Translator: Nox
(12) Lily Palace's Precious Darling (4)
As Petria opened the window, the wind rushed in. The Torkan wind carried a salty and slightly fishy scent.
Roxana still found this air, so different from the Kanta Kingdom, unfamiliar.
The Kanta Kingdom was located in the center of the continent, far from the sea. In Tepus, the capital of Kanta, flowed a wide river called the Bebe River. Along the banks of the Bebe River, street vendors lined up, and when the sun set, the lights from their stalls twinkled, as beautiful as if they held starlight.
Roxana truly loved that sight.
Even near the Bebe River, there was a watery smell, but it was completely different from the smell here. Petria said that this fishy, salty smell came from the sea.
'The sea...'
Roxana had never seen the sea. Before she was sold as a slave, she had been put on a merchant ship, but she had been inside a box, so she hadn't seen what the outside looked like.
-"The sea is truly beautiful. When you stand on the beach, it looks like the sea and the sky are touching. Watching that makes you feel refreshed. Someday, Roxana, you should go see it. It will make you feel much better."
What would it be like for the sea and the sky to touch?
The curiosity that suddenly bloomed quickly faded.
'What would I do knowing? What would I do seeing? Even if I knew, even if I saw, there's no one to share it with. What would I do with all of that in my eyes alone?'
Roxana turned her gaze away from the window and closed her eyes.
She hadn't been able to eat anything for days. She had tried to eat somehow, worried that Petria would be troubled, but it was hard to swallow even a sip of water. Even if she managed to put a spoonful of soup in her mouth, she felt nauseous and ended up throwing it up.
Her family must be wandering in a dark well, unable to find peace, so how could she put food in her mouth alone to survive? Every time she put something in her mouth, a part of her parents in the box came to mind, and her stomach churned.
The horrific sight vividly resurfacing. Elise's sharply striking voice.
-"I threw them into the well and blocked the entrance, so your family won't smell the Scent of Adelia even when spring comes!"
Each word became a clear and sharp blade, stabbing Roxana's lungs. The pain was added to by the long starvation, and the grief overlapped, and Roxana's health rapidly deteriorated.
Every time she closed her eyes in bed, she felt like her whole body was being swallowed by the soft bed and sinking into darkness. At such times, she invariably heard voices.
Multiple voices, but like one voice, voices she had often heard in her childhood kept coming to her, annoying her.
-'Lotty, I understand your feelings, but try to drink at least a sip of water. Humans can't live without drinking water.'
-'Soon we won't be able to drink the water in this area anymore. Drink a lot of water before that.'
-'Or come out to the garden, Lotty. We'll hug you.'
-'Lotty, don't die. You're the only human who can talk to us now.'
Roxana wanted to scream, please stop calling me Lotty. Don't call me by that lovely nickname that my family used to call me, don't make me think of the scenery that has now disappeared.
But she didn't even have the strength to do that, so she accepted the longing, sad, and annoying noise.
As she closed her eyes like that, a savory and sweet smell filled the room. It seemed it was mealtime again.
A time that some people would look forward to very much felt like a time of punishment to Roxana. Petria's eyes, hoping she would eat, the sincerity of the cooks in the dishes, the efforts of the farmers or fishermen who had grown the ingredients, all weighed heavily on Roxana, who was already struggling.
"Roxana, it seems the cooks have put their heart and soul into it today."
Petria was consistently cheerful even without Roxana's reply.
"Look at this. It looks really delicious."
Feeling sorry for ignoring even that, Roxana barely turned her head. On the multi-tiered trolley that had been wheeled into the bedroom, various dishes were placed.
Crispy roasted quail and shellfish, a rich soup made with grilled fish, a fresh salad with a refreshing fruit dressing, and bread baked softly with plenty of butter, cheese, milk, jam, fruit...
A luxury that ordinary people could only dream of was spread out on the table.
"I'm sorry, Petria. I..."
Acid reflux came up. Roxana covered her mouth with one hand. Petria's eyebrows drooped at the sight of her suppressing her nausea.
She had been thin when she first saw her a few days ago, but now she was even thinner. Her bony arms and the backs of her hands looked pitiful.
It would be good if she could swallow even a few spoonfuls of soup, but Roxana couldn't even swallow a sip of water properly. It wasn't that she was forcibly refusing, but Roxana's body was automatically pushing everything away, so she couldn't blame her.
Petria pushed the trolley back out and discovered Floyd standing in the reception room in front of the bedroom.
"Greetings, Your Highness."
Petria quickly lowered her head and bent her knees slightly in greeting. Floyd barely acknowledged her greeting and looked down at the food that remained untouched on the trolley.
"The Princess isn't eating anything?"
"Yes, Your Highness. It seems she is greatly grieved..."
"How many days has she not eaten?"
Petria was suddenly afraid. She felt like she would be scolded if she said she hadn't eaten anything since the first day, but she spoke honestly.
"She hasn't been able to eat anything since the first day. Even if she manages to eat a spoonful of soup, she throws it all up, so she can't even drink a sip of water."
"She hasn't even drunk water all this time?"
"Yes."
Floyd closed his eyes as if trying to suppress his emotions. A scorching heat swept past Petria. Fortunately, it wasn't hot enough to cause burns, but Petria was startled and took a step back.
Floyd picked up a tray of fruit from the trolley and went into the bedroom.
Roxana was lying in bed with her eyes closed, and she looked like a dead person because of her sunken cheeks and bloodless lips.
Floyd placed the tray on the bedside table next to the bed and opened his mouth.
"Princess."
At Floyd's call, Roxana opened her eyes. Her pupils, which had been wandering aimlessly in the air, turned to Floyd.
She stared blankly at him for a moment, as if she didn't recognize who Floyd was, and then struggled to get up and get out of bed.
Her body, which had been hidden by the blanket, was revealed. Even though she was wearing a dress, he could tell how thin she was.
He was so shocked by her frail body, which seemed like it would break at any moment, that he didn't even realize what she was doing. Floyd only came to his senses after she knelt down and pressed her forehead to the ground.
"The slave awaits the master's command."
Her voice was so thin that it seemed like it would scatter before it even reached his ears.
Floyd was dumbfounded. She was trembling so much that it was hard for her to even lie prostrate, yet she was doing this. No one had expected this.
"Are you mocking me? Or are you deliberately trying to provoke my anger?"
Roxana didn't answer. The platinum blonde hair spread haphazardly on the carpet irritated Floyd.
Floyd roughly grabbed Roxana's arm, pulled her up, and sat her on the bed.
"If you do this one more time, I think I'll really get angry, Princess."
He said threateningly, but her eyes, looking up at Floyd, were unwavering.
"I heard you're not eating. Are you planning to starve to death?"
Again, Roxana didn't answer.
What a stubborn person.
"So, if you starve to death here, do you think I'll get angry and throw your body away anywhere? Or did you bribe someone? Did you promise someone that as soon as you die, they'll throw you into the sea? Then why don't you bite your tongue instead of holding out like this? It'll be less painful than starving!"
Floyd's voice grew louder and louder, but Roxana's face didn't show any emotion, like a doll. That face, not afraid or sad, messed up Floyd's mind.
She was just sitting there quietly, but why was she, who had entered his mind, so rampant?
She was the one who should be angry at losing her country and family, so why was he the only one who was indignant and ranting?
Floyd was overwhelmed and grabbed a fruit from the tray at random. As he put strength into his hand, the ripe orange was crushed and the juice flowed down his bronze skin.
He grabbed Roxana's small chin and rubbed his finger on her lips. The flowing juice went down his finger and moistened her dry lips.
Roxana put strength into her mouth to avoid eating, but the sweet and sour juice flowed into the small gap between her lips and stimulated the tip of her tongue. Her body, which had not accepted even a sip of water, was stimulated by the refreshing fruit and moved on its own.
His finger, stained with orange pulp, entered between her lips that had opened on their own. He rubbed the orange pulp on his finger into her mouth and said.
"It seems the maid has not served the Princess well. You have to open your mouth and put it in directly like this for you to eat."
At the mocking words, Roxana unknowingly closed her mouth tightly. Her front teeth bit down hard on his finger that was in her mouth, but he didn't even twitch an eyebrow.
"Yes, Princess. Chew and eat my finger. You have to eat and swallow something to stand up to my crazy taunts. To dig your fingernails into my face."
Only then did Roxana realize that he was trying to make her angry and arouse her will to live. Feeling mocked and humiliated was only possible if she had the will to live.
