"Judi! Judi, where did you go?"
"Judi, come back!"
The tranquil atmosphere of the palace garden rippled under the hasty footsteps that flew over the white rocks of the garden paths.
A beautiful young girl in an embroidered dress held both hands on either side of her mouth as she called out to find her beloved pet bird, who had flapped out of the window and run away. Behind her, another young girl in a linen dress with simpler adornments followed closely.
"Judi, come back here!" The second young girl, a maidservant, sighed fretfully. "Where could that blasted bird be?"
The Third Princess frowned delicately. She had a face that could flatten mountains, with dainty, soft facial features and wide, shining eyes. There was nothing she could ask of anyone that would not be granted to her.
Except for when it came to her pet.
"Your Sovereign Highness, what should we do? I only left for a moment to fetch Judi's food and he flew off!" The little handmaid's face was on the verge of wrinkling into oblivion. She cursed that stupid bird viciously in her heart and imagined what he would look like in a bowl of soup. This was the only way to console herself properly.
"I will look over there, by the roses. Bila, you look by the woods."
"Alright!" Bila picked up her skirt and ran off to the tree line.
She and Judi, the evil magpie, did not get along. Ever since that damned bird was hatched, he had taken it upon himself to make the poor servant's life miserable, and would constantly make trouble for her whenever he was let out of his cage.
This day's mischief came the moment he was perched upon the window of the Third Princess's room to bathe in the sun. While there were watchful eyes on him, he behaved appropriately and preened his feathers in the warm light of day. In his mistress's presence, who loved and spoiled the fat bird extravagantly, he was especially obedient.
He was perfectly cooperative until the moment Bila left the room to refill his seed bowl. At that exact moment, the blasted magpie, who supposedly could not fly as his wings were trimmed, stepped away from the window ledge and fluttered right off.
When Bila returned, he was gone.
The poor servant girl was beside herself with worry and had searched the Third Princess's residence high and low, overturning all stones until she was sure that Judi was not anywhere near the Hall of Grace. At that point, she could no longer keep the news from her mistress, who had been reading leisurely under a tree outside.
Syvia hadn't even put her book away. She tucked it beneath her arm and set off to find her devilish pet. There were many animals within the palace, as many of the residents owned them. Most of the pets that were found within Light Tower were exotic animals of exceptional breeding and hard acquisition.
She was very worried that perhaps Judi had flown close to Halen's falcon aviary and fallen prey to those deadly pets of her brother's, or been entrapped by Fifth Princess Neska's sadistic cat, who was as perverse as she was and loved to take prisoners. Thinking of this possibility, her search grew more frantic.
"Judi, where are you?" Syvia raised her skirt to an appropriate height and hurried along the garden paths. At a distance, the sight of her steps were so light that it looked like she was floating. "Judi! Judi!"
The girl stopped short as she ran into someone. She grunted from the impact and stumbled backward while the wooden-bound book that had been tucked under her arm clattered to the ground into an unkempt, pitiful mess.
A fair, girlish hand picked up the book, then an irritating voice read its title. "'The Twenty-Four Theories of Divine Warfare.' Third Sister, isn't this book too advanced for your curriculum?"
The Third Princess fully heard the provoking words from the Fifth Princess, but none of her was capable of responding. Her breath was caught in her throat as a warm flush began to coat her cheeks charmingly.
"Adrit. I believe this is yours." A handsome young man smiled at her with a slight bow and produced a heavy bundle of bright-coloured feathers from his coat.
"Judi!" Syvia eagerly reached out to take the fat magpie from Iander Velnue's hands, being careful not to let their skins touch. "You rotten creature! I worried that some wild, untamed beast had sunk its untrimmed claws into you."
As she spoke, she looked directly at Fifth Princess Neska's face, which turned red in anger instantly. Seeing this reaction, Syvia felt satisfied.
"Thank you for saving my Judi, Ros'an Velnue," she said sweetly.
Iander Velnue frowned imperceptibly when her heard her form of address. The Third Princess was always distancing herself from him in this manner, using the formal title for an unmarried young master of the lower rank nobility.
He was not Su'na Velnue's son, and so by heritage he was not of the Su rank and not part of the sovereign court. To even be able to see a member of the sovereign family and frequent visits to the palace was enough of a privilege for him.
But, Iander was as imprudent as he was handsome, and he had unwittingly charmed himself into the eyes of not one but two princesses.
For someone like Neska Hellfryne, let alone Syvia Hellfryne, to marry someone of the Ros rank was to debase herself unforgivably. It was enough to have either of them disowned from the sovereign court. In Syvia's case, her children would have to abdicate their claim to the throne.
The Third Princess was conscious enough to know this, but it hurt her heart to acknowledge the fact.
Admittedly, Iander Velnue had no great feats that could move her heart to favour him. He was not particularly intellectual nor was he gifted in combat beyond anything that could be considered medial skills, but… he was so handsome!
He stood slender and tall with a noble air about him that only increased his good looks. Both the Third and Fifth Princesses couldn't help but sigh wistfully whenever they saw him.
"Fifth Sister, please return my book." Syvia held out a hand for the item, which was still in Neska's hands. "I wouldn't want it to befall a tragic fate in the wrong claws—I mean hands. Please forgive my muddled speech."
Neska gave her a stiff smile and handed over the book. "Third Sister is so young. How could I possibly hold the vapid words of a child to heart? As your elder, it's my duty to dote on you."
The Third Princess's eyes narrowed imperceptibly. She was about to throw all decorum to the wind and fight that dumb sister of hers when Bila came running over.
"Judi!" The servant girl could have strangled the damned magpie from both relief and anger. This confounded bird had her climbing trees like a fool just to find him. What rotten luck she had!
"Come, Bila." Syvia decided to leave the garden and have someone trim the bird's wings at once. It was entirely too dangerous for her Judi to fly about wherever he wanted so carelessly.
As they walked, Bila revealed an uneasy expression. "Your Sovereign Highness, was Her Fifth Highness not behaving too intimately with Ros'an Velnue just now?"
Syvia thought back to the encounter in the rose garden. Neska had indeed appeared with Iander Velnue, which by itself left a lot of room for conjecture. If it wasn't for the Fifth Princess's maidservant accompanying them, it could even be grounds for a claim of indecency.
For a woman to be alone with a man who she had not married or did not serve her was forbidden. For the peasants, punishment was often light-handed because they did not have much to lose, but the higher the rank, the worse the punishment.
Syvia considered that New Oalta was a country where a woman's life went by with a noose around her neck. The slightest mistake, even if it was not her fault, and she would bear the sole blame.
But in her and Neska's case, they were princesses. For someone to even touch their skin was a great offence with heavy punishment. Even if they were disgraced for some reason, the blame would unconditionally not be carried by them alone.
"Even if they were, it does not matter," the young girl decided solemnly. It was not her issue, and she would not create more trouble by involving herself in something that had nothing to do with her.
If Iander Velnue wanted to court the Fifth Princess, Syvia would naturally have no opinions. Besides, it was not convenient for her to pine after another man when her own match was still being decided no matter how handsome he was.
She needed to keep an open mind and accept the man her elder sister would inevitably push her way. In this, Syvia had enough sense to avoid throwing a tantrum about it.
Besides, if First Sister was choosing her husband, he would naturally not be hideous or a have monstrous behaviour.
She had to trust in Verinia Hellfryne.