7.
After finishing her meal, Philomel returned to her room.
“Your Highness! You’ve returned? So, what did His Majesty say…?”
The nanny, who had been waiting to pry into the details of the meeting with the Emperor the moment she saw Philomel, suddenly spotted the person following behind her.
“Wait. Count Polan, what brings you here?”
It was Count Polan.
“His Majesty has ordered your retirement. Thank you for your hard work, serving first Her Majesty the Empress and then Her Highness the Princess.”
“Pardon? What do you mean by that…”
The nanny blinked, unable to grasp what Polan was saying.
“You will be given a generous severance package, so you won’t have to feel bitter. If you wish, we will even arrange a house for you to live in the capital.”
Philomel looked up at the nanny and smiled brightly.
“Nanny, thank you for everything until now. Don’t push yourself anymore and rest well.”
“Retirement? What is the meaning of this! I have no intention of retiring. I have made up my mind to stay by Her Highness’s side until the very end!”
The nanny was horrified at the word ‘retirement.’ Though she had pretended otherwise, she was quite fond of the power she enjoyed as the Princess’s guardian.
“Your loyalty is admirable. However, Her Highness personally informed His Majesty of the fact that you have been suffering from back pain for a long time.”
Along with the concern that the nanny might collapse at any moment if things continued this way.
Philomel hid behind the Count and smiled deviously.
Stung, the nanny began to make excuses.
“T-that’s not that serious. The Princess must have taken it too seriously, being a young child…”
“I have already confirmed it with the other servants as well. You don’t need to hide it anymore.”
The nanny must have been bragging around, implying, ‘See how I sacrifice my entire body to be loyal to the Imperial Family,’ but words can be shaped however one likes.
When Philomel pleaded while acting as if she were genuinely worried about the nanny, Eustis gave the order for her retirement without a word of dispute.
From his perspective, it would be troublesome if the nanny—whom his late wife had followed like a mother—were to collapse, so it was a logical decision.
“So, as of today, quit your job and focus on recuperating. We plan to carefully select a highly capable lady-in-waiting to be assigned to Her Highness.”
“But I really am fine! If you could just reconsider…”
Philomel brushed past the nanny, who was clinging to Polan, and entered her room. It would be faster to die and be reborn than to hope Eustis would take back an order once he had given it.
The maids, who had been whispering in the corner, also looked grim.
“…What are we supposed to do if Nanny leaves?”
“We’ll just have to try to get along with the new lady-in-waiting.”
“All the effort we put into the Nanny is a waste. What a shame.”
These were people who had been slacking off and living in luxury while doing the bare minimum, thanks to a nanny who only cared if they listened to her.
Philomel’s escape plan started with getting rid of all of them.
There was no point in keeping people around who were eating away at her spirit; they would only be a hindrance in preparing for her escape.
It’s a good start.
Philomel headed to the bathroom with light steps to wash up.
***
A few days later, in Philomel’s quarters.
Today was the day Philomel was to meet Countess Deles for the first time. She was the person who had become Philomel’s head lady-in-waiting, replacing the retired nanny.
Looking at the gray-haired woman standing before her, Philomel thought.
‘Even though it must have been a rush, Count Polan brought someone quite decent.’
Countess Deles had the flaw of lacking firm resolve, but she was respectable and kept her mouth shut, making her well-suited for the work of a lady-in-waiting.
How did Philomel, meeting her for the first time today, know this…?
It was because Countess Deles was the head lady-in-waiting who served Ellensia in the book. In the book, she was a dignified and honest person, so Ellensia relied on her a lot.
Countess Deles, who had a gentle impression, bowed respectfully.
“It is a great honor for my family to serve Her Highness the Princess. If there is anything you require, please do not hesitate to tell me at any time.”
Countess Deles was nervous, worried that she might make a bad first impression on the Princess, who was rumored to be difficult. Since she was still young, she rarely appeared at official events, but it was a well-known fact that the Princess’s personality was not to be trifled with.
“Nice to meet you. I look forward to working with you.”
However, contrary to the rumors of her being arrogant, the Princess greeted the Countess with a polite smile.
Throughout their subsequent conversation, there was no behavior that was particularly against etiquette. She even gave the impression of being more mature than the average child of a noble family.
‘I was worried for nothing.’
About half a day after meeting the Princess, the Countess felt completely at ease.
Following the Princess’s daily routine, she observed that the Princess was diligent in all matters and never treated those below her poorly.
Because of her age, there were aspects where she was immature, but if she received just a little more education, it was clear she would grow into a model for the Imperial family.
The notoriety surrounding the Princess seemed to be nothing more than one of the many groundless rumors in high society.
‘How could they be so bold as to spread such talk about the Princess?’
Countess Deles thought to herself.
Just then, the Princess held her small, flushed cheeks and said.
“Would you like to see my closet? I have many pretty clothes.”
The two were enjoying a break for tea.
As the Countess was looking for a topic a young girl might like and mentioned the currently popular dress styles, the Princess took her hand and led her to the closet.
The Countess had been thinking that she was a bit too mature for her age, so she smiled warmly, thinking that the Princess had a childlike side after all.
However, the moment she checked inside the closet, her expression stiffened slightly.
Philomel pointed to the dresses one by one, chattering away.
“This is my favorite dress, and that one I got last spring…”
“…I see. They are all beautiful.”
There was no major issue with the dresses themselves.
The problem was the state of the organization inside the closet.
At a glance, the clothes appeared to be hung neatly, but upon closer inspection, they were jumbled together regardless of their purpose or seasonality. Moreover, some were stored with the lace still wrinkled.
If things continued this way, the clothes would be ruined and couldn’t be worn for long. It seemed that because new dresses were always provided for the Princess immediately, people had just been sloppy about it.
‘But to make mistakes that even maids in a decent noble family wouldn’t make!’
Countess Deles glared at Philomel’s maids with cold eyes. She had felt their attitude was sloppy ever since they served the tea.
‘Is this all there is?’
Usually, one exposed mistake implies ten hidden ones.
She decided that she needed to thoroughly investigate how they had been handling their duties all this time.
She might need a whole new staff of maids.
***
Some time later, all of the Princess’s maids were replaced. This was because officials had begun an investigation at the request of Countess Deles.
Not only was there negligence in their duties, but they also caught wind of circumstances where they had misappropriated the budget allocated to the Princess for personal use. It was expected, in a way, but the one who had embezzled the most was the nanny.
All those involved were severely punished. Philomel heard later that the nanny didn’t even recognize that what she had done was a major fault.
“Is it such a great sin for an old woman like me to get confused about whose money is whose as I get older! Oh, how unfair! If only Isabella were still alive, how much she would pity me, her like a mother…”
A maid who had witnessed the nanny come all the way to the Imperial Palace to cry and protest reported the details to Philomel.
It wasn’t just a few pennies, and given the frequency of the ‘confusion’ and the amount of money involved, it wasn’t a very convincing excuse.
Philomel had thought the nanny was spendthrift, but she hadn’t realized it was to this extent.
The nanny was beaten and kicked out afterward, but considering she was a criminal, it was lucky she even had her head still attached after causing such a scene.
Unlike the maids who were locked in prison, having her property confiscated was the Emperor’s greatest act of mercy. Yet, she wasn’t satisfied and had gone so far as to protest.
“Your Highness should have seen it. She was crying her eyes out saying it hurt after only getting hit once.”
The maid giggled while reenacting the nanny’s unsightly display.
“…That is enough talk in front of the Princess.”
Countess Deles said, knitting her brows, while keeping an eye on Philomel’s reaction.
She seemed worried that the Princess might be heartbroken now that the nanny, who had been in charge of her upbringing for so long, had met such an end.
“I’m fine. Perhaps she just reaped what she sowed.”
Philomel reassured the Countess with a gentle smile. In any case, she was someone who had nothing to do with her anymore.
As Philomel yawned, “*Yawn*,” and patted her shoulders, Countess Deles laughed softly.
“I will have your bed prepared.”
“Thank you.”
“It is my job, after all.”
As she lay in bed, sleep washed over her.
For the past few days, Philomel hadn’t been able to sleep soundly as she racked her brain on how to get rid of the nanny and the maids.
Even while studying, her mind was filled with nothing but that. Everything—getting called by the Emperor to state her wish, showing the closet to the new head lady-in-waiting—had been a strategy devised after intense contemplation.
To others, it might seem like nothing, but to Philomel, in the body of a nine-year-old, it had been completely draining.
Regardless, it was a huge relief that things had worked out as she had hoped.
‘I hope it continues like this.’
Praying that, Philomel drifted off to sleep.