Revolutionary Princess Eve

Chapter 8

“I see.”

It wasn’t common to summon a specific homunculus knight in the morning just to escort someone to the main palace.

She hasn’t even selected him as her personal knight, but she’s already having him do petty personal tasks. She must like him quite a bit. Maybe it was Rosie herself who tipped off the gossip magazine.

As Eve was considering this, Sylvestian stepped forward and bowed.

“How do you do, Your Highness?”

“No need for that level of propriety. You may lift your head.”

Though Sylvestian was currently at the center of Rosenitte’s attention, she would tragically abandon him only a few years from now. Eve did not feel good remembering this.

“Sir Millard, I’ve heard a lot about you. You’re very talented with swords as well as with magic, aren’t you? I have no doubt you are one of the best knights out there, and will take excellent care of whomever you end up serving. I sincerely hope you find a good master or mistress.”

“...”

Though there was little hope that his hapless fate would change for the better, Eve said what nice things she could manage. However, Sylvestian didn’t respond. Eve wondered if she’d gone too far in praising him.

Slightly embarrassed, she inquired, “Um, Sir Millard?”

“Please forgive my rudeness, Your Highness. Your kind compliments left me at a loss for words for a moment.”

“But you hear such remarks often, don’t you?”

“The imperial family members usually show interest in my silver hair when they first see me.”

“Ah.”

Eve nodded in understanding. Rosenitte, on the other hand, winced. Rosenitte had clearly been one of those family members.

“Oh, hm, I see.”

“Yes...”

When discussing something that might be shameful or embarrassing to a person, it was polite to avoid staring directly at them, so Eve kept her eyes on Sylvestian’s expressionless face for a moment of awkward silence before turning back to Rosenitte.

“We’ll be late, Rosie. Let’s head to the palace.”

“Yes, sister,” said Rosenitte, in a slightly subdued tone. Eve was pretty sure she knew why.

They had the knight take the lead and the rest of the servants follow behind. Eve and Rosenitte walked side by side along the marble path, keeping some distance from their attendants. It just so happened that the grass on each side of the path was being watered as they went by. Golem devices were placed throughout the garden, designed to look like statues. When supplied with mana, the golems would spray water in all directions.

“Sprinkler golems,” as they were called, were created using alchemy and magic, and were seen as cutting-edge technology. Powered by magic stones, they automatically watered the garden at set hours. The sprays of water also created pretty rainbows across the grounds. Beyond the sprinkler golems, there were countless other golem designs made for the convenience of the empire. Alchemy and magic were an essential component of everyday life. In fact, most people saw the imperial palace as the mecca of alchemy.

Their footsteps echoed off the marble as they walked. About halfway to the palace, Rosenitte started complaining.

“Ugh, the palace is so far. Can’t we just warp there? You are a mage, after all.”

“Attack magic and unauthorized warp magic are prohibited in the imperial palace,” Eve replied.

“But we’re princesses.”

“Yes, and we’re princesses of the emperor, are we not?”

“Hmph... But, what if we just warp to someplace where people wouldn’t see us?”

“Surveillance golems watch every corner of the palace,” Eve said, pointing at the sky.

Silver-grey golems shaped like tiny tadpoles floated in the air above them. They were a modified version of the “guardian golems” that alchemists sometimes kept as pets. It was their duty to surveil the entire palace.

That should have been more than sufficient reasoning, but Rosenitte kept pestering Eve to warp them to their destination.

Why don’t you just learn magic yourself, then?

The words were at the tip of Eve’s tongue. Actually saying them, of course, would likely land Eve on the front page of the Hadellun Times tomorrow with some outrageous headline like: “Haughty Princess Besmirches the White Rose of the Empire.”

It was a struggle to be patient, and the walk seemed to last forever. Arriving at the palace, Eve was finally free from Rosenitte’s whining.

The palace proper was called the Royal Gracia Palace. A familiar sight to the princesses, this main hall was built to be supremely elegant and imposing, a physical representation of the emperor’s grandeur.

“We’ve arrived finally! I’ll be out soon, Sylvestian.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Only dedicated servants and personal knights were allowed into the central hall of the main palace. Instead of sending him back to his duties, Rosenitte was making Sylvestian stand and wait for her.

One of the homunculus knights standing guard approached them respectfully and said, “The third princess, fourth prince, and fifth prince have already arrived.”

“We must hurry, then. Where is the greeting being held today?”

“The Emerald Hall on the seventh floor.”

The imperial palace was built with an extremely tall tower, made possible by elaborate construction methods using advanced alchemy and magic. There were spiral staircases that stretched all the way up, but Eve did not walk toward them. Following the guidance of the guard, she went to the circular platform at the center of the hall. Mana circuits sprang to life, lifting the platform up into the air. It traveled through many floors, transporting the two princesses and three maids directly to the seventh floor.

Magnificent green doors swung wide for their entrance. Eve took a deep breath. She felt like a warrior going into battle.

Here we go.

The Emerald Hall, like its name would suggest, was a heavily ornamented room that featured shades of green everywhere. As to be expected, Brigitte, Rubens, and Icallis had already arrived.

Because morning greetings with the emperor were at tea time, they were all seated around a table that had been set for the occasion. Of course, their seats were set in the order of succession. Eve’s eyes traveled to the person seated at the second highest seat, located beside the emperor’s. Seated there was a woman with platinum blond hair that was braided and twisted upwards, wearing a chic camisole dress made of white silk, accented with blue embellishments.

Brigitte was a cold but elegant beauty. A strong candidate for crown princess, the Emperor had already assigned her many administrative projects in the capital. Though Brigitte was definitely busy with her political responsibilities, she still always made time to keep up her appearance.

Brigitte, I used to admire you for that. I thought you would do so well as the crown princess... Oh sister, how could you ruin our country like you did?

But of course, Eve would hear no answer. Eve shook herself from her thoughts and bent her knees slightly in greeting.

“Hello, sister, brothers. I trust you have been well.”

“Betty, Rubens, Ica, good morning!” Rosenitte beamed, using Brigitte and Icallis’ pet nicknames.

As the Emperor hadn’t arrived yet, Brigitte was the highest person in the order of succession, and thus had the right to answer the greetings.

“Do sit, both of you,” she said.

“Thank you.”

As soon as the two were seated, Rubens and Icallis started speaking excitedly, but it was all, of course, directed toward Rosenitte.

“Ah! Rosie! It’s been so long since I’ve seen you!”

“I missed you, Rosie!”

Though Rosenitte did not have much political influence within the imperial family, she was adored by everyone in the palace. She gained her popularity from consistent exposure in gossip magazines and a well-curated public image, which actually gave Rosenitte a significant amount of influence in her own way.

The two princes were intent on getting on Rosenitte’s good side.

“The White Rose of the Empire is so colorful today. In that dress you look like a pretty pink rose.”

“Ah, Rosie, All the grass and leaves in the imperial garden only serve to magnify your natural, flowering beauty.”

“Oh, not just the plants in the garden! Look at all this green surrounding us here in the Emerald Hall! Everything green here just exists to accentuate your loveliness!”

Rubens and Icallis raised their voices as they layered on the flattery. Their comments also contained subtle jabs in Eve’s direction. It wasn’t just that the green wallpaper or decor of the Emerald Hall served to embellish Rosenitte’s beauty alone, they were making a snide reference to Eve’s hair color, as she was seated beside Rosenitte.

Members of the imperial family typically had platinum or honey-blond hair, but Eve had blond hair with a hint of lime green. People often mentioned Eve’s hair color when snubbing her, saying it was evidence that she wasn’t of pure imperial blood, or that she could never compare to true beauties like Rosenitte or the other princesses. The two princes were doing this now, capitalizing on Eve’s green-tinged hair in their flattery of Rosenitte.

Would you listen to them talk.

Eve didn’t react. Right now, she had more powerful foes to focus on—Brigitte and Rosenitte. After another minute, the doors of the Emerald Hall opened.

“His Majesty, the Emperor, has arrived!”

All the princes and princesses rose from their seats.

A middle-aged man with slicked-back, bright platinum blond hair entered the hall with a large retinue of servants and guards following behind him. The image reminded one of a peacock with his feathery plumes trailing behind.

Desmond II, now in his mid-fifties, was such an imposing figure that at first glance he appeared to be a trained fighter rather than an alchemist.

Father...

Her father had been the first to die as soon as the coup began. The light in her amber eyes grew darker with the memory. She cried inwardly,

Ah, Father! You had so many children! Why did you have to choose Betty, of all people, as the future empress? So many things were going well during your rule, but she rewrote everything you did and brought us to ruin!