A loud professional voice fills the air.
"Ahem, Empress Violetta Cordova, please receive the message from the Emperor. Your highness will be attending the officials meeting tomorrow morning at seven.
Repeat, your highness must attend the officials meeting tomorrow morning at seven."
The voice at the entrance of the courtyard booms, covering the small space.
Violetta raises an eyebrow in inquiry.
'So they actually remember I'm Empress,' she comments sarcastically.
The four of them walk towards the entrance of the courtyard where the eunuch followed by servants, stands arrogantly, perhaps there was even a slight smirk.
Delta frowns.
"So early?" She says but only so that Kate, Violetta, and Chris can hear.
"Empresses shouldn't attend these," Kate adds, "Or at least her highness the Queen never did. It was always his majesty and the Prince who did."
Violetta sighs, "Indeed women are usually not part of politics, but with this kind of Emperor, he's a 'I am the rules' kind of guy so no use going against it."
"What are you all yabbering about?" The eunuch looks at the three girls who are chatting.
He snorts inwardly.
'Just wait 'till you make a fool of yourself in front of the officials! This isn't the Beria Kingdom! No one will back you!'
He looks up to find the girls still ignoring him and a vein bulges on his forehead.
"This one will take his leave!"
He declares loudly, reminding the others of his presence. Then he flaunts his way towards the gates.
"Jeez if you're gonna leave then just leave. It's not like you need to shout it to everyone so loudly. No one needs to know your every move, like are you gonna announce when you go to the bathroom too?" Chris snickers.
The eunuch's face turns a shade of deep red. The servants and guards around immediately cover their mouth with their hand, trying hard not to join in.
They could just hear in their heads, the eunuch announcing with his 'elegant', "This one will be going to use the toilet!"
Kate snorts accidentally.
Livid and absolutely embarrassed, the eunuch makes his way as fast as he can out of that courtyard and away.
Violetta turns to the little boy.
Although it was hypocritical for her to say as she also had thought the exact same thing, "Chris, you shouldn't say these things aloud. It's disrespectful and vulgar!"
She looks at the pure looking child, hoping he would never lose the purity in his personality and thoughts.
The little boy pouts in disagreement, puffing up his cheeks.
'But it's so much fun dissing people!'
It was probably because of the strong resentment of being pure in that thought that Violetta heard it. She inwardly sighed and facepalmed… this poor child has already started turning mischievous.
Soon, they return back to working on the house which is soon coming together.
Violetta chats with Christopher on the design of the house. She also teaches him about the new inventions and amazing civil designs of her world.
"Wait so we can make a levitating pot?!" He looks at the design of the magnetic, electrically powered flower pot hovering.
"Mhm, and it will rotate."
This one was honestly one of the simpler designs. Looking at the brightly sparkling eyes of the young child, she really wanted to bring up hoverboards and double decker pools, but the mass project of them and the fact that this world relies on magic instead of electricity may cause changes in the construction.
They chatter while drawing on the blue grid with rulers and compasses.
"Ooh, I'd like to add a greenhouse too!"
Immediately, the two foodies' stomachs start to growl.
"..."
"..."
"...ah, it must be lunch time! Let's go get Delta and Kate," says Violetta.
Chris lowers his head embarrassed, and follows them to lunch.
They take a stroll around the capital after their meal. Violetta felt a little bloated because the meal happened to have her favourite food which she of course stuffed herself full of it.
The streets between the buildings were pretty clear as many people went to eat their meal.
Kate looks around with her curious eyes and sees a familiar doorway… only it seemed a bit desolate and shabby now.
She gasps and murmurs, "What happened?"
Delta overhears and follows her line of sight. She furrows her brown coloured brows.
"Just what in the world…"
Indeed, the magnificent, massive Thousand Scent Herb Hall has now become as poor as a sidewalk stall.
The lights inside were also shut, allowing only what bathed in the sunlight to be revealed.
Kate and Delta immediately rush over in worry. The poor shopkeepers who worked day and night to keep this place alive and even stood up to people of higher ranks to keep equality… wait, higher ranks?
Their faces darken immediately. They should have known it was probably Lotus's family!
Violetta knocks on the closed grand doors.
They wait for a few moments. No reply…
Urgently, Delta suggests, "Let's go see if there's another door!"
However, before they even turn to the alley, a sneer comes from behind them.
"Ha, don't even think about saving this poor, dirty shop!"
Kate frowns and shouts back, "And who are you to say that?"
The skinny man snickers, "The once prominent Thousand Scent has finally fallen. It is time for the new rise of Golden Herb Hall!"
Then, they spotted the golden tag on his shirt. It labeled his status as the shopkeeper at Golden Herb Hall.
Violetta frowns and walks into the alley.
"Where are you going?" The skinny shopkeeper screeches, "Give up if you want to revive Thousand Scent! It's long gone! Hahahahaha!"
Her sarcastic voice suddenly fills the air, "Pfft, how unruly. Where I walk is what I decide, to think someone would try to control feet that don't grow on their own legs?"
"You-"
"Just like you said, this place has been reduced to tatters; so what if I walk around it?"
"Yeah! Who are you to decide where our feet walk!" Kate adds.
"You! You little!" The man's face burns with fury.
There wasn't anything wrong with what the group of girls before him said… however he had to salvage his image and Golden Herb Hall's reputation! He must push Thousand Scent so far into the ground that they will never climb up again!
"You guys are-"
Before he knew it, the group was already walking away.
His skin starts to turn almost green with anger.
Immediately, he runs after. He pauses under a tree, looking left and right. After a while he curses to himself.
"What a bunch of fools. It's fine they can't do anything anyways," he sneers.
Then, he saunters away back to his precious Herb Hall.