Daisy and Emily, the two young maids, stood panting heavily outside the doors of Clementine’s private chambers.
They carried information far more valuable than gold.
“My Lady, you must hear this.
It concerns the very honor of this mansion,” Daisy began with an affectation of deep anxiety, her hands trembling as she clutched an empty silver tray.
Clementine, whose hair was being brushed by another maid, glanced up at their reflection in the mirror.
“Speak clearly.
Do not waste my time, you utter fools!”
Emily took over, her voice brimming with twisted excitement.
“Last night, My Lady…
in the back garden.
We saw it with our own eyes.
Elena, that Red Pig…
she has completely lost her mind.”
The maid brushing Clementine’s hair froze.
The entire room plunged into a sudden, suffocating silence.
“What did that pig do?” Clementine asked, her voice dropping into a low, razor-sharp whisper.
The two maids nudged each other before speaking, terrified yet eager to deliver the blow.
“She–she was wearing His Highness the Crown Prince’s imperial jacket,” Daisy blurted out quickly.
“And that’s not all, My Lady.
She didn’t just stand there.
She…
she was sitting right on His Highness’s lap!
She was laughing, seducing, and touching His Highness.”
Crash!
Shatter!
With a violent sweep of her arm, Clementine sent every crystal perfume bottle on her vanity crashing onto the floor, shattering into a thousand pieces.
A potent aroma of roses filled the air, but the atmosphere was anything but sweet.
“Sitting on Alexander’s lap?” Clementine stood up, her beautiful face flushed crimson with rage.
“Do you dare swear to this?!”
“We swear, My Lady!
We saw His Highness wrapping his arms around her plump waist, whispering sweetly beneath the moonlight.
Elena even intentionally thrust her chest forward to rub against His Highness’s arm,” Emily added, weaving the most malicious slander she could fabricate.
To Clementine, this was no longer a matter of a disobedient servant.
This was a direct assault on her pride as the most beautiful woman in the Empire.
How could Alexander–a man who rarely even held her own hand with any warmth–allow a fat, red-haired, lowly maid to sit upon his lap?
“Bring that pig before me this instant!
Drag her!” Clementine shrieked.
“I will destroy her!!!
Damn her!”
Elena was in the rear storehouse when four guards dragged her away without a single word of explanation.
Her body, still aching fiercely from the previous day’s ordeal in the maze, was forced to keep up with their brutal pace.
She was thrown into the central hall, where Clementine was already waiting, a riding whip gripped tightly in her hand.
Surrounding her were Daisy, Emily, and dozens of other servants eagerly gathering to watch the spectacle.
“My Lady…
what is the meaning of this?” Elena murmured, her voice trembling.
Slap!
A resounding blow struck Elena’s cheek, sending her crashing onto the cold marble floor.
“Do not play innocent with me, Elena!” Clementine snarled, grabbing Elena by her red hair and forcing her face upward.
“Did you honestly think that with your disgusting body, you could crawl into the Crown Prince’s bed?
Who do you think you are, huh?!
You are nothing but a fat witch from a fallen house!”
“I did nothing, My Lady!
His Highness only lent me his jacket because I was freezing–”
“Freezing, or just desperate for a touch?!” Daisy jeered from the sidelines.
“We saw you sitting on his lap, Elena!
Do not lie!”
Elena’s eyes widened in horror.
“His lap?
No!
I was merely standing beside him!
I swear it!”
“Enough!” Clementine signaled the guards.
“Strip her again!
If she loves flaunting her body to my fiancé so much, then let everyone see exactly how filthy she is today!”
Daisy and Emily felt as though they were in heaven.
Their fleeting anxiety about their slander being exposed evaporated into complete security.
Amidst the chaotic cruelty, a measured, commanding set of footsteps echoed from the grand staircase.
Alexander Giovani descended in casual attire, yet his aura remained unmatched by anyone in the room.
Clementine’s demeanor shifted instantly.
Her furious expression vanished, replaced by a look of sorrow and profound hurt.
She practically ran to Alexander’s side.
“Your Highness…
thank goodness you are here.
This servant…
Elena…
she is spreading vile rumors that you were deeply intimate with her in the garden last night.
She even dared to wear your jacket, claiming you gave it to her.
Is it true, Your Highness?
Surely you would never treat this pig with such tenderness.”
Elena stared up at Alexander, tears welling in her eyes.
This was her only chance.
A single word from Alexander confirming that they had merely spoken normally would spare her life from Clementine’s escalating torture.
“Please, Your Highness…
tell them the truth,” Elena whispered, clinging to a shred of hope.
Alexander looked down at Elena.
His eyes swept over her shivering, nearly bare form sprawled across the floor, before shifting back to Clementine, who awaited his confirmation with anxious eyes.
Alexander took a long, deliberate breath, and then a faint, unreadable smile played upon his lips.
“The jacket was indeed with her last night,” Alexander stated calmly.
Clementine caught her breath.
“And…
about her sitting on your lap?
Did she truly commit such an insolent act?”
The hall became so quiet that the ragged sound of Elena’s breathing was audible to all.
Alexander glanced at Elena once more.
“No, My Lady, everything Daisy and Emily said is a lie.
They are fabricating slander…
Ah!”
Daisy’s boot stomped down hard on Elena’s hand, grinding into her unhealed whip wounds and causing a fresh wave of agony.
“I never seduced His Highness, I wouldn’t dare, My Lady,” Elena cried out in sheer desperation.
Weeping had left her exhausted and weak; she felt as though she had no energy left to live.
Yet, her misery was a source of entertainment for the crowd–including Alexander, whom she had hoped would be her final protector.
“Please tell the truth, Your Highness.
Please help me–”
“How dare you speak to His Highness!” Clementine cut her off, infuriated by Elena’s continued pleas.
“Please,” Elena whimpered.
Her voice was fading fast, but the pathetic sound only made the spectacle more thrilling for the onlookers.
“Well, Your Highness?
Is it true what she says?
That she did not entice you?” Clementine pressed, impatient for his final confirmation.
Meanwhile, Daisy and Emily broke into a cold sweat, terrified that Alexander might defend Elena by recounting what had actually happened.
However, their anxiety was met with a beautifully cruel answer.
“Well,” Alexander murmured smoothly.
“It certainly was a very warm night in the garden, wasn’t it, Elena?”