The Prince's Nanny, Her Specialty Is Assassination - Chapter 12

Chapter 12: The Maid, Catherine (2)

“What are you doing, not getting up?”

At my words, the maid immediately stood up.

“You’re the new nanny, right?”

She clasped her hands together, her face flushed, and stole glances at me.

“If you know, why ask?”

“Th-thank you for helping me!”

“I didn’t help you.”

“What? But…”

“I only gave those women a warning not to speak ill of me.”

I dislike gossip, and what they said had irked me enough to scold them. It wasn’t to vent my frustration with the head maid.

“Well then, I’ll be off.”

“Still, I was saved thanks to you, Nanny!”

“Think whatever you want.”

“Excuse me!”

Just as I was about to leave, the maid called out to me again.

“Do you have something else to say?”

Even though I spoke in a consistently cold tone, instead of being offended, the maid’s eyes seemed to sparkle even more.

“My name is Catherine Vale. I work in the annex.”

Why was she introducing herself unprompted?

I just stared at her in response.

She continued, her face still flushed, “Thank you for helping me. If there’s anything I can do for you, just let me know. I’ll help anytime.”

I told her I didn’t help her, yet she insisted otherwise. I started to walk away with an indifferent expression but then turned back.

“You.”

“Yes?”

“Can you cook?”

The maid blinked in surprise at my question.

“C-cook?”

***

“It’s delicious!”

Edwin and Emilia.

The young prince and princess stared at the dish with astonished eyes.

“What is this? It’s way better than anything we’ve had at banquets!”

“Yes! It’s so, so good!”

The two seemed even hungrier due to the delay in their meal.

“It’s just an ordinary fish stew, Your Highness. You flatter me.”

Edwin, who was usually a picky eater, was eating with such enthusiasm. I turned to the woman standing beside me and offered her praise instead.

“Making ordinary food taste this good is a talent.”

“But it’s really nothing special. Thank you for the compliment, Nanny.”

The tall woman, blushing shyly, was none other than Catherine Vale, the maid I had unintentionally saved from the bullying of the other maids. She had told me to let her know if I ever needed help, so I didn’t turn down her offer when I needed assistance.

“Are you sure about this?”

“Huh?”

Catherine tilted her head at my question.

“The head maid told you never to help me, didn’t she?”

When I added that explanation, she blinked and smiled lightly.

“I didn’t help you.”

“What?”

“I was only making sure Their Highnesses, the rightful owners of this palace, didn’t go hungry.”

It was quite a clever response, one I liked.

She shrugged as she added, “Besides, the main palace maids eat separately and don’t care about what happens here.”

“Do the maids have separate meals?”

“Yes. Most of the main palace maids are pure nobility.”

Catherine smiled bitterly as she continued, “But annex maids like me either come from families that bought their titles or are commoners. It’s an uncomfortable relationship.”

So that was why the count’s daughter made such a fuss earlier.

“So no one cares where the leftover food goes. The head maid won’t find out either.”

“I see.”

Just then, Edwin put down his spoon and stood up. The boy had cleaned his plate in no time—it must have been that delicious.

Edwin grabbed the doorknob and shouted at me, “I want to go for a walk with Emilia.”

“As you wish.”

I answered without much thought, but I suddenly felt a sharp gaze on me.

“What is it?”

Edwin’s eyes were sparkling to an uncomfortable degree.

“I want to go outside.”

It seemed he had taken my words to the head maid to mean he could go out whenever he wanted if I was there.

“Lia wants to go out too!”

To make matters worse, Emilia also grabbed her brother’s hand and whined.

Did they really have to go out? I hesitated, feeling lazy, but Catherine gave me a push.

“Then you should go quickly. I’ll clean up the dishes.”

“No, I’ll do it.”

“They’re dishes from the annex anyway. Let’s go.”

Catherine quickly gathered the empty dishes onto the tray. She followed us out and saw us off.

“Be careful and have a good time.”

“Let’s go!”

The young prince held his sister’s hand tightly and walked ahead.

In the end, I had no choice but to follow them with a sigh.

***

“Lia, that’s the Imperial Library over there.”

Once outside the palace, Edwin held his sister’s hand and pointed here and there.

“And the palace next to it is where the First Prince lives. Do you remember what I told you before?”

“Yes! Lia knows everything!”

“Really? Then can you find your way there alone?”

“Yes! Lia is smart and won’t get lost!”

“Is that so? Who does our princess take after to be so smart?”

“Brother!”

Edwin smiled brightly at his sister’s adorable answer.

‘They really get along well.’

I had thought this for a while, but Edwin was nothing short of an angel to his sister.

‘Such a strong sibling bond. Or should I say, a brotherly love?’

I followed behind the pair, who looked like twin chicks, like a shadow.

Though it was the Imperial Palace, I was already familiar with most places outside the Third Prince’s Palace—after all, I used to walk around here like it was my own house.

Suddenly, Edwin stopped in his tracks.

“Hmm, it’s Father.”

Emilia’s words clued me in on why Edwin had stopped.

In the vast central garden before us, someone walked slowly between the flowerbeds, accompanied by a line of attendants.

It was the Emperor, Cavelius III.

And beside him stood a man I had never seen before.

‘Who is that?’

Black hair, black armor. His golden eyes, shining as if they absorbed all the light in the world, stood out even from afar.

‘Walking next to the Emperor in full armor?’

Instinctively, I began to observe the man. His stride was disciplined, and his demeanor was polite but not obsequious.

‘A knight? No, but…’

The man walked beside the Emperor, maintaining a blank expression. No mere knight would be allowed to walk alongside the Emperor of the Empire.

‘He must hold a significant rank. A newly titled lord, perhaps?’

Just then, the man suddenly turned his head toward us. Before I could even be surprised, our eyes met.

Normally, I would have looked away without a second thought. But this time, I couldn’t.

‘Did he just smile?’

It was only for a fleeting moment, but I was sure. The moment our eyes met, there was a hint of a smile on his lips.

I wondered if I was mistaken, but when he turned back to the Emperor, his face was expressionless again.

‘Why?’

I was bewildered. Why would a man I had never seen before smile at me?

‘Why did he smile at me?’

Surely, he didn’t know me, and it certainly wasn’t flirtation.

‘Could he possibly know the real Rachel?’

Of course, it seemed unlikely given the difference in status between that man and Rachel.

‘Well, you never know with people.’

While I was making all sorts of guesses on my own, someone suddenly tugged on my skirt.

It was Edwin. He was holding onto my skirt while staring at the Emperor’s entourage. His face, though expressionless, looked somehow frightened.

“Ants, where are you going?”

On the other hand, the lively Emilia seemed uninterested in calling her father.

The young princess crouched beside her brother, watching the ants crawling on the ground.

If we stayed here, we’d end up waiting until the Emperor disappeared from sight.

“Your Highness, shall we go back?”

Edwin looked up at me with a startled expression. “…Shouldn’t I greet Father?”

“Why ask me? If you want to, do it. If you don’t, don’t.”

Edwin stared at me, mouth agape, then lowered his head.

“What would you like to do?”

After a long hesitation, he muttered timidly, “…I want to go back.”

“Then let’s go.”

As I turned without hesitation, Edwin suddenly grabbed me.

“J-just to be clear!”

He raised his voice as if making an excuse. “It’s not because I don’t want to greet Father! It’s just that he looks busy, that’s all! Got it?”

No one asked.

Children are hard to understand.

“Yes, I understand.”

When I answered indifferently, Edwin stared at me intently.

“What is it?”

He bit his lip, glaring at me for a long time before finally turning his head.

“You’re really strange.”

“Pardon?”

“If it were Emma, she’d have insisted I go and greet him.”

“Then would you like to do that now?”

“No! Never mind!” Edwin quickly shook his head from side to side.

“Alright, let’s go.”

“…Okay.”

I hoisted Emilia, who was sitting on the ground, onto my shoulder and began walking without hesitation.

That’s why I didn’t realize until later—that Edwin was still tightly gripping my clothes, following closely behind me.