. It was supposedly to prepare for food shortages caused by pest outbreaks expected throughout the empire this year.
Why the second prince was taking such initiative instead of the emperor or crown prince… I couldn’t say.
