Chapter 2
Chapter 2
“Your words show a distinct lack of etiquette or love for this family . ” [1]
“ . . . ”
Well, my brother is showing his ‘love’ by giving me a lecture, if that’s what he’s talking about . As a reminder, this is even before checking if his sister has recovered from her life-threatening fever, but whatever .
There certainly is such a thing as etiquette in a family, which my stepmother seems to have a good hold on . Apparently, Princess Rubia’s normal behaviour seems to not be in good form .
'It's frustrating . ’
In my past life I had a habit of smoking . Now, I had to force myself to stop looking around for a short smoking pipe .
"Anyway, your words and deeds are not alright . Apologise to your mother . "
Sven and my stepmother are really arm in arm . What a sweet development . Sven really has a silver tongue .
I tried to contradict Sven’s words, but I quickly gave up .
I wasn't Rubia and so I was very tired of the love affairs of this cut-throat family .
"My apologies . "
“ . . . . . . What?"
"I apologize, so please relax . By the way, you like apples, so please eat a lot of apples on the way out . "
There was a moment of silence in the room .
For a moment, my stepmother trembled as if she was having a fit of convulsions .
"You, you . . . ! It's now . . . "
"Do you hate apples? I thought you liked them . Well, if you don't like them, don't eat them, of course . "
My stepmother grew more and more angry at my words . She seemed on the verge of an explosion over the excitement .
Of course, this was the direction of development that I wanted .
At that same time, Sven stepped forward as if to stop his stepmother .
"Rubia, what the hell does that mean?”
He gave me a scowl .
I replied with a blank look in my eyes .
"Is there anything wrong with that? Apples are good for your health and if you eat one a day, you're less likely to get a major disease . I realised this when I was sick and so now, my health is very good . "
"You . . . !"
Sven, who was angry, suddenly shut his mouth . My stepmother, who was expecting Sven to scold me looked towards me with a suspicious look on her face .
" . . . I'd better get back, Mother . "
"Prince?"
My stepmother made a face showcasing her disbelief .
But Sven shook his head at her gently .
Then, my stepmother was forced to step down . Sven, the heir to the empire, was no match for a mere stepmother .
My stepmother left the room, still staring at me .
Finally left alone, I let my expression drop .
'Oh, he's not stupid . ’
Sven realized that this game of apology was not just a pun, but rather a mockery of their behaviour .
How proper is it to be in a rush to criticize a family member that has just recovered from a serious illness? And when he finally realized it, he backed away, with no room to undo his actions .
'Whatever, I don’t care . Let's just go to sleep now . ’
I flopped down on my bed . Then I fell asleep right away .
*
*
I had a happy dream .
A memory .
It was a dream from my 53rd life, when I was spending time with the cows . Back then I was a little girl, smiling brightly . I loved them, and they loved me, too . In my dream, I looked happy . [2]
Then I woke up, and the pillow I was gripping to my stomach was soaked with sweat .
I sighed and said,
"Lou, get me some water . "
The room is silent .
I already know .
There is no 'Lou' now . In my 53rd life I found comfort in isolation, but that young version of me wasn’t so used to it .
I smiled softly .
There was no need to reminisce . This was merely a lingering sense of loss after thinking about that previous life .
In that past life of mine I lived with my brother and I thought… I thought after all this time has passed, that I would be used to this by now .
Anyway, apart from all that, I also seem to be getting used to not eating anything .
In this situation eating is the best .
However, thinking about it, I haven't received food since I woke up . I tried to look around for a maid, but no one noticed me . My stepmother was probably to blame .
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I thought there would be at least one maid who was serving me . I stood with a blank expression and made my way out . [3]
“-- I mean, I . . . ”
"Is that true?"
Maids were loitering in the empty dining hall after a meal, chatting casually .
But the moment I entered, their eyes turned towards me and their mouths shut with a snap .
Suddenly, the dining room’s atmosphere stilled and fell into silence .
They looked at me like I was an enemy, with disregard and contempt .
There was a touch of sympathy mixed within a few of those glances, but most were cold stares .
I couldn’t bring myself to care and raised my voice . . . .
"Give me something to eat . A steak, medium-rare . Oh, if there's wine, I'd like it to come out too, preferably of the Dorbosan Lebien variety . "
There was embarrassment in the eyes of the maids .
It seemed like a surprise to them that Rubia would make such a request .
The Rubia they knew was a timid little princess who always hunched her shoulders and couldn't speak properly .
"What are you doing? Quickly serve the food . "
"The food only comes out at the set mealtimes . So, at the moment, there's no food . " A kitchen maid opened her mouth .
As a favoured maid of stepmother Margaret, her gaze seemed quite mocking .
"No food?"
"Yes, there is none . "
"Then make some now . "
"What?"
"If you don't have any food then make it right now, what's wrong with you?"
The kitchen maid shut her mouth for a moment at my words . Then she heaved a great sigh .
"Haah, bothersome . "
It was muttered under her breath, but I heard it . Of course, it was obviously meant to be heard on purpose .
"All right . Wait a minute," said the maid, but she didn’t show an ounce of respect to the princess .
So, this is what Rubia, the master of this castle, has been treated like . No one treats her properly in this castle . Even the lowly maids ignored Rubia, following the legion of her stepmother, which was further pushed by the King’s neglect and the Prince’s indifference .
'Let's just eat . I’m feeling tired, so I’ll eat first and think later . ’
Soon the kitchen maid appeared with a tray . On the tray there was a small bowl lying half-heartedly . Tarak! The maid threw the bowl before me .
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After she laughed in vain, she raised her lips in a smirk .
"This is all I have for you . Enjoy your meal . "
The bowl was half-full and only contained cold oatmeal .
"And please make sure to get to the real mealtimes next time . It’s improper to show such laziness, princess . "
I sighed and got up .
I wasn’t going to do this if possible because it was very annoying, but I couldn’t not react to that . She went well over the line .
"Are you done talking?" When I stood up and looked down at her, the middle-aged representative maid flinched slightly .
However, she continued, raising her nose after remembering the usual timid Rubia .
"Yes . Please be careful next time . "
I agonized over how to resolve this situation, wherein authority of the household has collapsed . There were numerous ways . However, they were all troublesome, so I chose the simplest and fastest way .
There was one easy way to fix a broken household .
And that was to show overwhelming authority .
My hands slice through the air and hit the maid's cheek .
I gave her a thrashing .
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”
The representative maid screamed and fell .
Other maids around her screamed and turned pale due to the unexpected disaster . I looked down at the maid who had collapsed, distracted by the pain and shock .
"Get up . "
The representative maid covered her swollen cheeks with her hands and gazed at me with a venomous look .
When I saw the look in her eyes, I said, “You must have been trained poorly, or the Grand Duke of Luxen seems funny to you . ”
“ . . . . !”
The words "Grand Duke of Luxen" stopped the maid .
I swallowed back a sigh . After my previous lives, I experienced this repertoire many times . I'm bored .
"I am the first princess of the Grand Duke of Luxen . To treat me like this is to wish for the annihilation of King Luxen . You've got a death wish, haven't you?”
The maids turned pale .
Because there was nothing wrong with what I said .
No matter how much she followed my stepmother's power, how dare she insult a princess with her status as a maid . To be fair, death was an unavoidable sin .
"I did not mean to disrespect the Duke . . . " The representative maid said, "I never hoped for the decline of the Princess either . "
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"Really?"
I tilted my head and looked straight into her eyes . Facing my bright red eyes, the maid was stiff as a mouse in front a snake .
“You mean so?”
The representative maid gulped . Her eyes were filled with confusion, shock, and fear .
Finally, the maid shook her head .
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry . "
When I heard the insults, I couldn't hold myself back . Well, to make sure this doesn't happen again, this level of authority should be fine .
I think I should’ve warned her more harshly, but it was too annoying . I was simply hungry .
"Give me some food . "
“Yes . "
The manner of the maids became much more polite than before . The kitchen was bustling with new cooking and soon elaborate dishes began to emerge . Cold appetizers, shrimp, fish dishes, medium-rare steak, fresh sherbet and even Dorbosan Lebien wine, just like I asked for .
It was a dinner as if serving a VIP .
I thought slowly while cutting the steak .
‘It’s not enough as it is . I still have to find a way . '
The kitchen maid got scolded by example, but there would always be one or two people who would ignore Princess Rubia and treat her like an enemy . It could even be said that my enemy was the entire castle .
I thought through countless ways of fixing this situation in my head, while chewing the meat .
'What life was that in? Seventh, fourteenth or thirty-third?'
It wasn't the first time this kind of experience has happened .
In each past life, I'd overcome this situation in a different way . Whether it was by influencing others with kindness, showcasing harsh authority, or by destroying my enemies in a conspiracy . I thought it would be possible to choose an option out of my previous actions . Frankly, Rubia's stepmother . . . didn't seem to be a very difficult villain .
However, thinking through my options, I quickly grew weary . I was tired .
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[1] The actual sentence was: "The birch to an exhortation for me is younger brother to build urinary or etiquette in the house approval in love to eseoimnikka . " What is even happening .
[2] This says 53rd life as a little girl, but last chapter I swear it said they were a guy in their last life . ??????
[3] This actually translated to her maid being punished or something, but the translation was too nonsensical .