After hurriedly bringing the water back ho, Regina set the bucket down and glanced at its contents. It was not much, but it would be enough for the day. She would go again the next day, waking even earlier!
Without wasting another mont, she went to the small bathing corner of the room separated by a wall to the living room, where a large wooden tub stood. She poured in only enough water for herself, ward it, and slipped inside.
Taking a sponge, she quickly but carefully scrubbed away the dirt and sweat clinging to her skin.
"Do you have a special skincare routine for having such luminous skin? Even noble ladies would be jealous of this texture."
At the sudden mory of Lumiel’s words, and of the tender way his fingers had brushed her skin in that bath, Regina blushed shyly.
She scrubbed herself harder than necessary, using more of the perfud soap than she should have. It was a new soap she had bought at the market, one of the few small indulgences she allowed herself.
Then she washed her hair just as carefully.
Lumiel had praised her hair too.
Once she was done, she stepped out, wrapped only in a towel, and quickly reached for the servant clothes she had left to dry.
She was not an official maid, not yet. She had been brought into the castle through Roland Kestrel, so her position was still closer to that of a servant in training. Because of that, she did not own the proper black-and-white maid uniform of the royal castle. Instead, she wore the plain servant clothes she had bought cheaply, though they were still better than the old tunics and corsets she used to wear. She pulled on a red gown, tightened the laces around her waist, and fastened them quickly.
Then she tied up her hair and imdiately hurried to her mother’s side, dropping to her knees beside the bed.
"Mother, I left a bowl of porridge in the kitchen. Eat it when you’re hungry," she said softly.
Ada slowly opened her tired eyes and looked at her daughter.
"Regina..." She whispered, weakly reaching out her hand.
Regina took it in both of hers. "I am fine, Mother. Please, just rest. I’ll be back tonight."
She did not wait for an answer. She could not afford to.
She hurried outside.
There was no choice but to reach the main streets and pay for a carriage to take her closer to the castle, which stood miles away. In truth, most of her wages disappeared into necessities like that. Roland was the one paying her, but he gave her the bare minimum, less than the actual maids working inside the palace earned. Still, it was better than her previous work, scrubbing and washing clothes for minor nobles.
The shared carriage did not stop directly in front of the castle, of course, but it left her close enough.
She had to run the rest of the way on foot.
By the ti Regina reached the castle half an hour later, she was exhausted and sweating beneath her clothes. Normally, she left much earlier to avoid arriving in such a state, but today everything had gone wrong from the mont she woke.
The guards at the gate recognized her. After she gave her na, they allowed her inside, and Regina hurried straight toward the servants’ quarters.
Once inside, she found the real maids already preparing themselves, dressed in their proper black-and-white uniforms, crisp and immaculate, worthy of the royal castle.
The mont they saw Regina, their expressions soured.
"Look who decided to show up."
"The little prostitute from the slums."
"I still can’t believe His Majesty picked her over any of us."
"Hm. His Majesty already has seven beautiful wives, all high nobility and even a princess. Maybe he just wanted to try a filthy little common girl for once."
"Then he’ll throw her away soon enough."
They all burst into giggles.
Regina ignored them.
She went straight to the mirror, quickly checking her appearance. Then she drank so water and splashed a little over her face, cooling her flushed skin while their voices continued to stab at her from behind.
She ignored them too, until one specific remark reached her ears.
"His Majesty threw Alice aside for her nonetheless. That’s shocking."
"Maybe Alice displeased His Majesty?"
"I heard Alice refused to sleep with him, and that’s why he removed her."
"Could that be true?"
"What an idiot if that’s true! How can you ever refuse His Majesty Lumiel~"
Regina froze, her hands still pressed to her cheeks.
Then, slowly, her lips curved into a radiant smile before she hurried out, unable to hide her happiness.
Lumiel had thrown Alice away for her?
When he had told her he was taking her as his maid, Regina had truly thought Alice would remain by his side and that she would rely assist. But it seed he had chosen Regina instead and dismissed Alice.
At that mont, she could not imagine a sweeter feeling.
Excitent filled her so completely that she nearly ran through the corridors, hurrying toward Lumiel’s royal quarters with little regard for manners.
Once she arrived, she knocked softly on the door.
"Your Majesty?"
After a few seconds, no answer ca. She pressed her ear lightly against the door and knocked twice more.
Still nothing.
She found it a little strange that no one stood guard outside, but after a mont of hesitation, she carefully pushed the door open and stepped inside.
The familiar sitting room ca into view first.
She quietly shut the door behind her.
"Your Majesty?" She called again, this ti more softly.
Still, there was no response.
Thinking he might still be asleep, she walked farther in and approached the bedroom. She peeked inside, but the room was empty.
The sight of the bed, however, made her cheeks heating up at once as the mory of that night flashed through her mind.
Regina quickly shook those thoughts away and looked around again. Soon, she spotted him in the living room, slumped asleep at a small study desk in the corner.
A smile spread on her lips, and she approached with quiet steps, careful not to wake him.
The closer she got, the harder her heart pounded in her chest.
She had never felt this nervous around a man, never this excited, this thrilled, and never this helplessly in love.
When she finally stood close enough, she saw that his face was calm in sleep.
She gazed at him, utterly captivated.
The face that usually looked proud, serious, and overflowing with confidence now seed almost innocent.
Unable to resist, she gently reached out and brushed a few golden curls away from his face so she could see him better.
His golden lashes fluttered slightly, and her heart skipped.
He looked exactly like the prince she had imagined in her childhood dreams.
She could have stayed there forever, just watching him.
But then her eyes caught sothing else.
"Hm?"
Papers were scattered across the desk.
They drew her attention because she could not read what was written on them.
As the daughter of a forr noble house, Regina had learned to read well enough, yet the characters on those pages ant nothing to her. They looked like a foreign language, one Lumiel himself had written, judging by the handwriting.
Curious, she picked up one of the papers and narrowed her eyes as if that might help her decipher the strange script.
It did not.
She had never seen letters like these before.
Suddenly, she felt soone grasp her wrist, and she flinched.
Lowering the paper, she saw Lumiel looking up at her, his beautiful golden-amber eyes now open and fixed on her.
Her heartbeat rose at once. Guilt rushed through her, yet strangely, so did a thrill.
"Y—Your Majesty..." She stamred.
Lumiel lifted his head and yawned lightly, still holding her wrist.
"You’re back, Regina," he said, smiling at her once he finished.
"I—I am," she replied quickly, setting the paper back onto the desk.
"Good. I was lonely these past two days without anyone to take care of ," he said letting go of her wrist.
A bright smile blood on her face.
"I will gladly serve you, Your Majesty." She stepped back gracefully, pinched the hem of her skirt, and bowed. "Thank you for placing your trust in . I will do my best to deserve it."
Lumiel turned toward her fully and stood.
"I know you will," he said with a smile. "Before that let introduce soone."
Regina raised a brow and followed his gaze over her shoulder.
The mont she turned, she flinched.
A figure stood there, dressed entirely in black and wearing an ominous dark mask. Regina was not soone who startled easily, but finding such a grim, silent presence standing so close to her sent a sharp jolt of fear through her.
"Eek—!"
She stepped back too quickly and nearly lost her balance, but Lumiel caught her at once, his hands closing around her shoulders from behind.
He smirked faintly as he looked down at her.
"Did that scare you, my dear Regina?" He asked.
Regina lifted her blue eyes to his face, and at once her cheeks turned a bright, burning red.
For a mont, neither of them moved.
Then Lumiel slowly lowered his face toward hers.
Regina was certain he could hear the pounding of her heart, but even so, she softly closed her eyes.
A second later, she felt his lips press gently against hers.
He kissed her while still holding her from behind, his hands warm and strong on her shoulders.
It lasted only a few seconds, but when he pulled away, Regina was left crimson-faced, her eyes hazy and unfocused.
"Well, I did miss you a lot, Regina," Lumiel said with a smile as he gently steadied her upright.
Regina quickly tried to shake herself out of her daze and managed to speak.
"Your Majesty... this..." She mumbled, glancing toward the black-clad figure with a mix of curiosity and unease.
"Oh, that is Leilah," Lumiel replied casually. "A bodyguard Eleanor assigned to ."
"A b—bodyguard?" Regina repeated, speechless.
"Yes. I’m the new King, after all. Eleanor was worried soone might make an attempt on my life, so she gave Leilah," he said, smiling lightly toward the masked woman, who remained motionless and silent.
Regina turned her gaze back to Leilah.
Had she been there the whole ti?
She thought back to when she had entered the room and slowly ca to a disheartening conclusion.
Yes. Leilah must have already been there.
And yet Regina had sensed nothing.
Her excitent dimd a little at that realization.
Here she had been, thinking that without Alice, she would finally be alone with Lumiel...
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