"My Lady, is there something that's bothering you?"
Ett is currently in her boudoir eating freshly picked grapes. Akan stands beside her, serving her food by mouth like a mother to her child. He kept saying, 'Your Ladyship,' no matter how she told him to refer to her as Your Grace, Empress Dowager, etc.
"You quickly settled into the role of my new butler."
Akan laughed.
"An adviser, as well as a butler, isn't so bad, Your Ladyship. After all, we have few people living in this humble abode."
Such humor, neh? Humble abode, hehe.
"How's the preparation for the bouquet?"
"Oh, it's been the talk of the town, Your Ladyship."
"That's not what I want to hear first."
Akan chuckled, "Well, His Majesty, your son pushed some of his duties to your former butler."
Ett nodded. She expected as much that Guren would push the work of Butler Xiwen.
Secretary? Sorry, these royal people don't do that kind of efficiency as they like doing it alone. The advisers and the butler will handle things they are too lazy to do. Officials? Well, the Adiand royals don't have any meetings or assemblies where they meet their subjects. The speaker and presenter would always be the adviser.
Akan can divide the workloads with the nobles if he deems its appropriate. After all, the rules within Adiand's royal court are a bit different.
"The preparations have been meticulously handled, thanks to Butler Xiwen's dedicated efforts. However, the invitations are still being written and have yet to be sent to the Upper Echelon families."
"There may be some unrest among the lower classes, given that this is the first banquet to be held at the palace in years."
"Leave them be."
Guren had already decided on a specific noble class to attend, and Ett was too indifferent to offer any suggestions—even if a part of her was curious about the novel's heroine. A typical protagonist: born into a barony, an illegitimate child wrapped in a tragic Cinderella halo. No, never mind. Not now.
"Then tell me something unusual about the rumors."
Akan leaned closer, "Your Ladyship, you see, there's a rumour circulating that it would be to look for a marriageable partner for His Majesty."
Ett nodded. "That's not odd."
"Oh, then that was my mistake. The other one is that His Majesty has accepted the request of another empire after the first banquet in years."
"The Larak Empire, you mean?"
"Yes, the Larak Empire. It was the first to be invited, and can they stay three days in our Empire."
Indeed, Akan mentioned this before. This was the empire he visited before returning to the palace.
"What is so unusual about it?"
"They deemed it an honor to stay in the Adiand Empire for about three days since, in most of our records, no one, not even someone from the other Empire and the Seven Star Countries, could stay in this palace."
Special treatment. Okay, Ett gets it. No wonder they misunderstood and use it to their advantage.
"The second presumption is the nobles contemplate if this is a move made by His Majesty to assess their usefulness. In doing so, it must be pretty massive." Akan continued, "The Larak Empire seems to be more excited about being here with the second intention in their mind."
"It seems I was too busy looking out for the nobles inside our Empire."
"Your Ladyship has a dire reason to do so."
In the novel, before even going to the Adiand Empire, the Larak prince is killed near another Empire, and then he is blamed on that Empire. What was the name again?
Anyway, it had never pointed traces to Adiand. Perhaps there was, but there was no clear evidence. More so, it is to say, the Adiand invited the Larak Empire. Why would Adiand make their move now?
Wouldn't it be ridiculous to do so?
They didn't wage war with one another, but one way or another, they became wary of each other. More so, it was a test to see what the reaction of the Larak Empire would be.
Just a bit, "Delay their time coming here."
"Should we kill their men or their horses as a warning? Don't worry, Your Ladyship, there will be no evidence but enough thought for them to know what it means."
Although Larak has some use, it doesn't seem that important… for the time being.
"A simple delay due to the terrain would be the best excuse for now."
Let's test it out. Injuring rather than killing, would the same perception by those who want us to wage war with the Larak Empire still have the same intention?
If the plot remains the same, we can maneuver it. But if it's less of a reaction from the hidden enemies, then let's reevaluate. The important thing is an event had taken place rather than nothing.
"Understood, Your Ladyship and the Ostenian?"
"Let them play."
As usual.
"Will do, Your Ladyship."
Now that they're done with that part, she should go back to the library and study more about the Empire and other necessities she needs to know. External factors might arise because some were changed. Ett needs to learn and conceal herself as much as possible.
There's still a long cough-way.
"You may leave."
"Then I'll excuse myself first, Your Ladyship."
Akan kissed the back of her hand, smiling at her like an old fox, and closed the door.
"…"
As soon as Akan stepped outside, Ett let out a weary sigh and made her way back to her bed. The exhaustion weighed heavily on her, and she all but collapsed onto the mattress, stretching her arms out in an attempt to relax. However, in her careless movement, her smacked against the wall just beside the edge of her headrest.
"Aiya! Aiya aiya it hurts. Mia amore, it hurts!" Tears welled up her eyes.
A faint click made her pause, her gaze snapping toward the wall. Beneath her fingertips, a hidden block had shifted ever so slightly, unsettling the surface as if something had been dislodged.
Startled, Ett's teary eyes opened in curiosity. Gradually, it slowly revealed a dim tunnel-like hallway.
"Cool~."
To think she had discovered something that didn't appear in the novel. A hidden passage is used as an escape route if Ett wants to go out.
If only she had found it out earlier, then escaping and coming back wouldn't have been a problem.
Hmp. From now on, she should be more specific about what to say to Eru, or else it will happen again.
Grabbing a hood and securing her small pouch of money, Ett took one last glance at her room before stepping into the tunnel. As she crossed the threshold, the hidden entrance behind her sealed shut, enclosing her in darkness.
"Eh? What's this?"
Ett quickly reached the enormous chest that only an adult woman could. Well, she could, but it'll tire her out to death.
There were two chests. Ett had a hard time opening both chest. The heaviness was quite a challenge. The first chest was full of weapons. Instead of heavy blades and bows, there were light weapons. Most were daggers, whips, and slingshots; from the scratches and marks on the handles, most were used frequently. The second chest was more of a piece of clothing for disguise.
"So that's it."
It was not written in the story, but it exists. Indeed, you can't have one hidden passage only, and it's impossible that she didn't go out.
Then, why was she going out?
Ah, fudge, I don't know. If she went out undiscovered, was it to get information by herself? Is it because the Ett in the novel doesn't trust Akan's intel, so she orders him to go to another Empire to do it herself before he returns and the time she came to this book?
"What a headache."
Ett sighed, glancing at the black wig. Beside it was a cloak that covered her face entirely, a vial, and two pieces of scrolls. The first scroll was a map going to the House of Isotel.
"Must have taken her great effort with this health of hers."
In the novel, it was like an information guild, and the second one was…
"I get it now."
The vial was an eye drop to make your eye temporarily change its color. It's not magic, but herbs and other plants are ground as one until they pound to dust and boil and are made repeatedly until they become liquid. The Ett in the novel was doing something on her own. It may also be the reason why she turned into a child.
Maybe it's true, and perhaps it's not.
Even so, it is a good invention in this kind of setting…
Now that she was inside the novel, something unusual must have led to this. The story never mentioned such an event, meaning she had to uncover the truth herself. If she was venturing out, it wasn't just for answers—it was also to find someone who could help her. And she had to do it in secret.
"Is it the Earl of Valharam?"
As soon as Ett dropped a little of the liquid in both her eyes, it spread not a moment after she screamed in a whisper.
"Ah. Ah. It hurts."
My eyes…it burns!
Ett's eyes burned as if seared by an unseen fire, an eerie sensation creeping along the edges of her lashes—something writhing, slithering like tiny worms against her eyeballs. Tears spilled down her cheeks, unbidden and unstoppable.
A lump tightened in her throat. Ett barely had time to pull out her handkerchief before coughing up blood, the metallic taste clinging to her tongue. This... thing was affecting her mood, twisting her insides. Was it always like this for Ett whenever she used it? The agony of her shifting eye color?
She let out a low groan, recalling the mild irritation of wearing contact lenses. That discomfort now felt like a luxury compared to this unbearable sensation.
The old days is truly full of inconveniences.
After about three minutes, the ordeal ended. Still, there were times she would sniff and cough lightly. Taking one of the spotlessly clean daggers and the lamp, she tries to see her eye color through the knife's reflection.
"Hazel."
Well, that's not too bad. It was closer to her eye color when she was on Earth. Her eyes are bloodshot as if she had taken drugs, but everything worked out well. Closing both chests, Ett stood up, grasping the two maps in her hand.
Cough.
"Alright, Ett. Let's see your first unfinished business."