Translator: Nox

4 - The Crown I Will Steal From You

Episode 4

Mrs. Cuisine's words caught in her throat.

She should have answered the King, of course. But she couldn't.

Because I was Regent Duke's person, not the King's.

Duke Claudio's ears were everywhere in this place.

'If I say here that my master is the King… the Duke will start to suspect me.'

Regent Duke Claudio was meticulous to the point of being paranoid.

He still didn't fully trust me, and he would always cross-reference my reports with those of the Spy I had placed in the Royal Palace.

If that paranoid man heard about what happened today, it could arouse unnecessary suspicion.

"Isn't it obviously His Majesty the King?"

"Why is the Head Maid hesitating so much over such an obvious question?"

Those watching also questioned the prolonged silence.

At that moment, Medeia slammed her hand on the table next to her.

Bang-!

The Head Maid, startled by the sudden loud noise, quickly erased her expression as if nothing had happened.

But it was after everyone had already seen her troubled face.

"Was it a difficult question?"

Medeia smiled sweetly.

"…Your Highness."

"It seems you're not used to your new position. I can tell because you couldn't answer right away."

Mrs. Cuisine bit her lip.

"I'm just flustered that you would ask such an obvious question! My master is King Peleus."

"Really? Is that really so?"

"Of course. Why does Your Highness pick at such a self-evident truth and embarrass me so?"

"Neril is a Maid that my brother, King Peleus, left for me personally before he left. Before that, she was a member of my brother's Royal Guard. Are you trying to break the hand of her master?"

Oh dear. The Head Maid swallowed a startled breath.

That little girl was driving her into a corner.

'Damn it! Why is she acting like this today of all days?'

First, she had to get out of this situation. Mrs. Cuisine replied as if nothing was wrong.

"Even if she was a member of His Majesty the King's Royal Guard, Neril's current affiliation is Royal Maid. So, as Head Maid, I am perfectly capable of summarily punishing a subordinate."

"Isn't the retired Royal Guard Captain still in the capital? I wonder if he would agree that a knight he raised with such care could be summarily executed by the Head Maid."

"…Your Highness!"

The Head Maid gritted her teeth.

The former Royal Guard Captain, who had served with the Late King, was still a prominent figure respected by many, and the Head Maid was reluctant to touch him.

The more she spoke, the more enemies she made. She felt like she was constantly getting caught up in the little girl's tongue.

'I don't know what's gotten into her all of a sudden, but I need to press her down so she can't crawl up anymore.'

She took a breath and calmly repeated.

The order she received from the Regent Duke was to get rid of that leech Maid attached to the Princess for good.

"Excuse me, but I don't even know if this conversation is necessary."

The Head Maid retorted coldly.

"Your Highness is merely a blood relative of His Majesty the King. In reality, you are not my master, nor are you the master of all the servants in this palace. Besides…"

Malice flashed in Mrs. Cuisine's eyes as she added.

"If it weren't for Your Highness, I would still be serving the Late King as my master. He was a wise ruler who looked after the country both internally and externally, so I wouldn't have needed to give such a lesson today."

"……."

"But the Late King and Queen died tragically. As you know, it was because of Your Highness."

The surroundings turned coldly silent.

But despite the clear rudeness, Medeia was only quietly listening to her words.

"……."

"If it weren't for the King and the Royal Family's generous forgiveness, Your Highness wouldn't even be able to remain in this palace."

Mrs. Cuisine, emboldened, was relentless.

'The Queen Dowager hates that little girl. The King is no different. Why else hasn't he returned even once since his enthronement?'

Peleus, too, was born with the stain of an imperfect lineage as Medeia's full sibling.

However, despite such flaws, his outstanding talent and skill earned him the expectations of the world early on.

No one dared to mock the young King who had headed to the battlefield in accordance with the Late King's wishes, bearing the fate of the country on his shoulders.

But Medeia was different.

Repeated disappointment in her outwardly lacking appearance, coupled with the stigma of killing her parents, led to everyone's criticism and the Derogatory Title of "half-blood."

There were no allies of the Princess in this palace.

And everyone knew that fact.

"Someone who is in this position thanks to His Majesty's grace is now trying to act like the master."

Silence flowed.

The Head Maid felt a sense of pleasure as she looked at Medeia's pale face. She commanded Zena.

"What are you doing? Continue the punishment!"

Zena's trembling pupils darted busily between the Head Maid and Medeia.

"Act like the master, you say."

At that moment, a low voice flowed from Medeia. The calm tone was somehow meaningful.

The Head Maid paused, but thought, 'What could she possibly do?'

"Don't dawdle and move quickly!"

"Okay, then."

Medeia also turned her body. People thought the Princess was going to block the whip with her body. Just like Neril had done.

However, contrary to expectations, the Princess picked up the long Switch next to the whip with her small, white hand.

"Head Maid."

"Yes."

"Come here and lift your skirt."

Everyone doubted their ears.

"What did you just say?"

"You're not deaf, are you?"

The most dumbfounded was the Head Maid herself.

'Even if she's reckless, is she really trying to fight me right now?'

"Surely. You're not going to use that Switch on me-"

"I will respect your words. Me adding more words about Neril's punishment would be a clear overreach of authority, as you said."

White fingers slowly traced the smooth surface of the Switch. The gesture was very elegant and familiar.

In that moment, the people saw not a Switch in Medeia's hand, but a longsword.

From the Princess confronting the Head Maid, they felt a sharp and solemn aura, like a knight punishing an evil Demon Beast.

To the Princess who had never left the Royal Palace, who had never even held a small dagger.

"But our Baldina Royal Family has a law like this. If someone performing Royal Palace duties neglects their responsibilities, the King can punish them."

"Yes. Then I will ask for punishment when His Majesty returns."

The Head Maid scoffed and replied. Would the Princess even remain here until the King returned?

"And in the King's absence, that right belongs to the King's designated representative."

Medeia took out a Seal from her bosom and shook it.

"This is the Seal my brother left for me. You recognize it, since you used it to stamp your letter of appointment."

Before leaving for the battlefield, Peleus left his sister a Seal that could handle the internal affairs of the palace.

As long as she held the Seal as the King's representative, even if they ignored Medeia's existence, no one could erase it.

This was proof that he still recognized Medeia as a Princess, and it was a weapon to protect her.

She was too foolish to know its meaning back then.

"So, that means I can punish you directly."

The Head Maid's face turned red and blue.

"Such, what, I've never heard of such a-"

"Are you going to say it doesn't exist? Even though the Regent Duke used this clause to severely punish the inner palace when the Late King was on the battlefield?"

People remembered.

"That's right. At that time, most of the inner palace, including Lord Sachin, who was the Minister, were replaced."

The whispers of the Maids flowed into the Head Maid's ears.

It was a major incident in which several families in the capital were wiped out and dozens were executed. How could someone who was even the Royal Palace's Head Maid not know about that?

However, they soon recalled that the Head Maid had washed her identity through remarriage.

She must have been too busy buying her title with her body and mind, so she might not know about the bloodbath that had swept through the aristocratic families at the time.

"My goodness, Head Maid. You really don't know much."

Medeia tilted her head as if she couldn't understand how she had even risen to that position.

She threw in one more word.

"You said you couldn't serve my father as your master because of me. If you resent and miss him that much, why don't you study the Late King's reign a little more? It will also help you manage your regrets."

What would her uncle think that the Head Maid missed his dead brother, whom she wanted to bring down so badly?

'That little girl is driving me into a corner endlessly!'

The Head Maid bit her lip.

"…Your Highness is right. So, I will also do what I have to do. You have no objection to that, do you?"

At this point, it was a matter of pride.

She couldn't kneel to a green little girl at her age, nearing forty.

"As you wish."

The Princess nodded expressionlessly.

"Did you hear that? Zena, continue."

"H, Head Maid…"

"Hurry!"

"Y, yes!"

At the Head Maid's voice, Zena's hesitating hand finally moved first.

Crack-!

It was the Head Maid's preemptive strike and provocation.

'Look closely at what results your rashness has brought to that child.'

The Head Maid glanced sideways to gauge the Princess's reaction. But she couldn't read Medeia's expression.

"Head Maid, lift your skirt properly."

Swish-!

Even until the moment the Ash Rod in the Princess's hand flexed elastically, the Head Maid had no doubt.

That timid half-blood would not have the courage to wield this.

'The Princess wouldn't be that foolish. She can't not anticipate what kind of treatment she'll receive in the palace if she opposes me-'

Crack-!

Her thoughts were cut off. Her mind went blank.

No, was it the burning pain that flared up first?

Gasp. Even the Maids next to her gasped for a moment.