Princess Shu

Chapter 4.1 – Let’s Eat Together

Time was running out faster than Valia thought. She stomped her foot. When she had to leave home to become a palace girl in the past, she was given two weeks to pack up everything. But now she had to leave tonight?

Valia’s head threatened to explode, but she hurriedly tidied up the house first. She emptied the trash, locked the window, then wrote a letter and left it on the dinner table for Carl to read when he returned. It was only after that that she finished packing her things. She didn’t have many possessions in the first place, and all that she carried with her was a small bag that could be lifted with one hand.

Then she waited calmly.

Her nerves kept her from feeling hungry, and she didn’t have time to make anything anyway. It was fortunate that she had the sandwich and lemonade earlier. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have any spare energy.

[Let’s go.]

An ordinary-looking carriage came to pick Valia up. As she boarded the carriage, a strange thought came to her. This whole affair was quieter than she expected.

‘They came to pick me up so quietly, so how did the rumour spread so quickly throughout the noble society in the past?’

 

In the past, rumors about the lady who volunteered as the princess spread like wildfire, even before she became the wife of the Marquis. Of course, any volunteer for this strange princess recruitment would have attracted a large amount of interest, and it wasn’t any different from what Valia was experiencing now. Society was bound to be rife with gossip, and yet here Valia was, departing in a relatively peaceful manner.

‘Is there a difference between what happened with the Marquis’ wife in the past, and me right now?’

As far as Valia remembered, the princess requirement was the same as it was now. It was so concise that Valia remembered every detail. After mulling over it for a moment, a frightening thought suddenly came to her.

‘…I’m not a reserve offering, am I?’

As it turned out, quite a few ladies volunteered to be the princess in the past. Were they rejected because they didn’t fit some of the crucial requirements? Were they sacrificed in order to silence them…? This nightmare scenario filled Valia’s head, and she imagined Carl laughing at her for writing a novel.

Valia’s anxiety was peaking just when the carriage arrived at the kingdom’s palace. She was led out by the waiting court maids.

And now she was here in her bath.

“When you’re visiting, do not cause any harm to His Highness, or his royal body or face. And you cannot push his royal body around too…”

As Valia was bathed, she realized that these ladies-in-waiting seemed to think that they were preparing a woman to serve the king in his chambers, and thus her hands had to be soft and gentle. Valia didn’t exactly know what was going on, but she knew that this was for the disguise, so she stayed still and just shook her head. In the past, working as a palace girl and being attentive of others while walking on eggshells proved to be useful.

“Now, raise your arms,” the lady-in-waiting instructed.

 

It was the law of the royal court that ladies-in-waiting were to only speak when required, and minimally, and so, the one that spoke to Valia and said nothing more than necessary. For Valia, it was actually a good thing.

However, Valia’s eyes widened when she was dressed afterwards. She had never worn anything so seductive in her life. She kept her mouth shut while the ladies-in-waiting dressed her, but then soon spoke.

“Erm, is this clothing all there is? Anything else I can wear?” she ventured cautiously.

“This is it. You’re going to have to serve the King in his chambers. By the way, when you wake up in the morning, you can change into the clothes hanging at the foot of the bed.”

“Ah, yes…” Valia mumbled, concealing her bitter expression with a nod.

The dress was white, and rather like a nightgown, or rather it was like fancy undergarments. The bottom was trimmed with elaborate lace and the thin ribbons were pretty, but the problem was that the fabric was thin and translucent, revealing her skin. But what could she do? It wasn’t as if they would dress her in other clothes just because Valia hated it.

As soon as she shut her mouth, the ladies-in-waiting groomed Valia with skilful touches. Light, almost imperceptible, makeup was put on her face, and her hair was styled into a loose braid. Valia had a rough idea of the king’s preferences, even if she hadn’t seen him yet.

“You can wait here,” the lady-in-waiting told her finally. “You haven’t forgotten the precautions, have you?”

“I haven’t,” Valia answered.

“Then I’ll take my leave.”

The ladies-in-waiting took Valia to the spacious bedroom and closed the door behind her. Once Valia was left alone, she let out the heavy breath that she didn’t realize she had been holding.

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It didn’t occur to her that the King would really come. How long should she stay here? Valia paced around the bedroom to calm herself down. This was the palace, and the bedroom was furnished with porcelain decorations and lavish paintings, but they didn’t catch her eye.

Then, she sensed someone approached. She turned around, and the sight caused her eyes to widen.

Several knights clad in white armor and blue capes had entered the room. They were the knights of the kingdom. Knights living in the palace would be of high standing, so Valia briefly wondered if she should lower her head. If the lady-in-waiting who had come with them hadn’t spoken just then, Valia would have bowed her head.

“My Lady, we don’t have much time. These knights are here to take you with them,” the lady-in-waiting said.

“Me?”