34.
‘It’s fine. It’s not like what was in the book.’
‘Philomel’ stayed in the Imperial Palace because she couldn’t give up the glory of the past, but she would not do the same.
In the first place, the position the Emperor had offered her was that of a princess, not a princess’s maid.
Ellensia must have brought it up thinking she was doing it for Philomel’s sake. She was such a warm-hearted child, always worrying about others.
‘And adoption? What a joke. That man didn’t explain a single thing to Ellensia.’
Thinking of Eustis’s face as he spoke of adoption made her grip the game piece in her hand tighter.
In the end, victory went to Philomel, who reached the Emperor’s seat first. It was an ironic result, considering the future of Ellensia, who would one day ascend to the throne as the sole successor.
Although they had only played one round, it was already nearing nighttime.
“Why hasn’t Father come yet?”
Ellensia, who had packed up the game board and pieces, asked while checking the clock.
“It seems his work is running late. I believe it would be best for us to withdraw for now.”
Usually, there was no work at this hour that would keep the Emperor tied down so late. Especially not for Eustis, who preferred working in his bedroom over his office.
‘He must be avoiding this place because I’m in his bedroom.’
The last time she saw him, he had seemed unwilling to hear Philomel’s answer for some reason.
As they stepped out of the bedroom, Ellensia clapped her hands brightly.
“Ah, let’s go to Father!”
“Pardon? W-wait a moment…!”
Philomel had no choice but to be dragged along as the girl grabbed her wrist and started to run.
“He must be in his office!”
“What business do we have with His Majesty the Emperor?”
“I’m going to ask him to let you be my maid!”
“What? I told you I’m fine!”
“You don’t have to decline. You’re just worried he won’t give his permission, right? If I ask, Father will listen!”
“That’s not it at all!”
“It’s okay. Just leave it to me!”
It felt as if they were speaking two different languages; they weren’t communicating at all.
Ellensia was surprisingly strong, making it impossible for Philomel to shake her off. Having grown up running through mountains and fields, her physical strength was far beyond Philomel’s.
“Oh my, Your Highnesses! You mustn’t run! You’ll get hurt!”
Palace Attendants they encountered along the way tried to stop them, but Ellensia only hesitated for a moment before pressing on.
“Father! I’m here!”
The door to the Emperor’s office swung open violently. The Emperor was sitting at his desk, signing documents.
“Ellensia, how many times have I told you to knock…”
He spotted Philomel standing behind Ellensia.
“What is the reason the two of you are together?”
“That is…”
“Father, please! Please give your permission for Philomel to become my maid!”
“…A maid?”
“Yes. Philomel is so pitiful. She has to leave the Imperial Palace, which is like her home. If she becomes a maid, she won’t have to leave, and the work won’t be hard either. Please, allow it. I will look after her well, so there won’t be any problems.”
The Emperor’s gaze shifted from his daughter to Philomel, as if saying, ‘I have no idea what this is about, so you explain it.’
Philomel had no choice but to concisely summarize and repeat what Ellensia had just said.
“Ha…”
Eustis let out a deep sigh and pressed his temples with the back of his pen.
He rose from his seat and approached Ellensia.
“So, did Philomel accept your proposal?”
“Pardon? Well, no, but if you give your permission, Father…”
“I refuse. I have no intention of accepting.”
Philomel shook her head firmly.
“What do you expect me to do by badgering me about a matter the person involved hasn’t even agreed to? Is forcing Philomel to be your maid what you want?”
“…”
“Ellensia, regardless of how you were raised, you are now a princess. To bring such an absurd issue to me…”
“*Sob.*”
The scolding ceased at the sound of a whimper.
“I—I’m sorry.”
Tears streamed down Ellensia’s cheeks.
“*Sob*, I’m sorry… I have so many shortcomings… I’ve ended up disappointing you, Father.”
The Emperor, perhaps unable to handle a crying daughter, took on a look of distress.
“Do not cry. Members of the Imperial family must not shed tears carelessly. And I am not the one you should be apologizing to.”
“Father…”
“Go on.”
Unable to stand the awkward atmosphere any longer, Philomel interjected.
“I am fine. The Princess must have just made a mistake out of an excess of concern for me.”
Caught in someone else’s messy family matter, she only wanted to smooth things over and leave. Besides, who knew what kind of trouble she would be in if she accepted an apology from Ellensia, whom the whole world doted on?
“…If you say so.”
Eustis accepted it begrudgingly and patted Ellensia’s shoulder with an awkward touch.
“There is no need for you to worry about Philomel’s status. She is a child capable of finding her own place to stay. If I register her in the family registry, she will remain in the Imperial Palace regardless.”
“…The family registry? Do you mean you are going to adopt Philomel, Father?”
Ellensia snapped her head up.
“That is correct.”
Noticing Philomel’s sharp glare, Eustis added a qualifier.
“Only on the condition that she accepts it herself.”
Just as she was deciding to firmly refuse, Ellensia turned toward her.
“If that happens, does that mean we’ll be sisters?”
Ellensia smiled, her face still damp from tears.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t even know there was a way to do that… Let’s get along well in the future.”
The candlelight cast deep shadows across her face.
The Emperor stepped in to settle the situation.
“In any case, it is late, so the two of you should head back now.”
“Yes. Goodnight, Father.”
Ellensia answered brightly, but she lingered, staring intently at the Emperor’s face.
“…?”
She gestured for the perplexed Eustis to bow his head.
Following her lead, the Emperor bowed, and a pair of small lips brushed his cheek with a *smack*.
“Hehe. That’s a goodnight kiss!”
Leaving the statue-like Eustis and Philomel behind, Ellensia skipped away.
“…I will never get used to that child’s lack of boundaries.”
Philomel agreed.
She had known from reading the book that the relationship between father and daughter was very affectionate, but seeing it in person was a different experience. As for her, she wouldn’t be able to do something like that even if a blade were held to her throat.
The Emperor spoke.
“I will apologize in Ellensia’s stead. I will teach her better in the future.”
“Yes, well. It is fine.”
This response was somewhat unexpected. How should she put it? In the book, he was a doting father who was so obsessed with his daughter that he couldn’t think straight…
Judging by what she had just witnessed, that didn’t seem to be the case.
Was there something she didn’t know?
Philomel glanced at his side profile, then stopped herself.
‘Why should I care?’
What did it matter what was between the two of them? It was none of her business.
“Your Majesty. About the family registry you mentioned earlier.”
*Clack!*
Eustis dropped his pen onto the desk as if throwing it.
“I have told Countess Deles to prepare your original room so you can stay there. It should be more comfortable than my bedroom. I should be going now, too. Get some rest.”
He blurted it out like a machine gun and hurried from his seat.
Philomel stared blankly at his retreating back before turning her gaze to the documents on the desk. They weren’t even half-signed. It wasn’t like this was work so urgent that the Emperor needed to process it late into the night.
Having no other choice, she headed toward the room she had used before.
‘When I left, I thought I would never return.’
She looked around to see if she could escape even now, but she could see Palace Attendants walking around the Imperial Palace here and there.
Perhaps they had been strictly trained; even when they encountered the fake princess who had disappeared and reappeared, they merely bowed politely without any suspicious glances.
However, they kept Philomel in their sight at all times. If she tried to run, they would come sprinting after her immediately.
The second escape didn’t look easy at all, and her shoulders felt heavy.