CHAPTER 14

“This body belongs to Carla.”

“If you’re trying to mock me…”

The knight behind the Queen reached for his sword. I quickly waved my hand.

“No, no! I’m not joking! I can prove it!”

When I saw the knight take his hand away from his weapon, I cleared my throat and looked down, trying to think of the right words to convince the Queen.

Since this really was Carla’s body, I planned to ask her to check for physical signs. I was even ready to say she could torture the maid to find the truth. But before I could say anything, the Queen stepped forward and grabbed my face.

“Close your eyes.”

“Huh?”

When I hesitated, she said it again, more sharply.

“Close your eyes!”

I shut them tightly under her strong voice. Then she said, “Relax.”

Her soft hand gently touched my eyelids. Slowly, her breath touched my cheek. Her fingers ran between my eyelashes like she was trying to find something. Then her hand gently traced my eyelids. After a few moments, she pulled her hand away.

I slowly opened my eyes. In front of me sat a woman about my age, looking shocked and confused.

“A mole… right between the lower eyelashes… Carla never liked talking about it. There’s no way the Count would know about that.”

Her voice trembled. She let out a weak, shaky sound from her throat. I didn’t say anything. Finally, she asked:

“Who are you? Where is Carla?”

I didn’t answer. I couldn’t. The Queen gave a bitter laugh. It wasn’t mocking—just sad.

“Did you hurt Carla?”

“When I woke up, I was in this body.”

“That’s hard to believe. Is there no way to bring Carla back?”

“I don’t know.”

The Queen studied my face carefully. I wanted to answer her, but I couldn’t. This was Carla’s body, but I had no idea where her soul was.

She leaned back in her chair and looked at me. With a deep sigh, she picked up her now-cold tea and sipped it elegantly.

I looked at her. I could see deep sadness in her expression.

“For now, I have no choice but to believe you. I hope you’re not just a fool daring to lie to a Queen.”

She looked down. Her long lashes covered her sad eyes.

I didn’t know what to say to someone who had just lost a dear friend, so I stayed quiet. Luckily, she soon looked up again.

“So, what do you plan to do now?”

I swallowed nervously.

“Your Majesty, I want to get revenge for Carla.”

I waited for her response. She tapped the table with her fingers.

“Revenge… why?”

Her voice sounded calm but cold.

“I read Carla’s diary. Is that enough of an answer?”

She smiled brightly, but her smile was sharp like a blade. I swallowed dryly.

“Seems you know how to negotiate. You’re not a fool after all. I’ll have dinner prepared. I hope we can become friends.”

From her tone, I could sense her anger toward the Count, and I also noticed her hostility toward me had softened.

I believed all the emotions she showed were real. But even if they weren’t, I had to hold on to whatever chance I had—even if it was weak.

I finished my tea and smiled politely.

“It’s an honor.”

Making a new friend is always nice—no matter where or when.

* * *

I gladly accepted the Queen’s kindness. I sent a message through her servants—one to Bella, telling her she could return to the mansion, and another to Lisa, telling her to wait a little longer. The Queen looked curious and asked:

“Carla never took more than one maid with her. Wouldn’t people think that’s strange?”

“Well, one of them serves me during the day, and at night, she warms the Count’s bed. She’s so pretty I wanted to introduce her, but she’s a bit wild, so I was too embarrassed.”

The Queen laughed, clearly enjoying my sarcasm.

“You’re just as wicked as Carla.”

She cleared her throat and raised her voice.

“If it were an animal, I might have liked it. But looking just enough like a human and still being useless—it’s just annoying.”

I understood what she was doing without needing an explanation. She was mimicking Carla’s way of speaking. It wasn’t perfect, but it sounded quite different from her usual way of talking.

That’s when I realized how poorly I had been pretending to be Carla all this time. I sounded similar, but if someone paid attention, it was obvious.

And her blunt way of speaking… It was clear she had spent a long time with Carla.

The Queen sighed.

“I heard the Count had a mistress, but I didn’t think it would be a maid…”

She laughed softly and sipped her cold tea.

I remembered how the Queen mimicked Carla’s voice and repeated the words a few times in my head before I spoke again.

“I guess I speak a little nicer than Carla. But how did you know? No one else noticed until now.”

“She hated being called pretty. She thought it was fake. So when I complimented her, she always got annoyed.”

The Queen closed her eyes briefly, thinking about Carla, and continued.

“She would never say she needed my help. Not even if she were dying.”

Then she mimicked Carla’s voice again, raising her voice.

“Your Majesty, you’re the least ambitious person in the palace. Well, if you’re sold off to another country, you’ll have to gain some.”

She shrugged after saying it. That sentence was like a secret code only the two of them knew. It made sense I didn’t understand it.

Shared memories between close friends can come out without thinking. That’s how she caught me.

It made me realize just how little the Count’s people really cared about Carla.

“She annoyed me so much… but in the end, a third princess like me ended up wearing a crown.”

She said it like a joke, but I could hear the deep love in her voice.

There was clearly something between them that couldn’t be said aloud. But I acted like I didn’t notice.

“Do you really believe we can be friends?”

“The enemy of my enemy is my friend, isn’t it?”

“You’re right.”

We smiled at each other. The Queen tried to pour more tea, but the teapot was empty, so she set it down.

“They probably think I’m just attached to a simple maid. But… Carla was special. She was the one who told me to work with the temple.”

I knew a bit about noble life, but not this kind of deep talk. Politics was not my thing. I blinked.

Carla had never written anything like this in her diary. But luckily, the Queen didn’t seem like she wanted to talk about it for long.

“I just wanted Carla to be happy.”

“I think Carla wanted that for you too.”

“No, it’s different. If I had just opposed the marriage a little harder… or introduced someone else earlier…”

She muttered quietly.

“If she hadn’t chosen the Count, she might not have been happy, but at least she wouldn’t be this unhappy.”

I completely agreed. I felt sorry for the Queen. Even though she was royalty, I understood she couldn’t force a friend not to marry someone they wanted. So she was blaming herself unnecessarily.

“She just had terrible taste.”

“I agree. She should’ve picked a handsome jerk at least.”

The Queen burst into laughter at my honest words. With empty teacups in front of us, a strange friendship was forming.

She took a deep breath and asked,

“So, what do you plan to do now?”

I sat up straight, took a deep breath, and said,

“I have a bit of a plan…”

While I explained my idea, the Queen nodded quietly. I spoke a little too excitedly, telling her how I would slowly steal the Count’s wealth bit by bit.

I even mentioned that I was thinking of feeding him a lich to make it look like the perfect crime. I knew I couldn’t really kill him that way, but I said it to show just how angry I was.

“So… you want to make his mistress jealous, wait until he makes a mistake, use that to take his money, start a business… then buy a lich and feed it to him?”

“Yes!”

“That’s completely ridiculous.”

She clicked her tongue. I thought it was a good plan…

I looked down, disappointed, and she tapped the table again. A habit?

I glanced at her, and she smiled.

“Raise your head. Carla never looked down.”

Her pink tongue quickly licked her red lips.

“That ridiculous plan… I’ll help you.”

The light from the chandelier sparkled in the Queen’s eyes.