Day 11: Princesses and a Child-Like Assassin
The next day, I woke up well into the morning. I stayed awake, hoping that perhaps, just perhaps, Lulu would come, as he had declared. However, true to his words, Lulu did not show up. I must have fallen asleep while waiting. It was lonely, even though I knew he wouldn't come. I got up and fetched some food from the desk, then sat on the blanket, nibbling on it.
He said he wouldn't come for two or three days. Probably, he won't come today either. Still, I can't help but wonder, 'What if he does?'
... I might be becoming too dependent on Lulu.
There's a part of me that thinks it's not good, and Lucienne wonders why it's not good—conflicting feelings inside me.
...Though it's already too late to say it's not good.
Both Lucienne and I have come to like Lulu. It's probably impossible to part with Lulu now. After finishing the meal, I put a piece of candy in my mouth.
It's sweet, a bit bitter, with the herbal aroma, but it has a taste that somehow becomes addictive.
Only one of these herbal candies is left.
Thanks to this candy, the pain in my mouth has almost disappeared, with only occasional stinging when I talk or eat. Though my tongue feels rough when touched, it's much better than it was initially.
...Lulu brought this candy because I said, 'I want to heal.' Lulu, being an assassin, doesn't have a scent. I think he's careful about various things, such as food and belongings. It's unimaginable that Lulu, who is so cautious, carries around candy with the herbal scent. He must have bought it for me.
...Lulu.
Thinking about those gray eyes, I hug my knees. Suddenly, loud footsteps are heard from outside the room. In the harem, only a few individuals are allowed to make such noise without repercussions.
Hastily, I crushed the candy and swallowed it. Almost simultaneously, the door to the room swung open. The first and second princesses, dressed in dresses adorned with frills and lace, stood there.
I stood up from the blanket and prostrated myself before the two of them. If I don't do this, they tend to become noisier and more violent. Last time, when I prostrated myself late, they pushed me aside.
"Oh, you did it right today."
"But your head is still too high! Don't you think so, Elder Sister?"
"Yes, lower it more. Like this, rubbing it on the ground! There!"
A loud thud echoed as my forehead met the floor.
... It hurts.
After a moment, I realized I was being stepped on.
I could feel the foot on my head.
The hard wood of the shoe sole was painful.
My forehead, the back of my head, and the nose I bumped, all hurt.
Still, I endured it.
Raising my head now might make the first princess lose balance and fall.
It might give me a bit of satisfaction.
But absolutely, it would be troublesome afterward.
So, even if it hurt, I had no choice but to endure it.
"Hahaha, Elder Sister, you're so kind! Teaching me like this, truly amazing!"
"It can't be helped. If I don't teach you, you won't learn."
"That's true!"
The two princesses laughed above my head.
...Ah, I miss Lulu.
If I get a mark on my forehead, I wonder if Lulu would be worried. I hope it doesn't leave a mark, but probably it will. The part that hit the floor is throbbing.
Although the foot lifted from my head, I still didn't raise my face.
If I did, I would get stepped on again.
I silently waited with my forehead against the floor.
"Why aren't you moving? It's boring!"
A kick on my shoulder with the tip of a shoe.
...Whatever I do, it won't change.
After being kicked in the same spot two or three times, it hurt enough to make me move.
Then, a pleased voice.
"You're not allowed to move without permission, you disobedient dog, Elder Sister!"
"Yes, we must discipline her!"
As I expected, the princesses started kicking me.
Unable to do anything in my prostrated position, I had to shield my head with both hands and curl up. Shoulders, back, hands – they all received kicks. It hurt to be kicked with wooden clogs.
Still, it was better than the queen's shoes. While the queen's shoes had slightly pointed tips, the princesses' shoes had round tips, making it somewhat more bearable.
Since I was prostrated, I wasn't slapped, which would happen if I were standing. They would slap my cheeks, push me, or kick my legs. The most painful was getting the toes stepped on by wooden clogs, almost feeling like they might break.
But thankfully, I hadn't been hit with a removed shoe. If that happened, the clogs would become a dangerous weapon, and I would have resisted.
Though being kicked was painful, the princesses didn't have much stamina, so they would eventually get tired and stop or get bored. I just had to endure until then.
There were high-pitched voices above, insulting me, but I let them all wash over me. Reacting to each insult was impossible, and if I took them seriously, I would end up more tired. Besides, now that my memories had returned, I knew the princesses' words were not accurate.
If it were the previous Lucienne, who had no knowledge or common sense, I might have unquestionably accepted what was said. But now, with my memories from my previous life, I understood that I should brush off whatever they said.
I couldn't believe the words of the queen or the princesses. There was no need to trust them.
After being kicked for a long time, they eventually grew tired, and the kicks stopped.
"Ah, that felt refreshing!"
The second princess spoke with a bright voice.
"I'm tired too, let's wrap up the discipline and have some tea."
"Yeah, should we ask Mother too?"
"That sounds good!"
The first and second princesses left the room, chatting cheerfully. Once I confirmed that their voices and footsteps had faded away, I raised my head.
My first priority was to close the door, which had been left wide open. As I leaned against it, a tingling pain shot through my forehead when I touched it.
There was a slight trace of blood on the fingers that made contact. ... It's definitely a wound.
Despite the pain, I sensed warmth and a slight swelling on my forehead. I needed to cool it down.
To the well it is. My throat was parched, and not cooling my forehead could worsen the swelling. Holding a rag, I gently opened the closed door, checked for signs of people, and cautiously left the room. I wanted to avoid encountering the princesses or the prince again.
Sneaking through the corridor, I reached the well outside. I dropped the bucket into the well, pulled it up, drank the water inside, and soaked the cloth I brought in the water.
Carefully wiping my forehead, I felt a bit of a sting, but I cleaned it thoroughly. There was a little blood on the cloth, which I washed off before wiping my forehead again.
After washing the cloth, I gently squeezed it, placed it on my forehead, and let it cool.
... My shoulder hurts too.
Luckily, it wasn't my dominant arm, but my left shoulder throbbed. Recalling the kicks, my left shoulder might have taken the most hits.
The queen usually aimed for the back, but the princesses, being children, had to raise their legs higher to kick the back. Hence, they targeted easily kickable areas like shoulders, hands, and feet.
Given their reluctance to enter the room, they naturally focused on my front, particularly the head side.
Even though they aimed for the head, my hands offered protection. A wide and easy-to-target shoulder was evidently their preference.
Taking off the cloth from my forehead, placing it in the bucket, I adjusted my collar to inspect my left shoulder.
... Oh, it's already bruised.
It's starting to change color, maybe turning a bit yellow. It hurts precisely when I touch the round part at the tip of my shoulder.
This means my left arm might not be able to lift for a while.
I squeezed the cloth that had been in the bucket and this time put my hand through the collar to cool my shoulder.
It doesn't matter if my clothes get a bit wet.
I wet the cloth several times and cooled my shoulder.
I tried to lift my left shoulder, but as expected, it hurt, and I couldn't raise my arm.
... There's no fracture in the bone, right?
For now, I'll try not to move it too much.
I emptied the water from the bucket, returned it to its original place, and headed to the storage room with the cloth.
Returning to the room without encountering anyone, I lay back on the blanket with my right shoulder down, wrapped in the blanket.
... I hope no one else comes.
Closing my eyes while gently stroking my aching left shoulder.
＊ ＊ ＊ ＊ ＊
"Hey, is this job something only I can handle?"
Lefebvre expressed his dissatisfaction in the study of the Fayette mansion.
He sat on the sofa, with one leg crossed over the other, leaning on the armrest with his cheek. The lower half of his face was covered by a cloth wrapped around his neck, concealing his expression. However, his narrowed, gray eyes conveyed his displeasure as he stared at Bernard, the client.
In response to that gaze, Bernard internally breaks into a cold sweat.
"There's no one better at espionage than you."
"You might be right, but there are others who can infiltrate, you know."
Bernard felt a nervous sweat break out in response to that gaze, unable to gauge Lefebvre's mood.
"Do you really care that much about Lucienne La Vérie?"
Bernard wished he could immediately rescue her. He shared the same sentiment as Lefebvre, but they couldn't afford to misjudge the timing of the impending coup.
Lefebvre's voice, though somewhat amused, added, "She's my precious princess."
Bernard wore a bitter expression. The conflicting emotions of wanting to help Lucienne immediately and prioritizing the coup weighed heavily on him.
The coup had to succeed. If it failed, the nobles involved, including Bernard, would likely face execution. The stability of the entire kingdom hung in the balance.
Even if Lucienne is taken into the Fayette family, it doesn't necessarily mean she will live happily.
In the end, Bernard will control Lucienne.
The quality of life may improve, but she won't be allowed to have children, and she'll be under constant surveillance for her entire life, not much different from her treatment in the harem.
If Lucienne is attached to Lefebvre, maybe it's better to leave her in his care.
Either way, Lucienne's future is already decided.
Lefebvre intends to save money to eventually bring Lucienne into his care.
He talks about needing a large estate with high walls and hiring servants through the connections of the underworld guild.
Is he planning to confine them to a walled garden and live alone with Lucienne?
Ideal in terms of surveillance, but Bernard wonders how Lucienne will react.
"... Won't she refuse you?"
Lefebvre turned around at that question.
"Well, that won't happen. You know, Lucienne doesn't mind the food or the clothes as they are now, but she really doesn't like the idea of not being able to see me," he explained.
"She's quite adorable," Lefebvre said, squinting his eyes with a hint of a smile.
Ah, so Lefebvre had already succeeded in winning Lucienne's favor.
...Respect her wishes, huh.
In the future, Lucienne might choose someone else.
...Even if she chooses someone other than Lefebvre, the outcome might not change.
"Oh, by the way, during the coup, I'll be the one going to get Lucienne, okay?"
"Yeah, do as you please."
Lucienne La Vérie was also a victim of the royal family. If she could be happy, entrusting her to Lefebvre might be a viable option.
Lefebvre, who had seen and understood her suffering and hardships, might understand her situation better than Bernard, who only knew about it through reports.
The Fayette family had adults, but whether that was good for Lucienne was unknown to Bernard.
"Oh, and one more thing."
"Is there something else?"
Lefebvre waved his hands in a calming manner as Bernard instinctively tensed up.
"Don't be so on edge. You know, when they capture royalty, they usually execute them right away, you know?"
Bernard nodded, a bit puzzled by what Lefebvre was getting at.
"That's right, to fuel the anger of the people, execution is inevitable, but...?"
"Well, how about we don't execute them right away and keep them alive for a while?"
"What?"
Keeping a captured royal alive would likely draw both the ire of the people and the nobles. There seemed to be few advantages to keeping a captured royal alive.
"Think about it. We could put them in a cage, display them in a public place for a few days. Like Lucienne, we could dress them in ragged clothes, only give them a blanket, and not provide any meals. If we make it clear that they'll be allowed to do as they please if we don't kill them, perhaps it could calm the anger of the people a bit."
"So you want to treat them the same way as Lucienne La Vérie?"
"Hehe, caught on, did you?"
"You didn't even try to hide it."
However, Lefebvre's idea warrants some consideration.
Instead of immediately executing the royals, deliberately giving them to the people could help alleviate the long-held frustrations.
Avoiding their outright killing might be challenging, so having a healer nearby to revive them if they come close to death should not be an issue. Confined in a cage, escape would be impossible.
Even if they possess magic, sealing their abilities would render them as powerless as regular humans.
"How long should we keep them alive?"
Lefebvre tilted his head, saying, "Hmm."
"About a week should be fine, right? Keeping them for too long might lead to them hoping for execution. It's better to execute them while the fear of death is still fresh."
"Well, that duration should suffice."
"We'll need to pay the healer, but other than that, it should be easy once we leave them alone, don't you think?"
Laughing, Lefebvre seemed like a mischievous child who had come up with an amusing prank.
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