***
Judith couldn’t openly defend Marianne.
She could handle the maids, but Helen, the marchioness, was a different story.
She was always lurking around Judith, looking for any opportunity to tattle to the queen.
She constantly pressured Judith to memorize the Lotheir royal family’s genealogy, claiming it was a request from the queen, and bombarded her with unnecessary lectures about the etiquette a princess should adhere to.
Judith endured all this tyranny silently, maintaining an indifferent demeanor.
She had noticed the maids Helen brought with her tormenting Marianne, but she didn’t rebuke them or call Marianne to her side.
She couldn’t afford to waste her energy on petty squabbles.
If she wanted to uproot them, she needed to patiently remove each stubborn weed, one by one.
“Have you memorized the genealogy?”
Helen, who had approached Judith while she was taking a break from embroidery to rest her stiff neck with a cup of tea, asked.
She quietly looked up at her, her small hands clasped on the table.
‘I hate those eyes.’ Helen thought.
As the marchioness and the queen’s right hand, Helen had no reason to fear a naive young princess.
While she didn’t fear Judith, she found her calm, indifferent demeanor, which was unusual for her age, unsettling.
She attributed this inexplicable unease to Judith’s clear, bright eyes.
They seemed to say, ‘I don’t care what you do or what you do to me.’
“I have, why do you ask?”
Helen’s face contorted with visible surprise at her response, then hardened into a stiff expression.
“You’ve memorized it?”
“Didn’t I not just say so?”
It was unbelievable.
Helen thought she was lying.
The Lotheir royal family’s genealogy was so complex that it would cover the entire length of the reception room’s table if laid out.
Even excluding the collateral branches and focusing only on the direct lineage, it would take days to memorize.
She had given Judith the genealogy only yesterday morning.
Judith had only glanced at it briefly, then spent the rest of the time embroidering.
“Your Highness, memorizing the royal family’s genealogy is a duty you must fulfill as a princess of the Lotheir royal family.
Her Majesty the queen has issued this strict order because of the gravity of this responsibility.
Why would Your Highness lie to me, the one who conveyed Her Majesty’s order?”
“How do you know if I’m lying?”
“Well…”
Helen was momentarily speechless.
It was an unreasonable order to ask her to memorize the complex genealogy in just a few days.
But admitting that meant the queen had given an unreasonable order to the princess, who had only just become a member of the royal family.
Helen didn’t want to believe that Judith had calculated that far.
She thought she was simply just a young girl stubbornly refusing to be humiliated.
“Would you like to check?”
“You, you say?”
A mocking smile appeared on Judith’s lips as she looked up at her.
“If you really have memorized it, what’s there to worry about?”
“There’s nothing to worry about.
But you seem to think I haven’t memorized the genealogy and am lying.
Even if I prove I’ve memorized it, I wonder if it will even reach Her Majesty’s ears.”
“Your Highness, what are you saying?
Do you think I would intentionally lie to Her Majesty?”
Helen’s voice suddenly rose, and the maids standing nearby started whispering among themselves.
Judith glanced at the old woman’s flushed face and lightly shrugged.
“Unless Her Majesty the queen has ordered you to check if I’ve memorized the genealogy, I don’t have to obey you.
If you’re curious whether I’m lying or not, go tell Her Majesty now that I have memorized it.
Then she will call me for confirmation.”
“Your Highness!”
“I respect you because I know you’re here to assist me by following Her Majesty’s order,” Judith’s voice suddenly turned sharp.
It was a stark contrast to her previous tone, and Helen’s confidence faltered.
“You are the mistress of the prestigious marquis family and a maid who serves Her Majesty the queen.
I’m just a newcomer.
I know the difference, which is why I remained silent even though you belittled me.
But if you continue to treat me this way, I’ll have to take matters into my own hand.”
“No, what…!”
Helen’s narrow face turned red.
Before she could retort, a maid hurried in, glancing nervously between them.
“Your Highness, a guest has arrived.”
“Who is it?”
“It’s Lady Evelta, Your Highness.”
Judith’s eyes sparkled at the maid’s words.
Helen regarded her with suspicion.
She had never met Evelta, the marquis’s daughter, personally, but she had heard rumors circulating in the social circles.
They said that the marquis doted on his only daughter, and despite approaching adulthood, was still as wild as a colt.
‘What kind of connection does she have with the marchioness?’
The marquis wasn’t a foolish person, but he wasn’t overly ambitious either.
The queen had tried to bring him into her fold many times to acquire a portion of his salt sales rights, but he never caved.
As far as Helen knew, he wasn’t connected to Duke Berzi either.
So, why would Evelta’s daughter visit Judith alone?
“Show the guest to the reception room.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Judith, deliberately ignoring Helen’s bewilderment, rose from her seat.
The door leading to the reception room from the inner chamber was closed.
As she grabbed the doorknob to open it, a feeling of tightness in her chest and a tingling sensation in her nostrils washed over her.
What kind of expression should she wear when greeting her?
In her previous life, Judith had received countless favors from Cheraan.
It was Cheraan’s strength that had helped her stay afloat as Franz’s sanity deteriorated, putting her in a precarious position.
She hadn’t had the chance to repay her kindness, and ultimately, Cheraan lost her life.
She would repay that debt in this life.
Judith pressed her hand to her chest and opened the door.
Cheraan’s tall figure and the red hair she had neatly styled into a bun were the first things that caught her eye.
She turned her head slightly at the sound of the door opening.
Her face was younger than she remembered.
Judith’s attempt to calm herself was futile as Cheraan’s bright smile shattered her composure.
“Your Highness the princess consort!”
Cheraan rushed toward her, her face filled with surprise at seeing Judith’s tears.
She hastily pulled out a handkerchief to wipe her cheeks.
Her touch was as tender as that of a sister’s, as warm as a mother’s.
Judith sobbed, burying her face in her hands.
* * *
“Are you feeling better now?”
The two sat facing each other, with steaming teacups before them.
Judith, with her red-rimmed eyes and while wiping away at her nose, offered a shy smile.
“I apologize for my behavior earlier, Lady Evelta.”
“Call me Cheraan.”
Judith’s face brightened slightly at her words.
“Cheraan.”
“I was really surprised.
When I heard that Your Highness had cried upon seeing me, I thought my mother would be beside herself.
She would say, ‘How badly did she behave for Your Highness to be so surprised?'”
“It’s not like that.
I just… felt happy to see you.
I couldn’t help but cry.”
That statement was only partially true.
It was a heartfelt statement for Judith, but Cheraan didn’t know that.
She only understood a fragment of her words.
She thought a young girl, who had become a princess in a foreign country, must have been lonely and that the sight of a girl her age had suddenly triggered her homesickness.
“I’m so flustered that I haven’t even greeted you properly.
Thank you for inviting me today, Your Highness.”
“I’m the one who should be thanking you for coming, Cheraan.
I’m sorry to have invited you so suddenly.
I’m sure it must have been a surprise for the marquis too…”
“My father said to go happily, so don’t worry.”
Cheraan chuckled, remembering her father’s startled expression as she lied about his willingness to let her go.
Judith guessed that her words were somewhat exaggerated, but she nodded, pretending not to know, with a grateful expression.
“But Your Highness, I may be asking a presumptuous question, but where is the maid who serves you?”
“Ah, well…”
Judith deliberately avoided eye contact, lowering her eyebrows and smiling silently.
Cheraan’s expression darkened slightly at the look of a child enduring loneliness.
“Don’t tell me the queen hasn’t assigned you a maid yet?”
“It’s not like that.
It just hasn’t been decided yet… The marchioness, who used to serve Her Majesty the queen, is here temporarily.”
Cheraan recalled Helen’s face, which she had caught glimpses of through the door leading to the reception room.
It was clear that she was not happy to see Judith.
She was like a hawk, her eyes gleaming with suspicion, and Cheraan had been about to give her a piece of her mind on her way out.
A grumpy old woman like her wouldn’t be able to properly serve such a delicate princess.
“If she’s a maid who has served Her Majesty the queen for a long time, it might be difficult for her to serve a young princess like Your Highness.
A maid closer to your age would be a better fit for Your Highness.”
“I know Helen is trying to serve me faithfully.
It’s not easy for me to deal with her either, but it can’t be helped.”
Her eyes welled up again as she said that.
Cheraan couldn’t stand to see her like this.
The image of Queen Gilsis’ poisonous face popped into her mind, making her lips twist involuntarily into a scowl.
What a nasty woman.
Even a young princess like this wasn’t safe from her predatory nature.
Cheraan spoke in a comforting tone.
“I will visit often and keep you company, Your Highness.
So don’t make that sad face.”
“Really, Cheraan?”
“Of course!
Your Highness, do you know how to ride a horse?
I just received a very gentle horse as a gift a few days ago.
Would you like to go horseback riding with me, three days from now?”