---------------
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To ‌‌‌support our team and ‌‌enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
---------------

Chapter 58
Talia's spine snapped rigid as though struck by lightning.
The Unknown Woman turned with elegant grace and continued speaking.
"Her Majesty the Empress has commanded that you be prepared ‌‌‌with utmost perfection to receive the supreme sovereign of The Empire. I humbly request your cooperation."
With a light gesture toward the handmaids, four of them stepped forward from the front row, garments in hand, and approached the bedside.
Talia recoiled sharply backward.
"All of you, leave. I have no intention of meeting that man."
"Please refrain from such disrespectful language."
The Unknown Woman's previously gentle ‌‌‌voice turned as sharp and cutting as ‌‌frost.
"Regardless of your station as a princess, I cannot permit such careless words directed at His Majesty the Emperor. I shall overlook this transgression this once, but I urge you to exercise caution henceforth."
Though her shoulders had tensed momentarily, Talia's eyes now blazed with defiance. ‌‌‌‌
"And what will you do if you don't overlook it? Will you run tattling to the great and glorious Emperor?"
"There is nothing preventing me from doing so."
The Unknown Woman responded with icy composure.
Talia released a hollow laugh. ‌‌‌
"Is that so? Then go at once to the ‌‌‌‌‌Main Palace and tell him this: the Second Princess, lacking all propriety, finds your magnificent face utterly repugnant and refuses to lay eyes upon it!"
In that instant, a searing pain blazed across the back ‌‌‌of her hand.
Talia stared up at the Unknown Woman in stunned disbelief.
The woman held a thin riding crop, which she had just brought down upon Talia's hand, ‌‌‌her gaze as cold and unyielding as ice.
"The authority you wield as a princess derives entirely from ‌‌His Majesty the Emperor. ‌‌‌‌Such reckless utterances cannot be condoned."
"How dare you... how dare you lay hands upon me...."
Talia trembled violently, unable to complete her sentence.
The Unknown Woman, regarding her with ‌indifferent eyes, turned toward the door.
"Her Majesty the Empress has instructed us most earnestly to bring you to His Majesty the Emperor's presence by any means necessary. Is it your ‌‌wish that ‌‌we resort to forceful measures?"
The Unknown Woman's threatening words hung in the air as ‌‌‌‌she pushed the door wide open with one hand.
Talia's breath caught as she beheld soldiers from the Empress's Household arrayed throughout the ‌corridor.
The Unknown Woman observed her ashen face with quiet appreciation before speaking gently. ‌‌
"There is ‌‌‌no need for us to lose our composure ‌‌‌with one another. If you cooperate, this will be concluded swiftly."
The implication was clear: refusal would result in force.
Talia's knuckles whitened as she clenched her fists, her eyes burning with humiliation.
Had Senebier been before her in this moment, I might have driven a dagger through her heart.
Must I truly allow my final shred ‌‌of dignity to be trampled so mercilessly?
I knew I could never ‌‌forgive that woman—not in this lifetime, not ‌‌in any other.
"Now then, cleanse the princess at once."
At the Head Handmaid's command, two handmaids bent over the bed.
Talia struck their hands away roughly.
"Do not touch me!"
The handmaids scattered in alarm at her sharp cry, ‌‌clearly ‌‌‌fearful of future retaliation from her.
Sensing their hesitation, Talia adopted an even more imperious tone.
"I shall entrust my bathing to my Nursemaid. All of you must leave my room at once."
The Unknown Woman, who had been gazing down at ‌‌‌her with contemplative eyes, soon released a sigh of resignation.
"Very well. However, ‌‌you must entrust the adornment to me. This is something I cannot compromise on."
The Head Handmaid promptly led the servants out of the room.
Moments later, the Nursemaid rushed into the bedroom.
She was the one who had always wounded me with her thoughtless words. Yet the moment I ‌‌saw her face, ‌‌‌tears threatened to spill from the relief that flooded through me.
I buried my face against the Nursemaid's shoulder as she approached ‌to support me.
Oblivious to my crumbling composure, she was simply delighted.
"Did the Head Handmaid tell you? His Majesty was looking for you! Surely, when he heard that you were injured, he grew concerned."
I let the Nursemaid's chatter pass through one ear as I struggled to my feet. A tingling pain shot through my bones.
Suddenly, fury welled up inside me.
What nonsense about walking without problems? My damaged leg could barely support my own weight.
I gritted my teeth and dragged my aching leg ‌behind the partition screen.
As I stumbled into the marble bathtub, the Nursemaid poured warm water over my body.
Submerged in the lukewarm water, I gazed down at my legs. The reddish scars looked exactly like bloated worms.
The moment I touched them with my fingertips, the Nursemaid slapped my back sharply.
A wave of sorrow surged through me, but I withdrew my hand without complaint. I feared she might grow angry and leave the room altogether.
"Now, let me rinse your hair. Tilt your ‌‌‌head back."
As I ‌leaned my head back against the tub as instructed, the Nursemaid tilted a large pitcher and ‌‌‌poured lukewarm water over me.
Finally, when all the soap had washed away from my body, I staggered out of the bathtub.
The Nursemaid, who had brought a large towel, dried the water from my body and ‌‌‌then dressed me in fresh undergarments and a petticoat.
"Now, the ‌‌‌Head Handmaid will take care of the rest."
Once the Nursemaid ‌‌‌left with a relieved expression, the Head Handmaid returned, leading the servants with her.
I endured her scrutinizing gaze as she examined me from head to toe, as though assigning a score.
The woman who had been circling around me finally clapped her hands at the servants.
"Braid her hair up and dress her in the prepared gown. I shall select the jewelry myself."
Immediately, dozens of fingers began moving busily around me.
I silently endured being handled like a doll, as though undergoing torture. ‌
Several servants dressed and undressed me repeatedly, while the others worked on braiding my hair, which fell to my waist, into multiple intricate styles pinned atop ‌‌‌my head.
The Head Handmaid, who had been watching the entire process with a meticulous expression, finally nodded after a long while.
"This will suffice."
The ‌‌‌servants who had been adjusting my clothing immediately stepped back.
I looked ‌‌up at the ‌‌Head Handmaid with weary eyes. She draped a deep crimson silk ‌‌cape over my shoulders and turned toward the entrance.
"It is time for you to go."
After hesitating, I left the room. I wanted to walk as naturally as possible, ‌but my dulled leg refused to obey my will.
With each uneven step, I felt the soldiers' gazes pouring down upon me. I wanted to crush every single one of those eyes.
Suppressing my humiliation as I emerged from the Secondary Palace, I saw a carriage waiting in front of the Garden. ‌‌‌Beside it stood an unfamiliar man in armor. ‌‌‌
Had the previous Guard Knight been dismissed?
The face of the man who had bothered me throughout the journey flashed through my mind.
But soon I thought it mattered little. He was a Guard Knight who was rotated out with each ‌‌season anyway. It was about time for a change.
I boarded the carriage with an indifferent expression. The Head Handmaid, who followed me inside, finally parted ‌her tightly sealed lips and spoke in a stern voice.
"Today, His Majesty the Emperor will discuss a matter of great importance. I must ask that you refrain from any conduct unbefitting proper decorum."
"What sort of matter of great importance?"
"I myself do not ‌‌‌know."
"Then how do you know whether it is a matter of great importance or mere trifling?"
The Unknown Woman pressed her lips firmly shut. Her patience was clearly wearing thin.
Talia turned her gaze from the woman rubbing her temples and looked out the window.
The carriage had already departed the Secondary Palace Garden and was now traversing the vast grounds of the Imperial Palace with steady momentum.
Watching the landscape blur ‌‌‌‌past with mounting anxiety, I massaged my knees, which had already begun to throb.
Despite the thick cushioning beneath me, the carriage's subtle vibrations seemed to pierce through to my very bones. Wiping away beads of perspiration that gathered on my brow, I desperately ‌‌‌swallowed down the pain.
After some time had passed, the ‌‌‌jolting carriage finally came to a halt.
Stumbling out, I squinted against the brilliant sunlight pouring down upon ‌‌‌‌the vast Plaza before the Main Palace.
An unusually large crowd milled about in front of the Main Palace today. As I regarded them with darkened eyes, the Head Handmaid approached and urged me forward.
"His Majesty awaits. Let us make haste."
Talia bit her lip and moved forward.
Those who recognized me faltered and whispered among themselves, their murmurs invading ‌‌‌my awareness. Ignoring them ‌‌‌as best I could, ‌‌I attempted to pass through those blocking the entrance when someone stopped me.
"You cannot pass through here. My apologies, but please use the side entrance...."
The soldier who had hastily blocked my path caught sight of my ‌face and drew ‌‌a sharp breath.
Talia fixed him with a glacial stare.
"How dare you obstruct my passage?"
"F-forgive me. Your Highness the Princess."
The soldier quickly stepped aside.
Talia passed through those who bowed awkwardly before me and entered the building.
My entire body was drenched in perspiration as I ‌‌‌‌struggled to conceal my unnatural gait. Yet despite all my efforts, nothing seemed to proceed as I willed it.
I observed the reactions around me from the corner of my eye. Then, a massive birdcage placed in one corner of the Grand Hall caught my attention. Upon seeing what lay within, my eyes ‌widened.
"...What is that?"

---------------
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
---------------