She stood in the corner, trying to blend herself in with the wall. Surely it wasn't working because everyone kept glancing in her direction.
She hated their gazes.
"My, how beautiful you look tonight, Princess Azora," Count Bahram greeted her and bowed. "But of course, you always look beautiful."
Count Bahram, someone with more wealth than he knew what to do with, certainly knew how to butter someone really well. Azora never liked him to begin with but later down the road when he scammed a Duke, he lost his title.
Poor man.
She didn't reply him and he smiled knowingly. It was common knowledge that the third princess of the empire never spoke and there were rumors that Azora had some sort of throat infection. The truth was if she spoke to anyone other than family, the emperor hated it. And he would punish her for it.
Ah. She had almost forgotten the feeling of being afraid of the emperor. The emperor, her so called "father" was the worst man she had ever come across. Probably worse than even Duke Lain.
He would hit her over nothing. If she held something in a way he didn't like she would be whipped. If she liked something he didn't like he would slap her, chain her and leave her in a cold, damp room with no food for days until she learned to obey him.
All because she was her mother's child. Her mother was the first empress, the sole one who was recognized by the Vrucia Empire's Head Temple. Because she was recognized this meant she was also a part of the royal family now and that meant whoever she gave birth to would be a part of the royal family even if it wasn't the emperor's child. After Sebastian, the emperor took in a second wife who wasn't recognized by the Temple. And then he took in a third. It was when he took in a fourth that the empress slept with another nobleman and then gave birth to Azora and after two years, Alastair. The emperor had no idea Azora and Alastair weren't his children for they inherited their mother's hair color and the red eyes but somehow the emperor got to know she was not faithful and he put her to death.
Pretty mysogynistic, but then again, this could happen only because it was the emperor. Otherwise there was law that prohibited polygamy of all sorts.
Azora was only three when her mother was sentenced to death and then beheaded. She had taken care of Alastair since. People couldn't disrespect them for they were still of the royal family but the emperor had no such obligations. He openly abused the two children and nobody helped. It was when she turned thirteen that she proposed a deal to the emperor.
If he stopped abusing Alastair, she promised she would do whatever he asked. He had no reason to accept her request yet he did. Maybe he was afraid of public opinion although it wasn't exactly a secret among nobles how the children of the first empress were treated.
Finally, one day, the abuse stopped.
On Alastair.
That was also the time when he started hating her, apparently.
She shook her head, trying to drive the thoughts away. Nothing in the world hurt her more than when her one and only brother, whom she loved so much turned his back on her.
When her mind focused back on the ballroom in front of her, she vaguely wondered when she should leave. Surely they would announce Duke Lain's arrival? It didn't make sense to not to.
She scanned the room and found several familiar faces but none she wanted to talk to. Her eyes met a pair of brown ones, that of a servant's. His name was Luan and he was very close to the first prince, her eldest brother, Sebastian.
In her last life he was the only one who mourned over Sebastian's death besides her. Sebastian wasn't particularly close with any of their other siblings, always busy in political matters. The nobles changed parties the moment Sebastians death was announced and the royal princes and princesses put on a fake show of mourning for someone they didn't even know. Sebastians entire life had been spent on the battlefield and whenever he was home, he had too many meetings to attend. He was twenty four, having received and finished all his lessons many years ago he had no reason to see any of his siblings. Although he and Azora had only their mother in common Azora could not remember one moment she had spent with him. She remembered him as the only person who had shed tears for her. Although they didn't know each other at all...
*
"Your Majesty! What are you-" Sebastian started, stopping short when he saw the emperor's hands gripping his little sister, Azora's hair.
"How many times have I told you to stay within the palace walls and not go out into town?" he shouted. Sebastian looked around in horror, no one, not even the knights were showing any sort of discomfort at this kind of situation. What did this mean? Did this happen often? "Answer me, Azora. Bitch. How many times-"
"Let her go, your majesty," Sebastian said quietly, his tone dead serious. "While I am still being respectful about it."
"Don't you tell me what to do," the emperor glanced at him for a second before turning all his attention to Azora who lay motionless in his hands. Azora's blank gaze ran over Sebastian once and his eyes widened when he took in her state. He had seen this look in the eyes of the knights before. On those knights who had given up on life. They had no hope, nothing to gain. There was a very thin line between those knights and mercenaries.
The emperor indeed had the most authority in the entire empire but over time, all these years, little by little, he had grown his support to the size that was comparable to even his majesty's. If he were to rebel there was a fair chance he would come out on top.
The Emperor of Vrucia truly was rotten.