Chapter 8

Later, Via often recalled this day of incognito.

It was the last day she could simply be a princess. The innocent self before being intimate with Prince Alex, who knew nothing of love and had no fear of the future, read the words of promise in the old diary.

The next day, Via ascended to the Crystal Palace as a concubine.

That evening, before entering the prince's bedroom for the first time, Via was bathed by several maids, and scented oils were applied to her skin and hair. The head maid praised her beautiful skin, and Via wrapped herself in a light silk nightgown that could be easily untied with a single pull of a string. Her lustrous hair, now combed, flowed smoothly down her back, and her makeup consisted only of a light touch of rouge on her lips. Her fresh, sixteen-year-old skin stood out in the dim light, and her innocent appearance, with her head slightly bowed as she awaited the prince, was breathtakingly beautiful.

At first, Via welcomed Alex with a calm smile, but as she was embraced and kissed, and felt his breath on her neck and ear, she became lost in confusion. It felt as if all her armor was being stripped away. Skillful fingers awakened new sensations in Via, and she could only let out thin breaths as she submitted to Alex's will. Eventually, as Alex pulled away, Via, released from the state of ecstasy, was overwhelmed by the joy and confusion she had experienced for the first time, and a profound sense of loss for something important she had lost, and could not stop the tears from flowing.

Alex's hand, wrapped around her waist, pulled her frail body close, as if to protect her, and held her tightly to his chest. He lovingly combed her lustrous golden hair and kissed her temple.

Via held back her breath, trying to hide the tears streaming down her cheeks, but when Alex's fingers slid to her chin and he noticed her wet cheeks, he sat up in surprise and looked at her face.

"Why are you crying?"

Via tried to shake her head to avoid the question, but as her wet cheeks were gently wiped away with his thumb, she could not hold back new tears.

"I don't know."

She had always thought that offering her body was proof that she was not an enemy, and that their relationship was only that. But as she was embraced by his strong, well-built body, she realized for the first time in her sixteen years what she had been longing for.

She had grown up without knowing the warmth and strength of her father, only with a kind and loving mother. After her mother's death, she had felt pressured to protect Celta, always searching for the next move.

"Just, I was scared."

Held in his broad chest, she suddenly felt vulnerable. She had to protect her younger brother and be a strong presence.

The ecstasy she was given in her confusion only made her more bewildered. She was tossed and turned by the heat of his body, careful not to crush her, and the more she longed for his warmth, the deeper the indescribable sadness pierced her heart.

Offering her body was the condition for protection.

She had already lost something she should have protected as a woman, and she had no right to mourn.

"From today, I will be your protector. I will protect Celta."

Though it was the words she had most hoped to hear, her heart felt torn.

"Don't cry."

He spoke gently, kissed her temple and cheeks, and finally kissed her lips softly. His long fingers ran through Via's hair, and he smiled with a sigh when he noticed her tense body.

"Don't worry. I won't do anything more today."

"More?"

Via, feeling a tear fall from her lashes, asked curiously.

"Is there something more to come?"

Alex looked surprised and shook his head, saying there was nothing.

It was customary for the women to leave the room that night. He did not want to be caught off guard, and it was bothersome to have someone around after the deed was done. When he pulled the bell, the maid waiting in the room next door would come and take care of the woman being sent out.

But for the first time, Alex did not want to let go of this warmth. He wanted to stroke her head until her tears dried and hold her frail body.

"Go to sleep."

Alex pulled Via closer.

Via, entrusting her body to him, eventually fell asleep with a small, peaceful breath.

In the room she was shown to, Via was eating alone.

Sitting alone at a long table, surrounded by maids, the meal was terribly dull.

At the Amethyst Palace, she would sit across from Celta and chat while eating.

"Does the prince eat like this too?"

When she asked the maid, Eimi, who was closest to her, she replied, "Yes."

Eimi, who had served in the Crystal Palace since childhood, was a bright, honest, and capable young woman who had been chosen as the concubine's maid by the head of the attendants.

She was a mid-level maid among those assigned to Via, with a slightly plump and charming face.

"So even if we live in the same palace, we don't eat together?"

When Via asked, Eimi tilted her head.

"I don't know.

This morning, the prince was ordered to appear before the Empress and had breakfast in the Empress's palace, but it's rare for the Empress to call for breakfast."

The intention of calling the prince to the palace the morning after welcoming Via was clear.

It was a warning not to trust the concubine.

"I'll have to thank the Empress at the right time."

After all, it was the Empress who recommended her as the prince's concubine.

Without the Empress's support, she would have been taken to the emperor's bedroom by now.

Still, what a morning this has been, Via thought.

She had woken up feeling the worst in her life. She had been sleeping comfortably when a maid's voice woke her through the door.

"Your Highness, may I come in?"

It wasn't the usual voice of Seira, and as she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was the naked chest of the prince who was holding her.

Confused by her situation, she blinked for a while, and then suddenly woke up. Or rather, she felt the blood drain from her face.

She let out a silent scream and sat up, only to realize her disheveled state and almost scream again.

Panicking, she dove back into the bed, and the prince, who had also been woken by the maid's voice, looked at her with an amused expression.

"Your Highness"

The maid's voice came again, and the prince answered, "Not yet."

"What should I do?" she asked, tears in her eyes, and he replied, "I don't know."

"It's been a while since I've slept in."

While Via was overwhelmed by shame and confusion, the prince stretched and asked her if she had slept well, in a leisurely manner.

The prince then sat up and put his hands on either side of Via, who was frozen in confusion.

When she tried to resist, he asked, "Do you understand the duties of a concubine?" She shook her head, and the prince looked at her with a narrowed gaze. The male charm that emanated from him was strangely frightening.

"Be obedient to me. Do not resist."

He then took a handful of her hair and kissed it lovingly. Via, fearing that he would continue from last night, shrank back.

"What are you going to do...?"

"What do you think I'm going to do?"

As the prince's lips approached suggestively, Via screamed in her heart, but then he suddenly turned away and burst out laughing as if he couldn't hold it in any longer.

"Your Highness!"

After playing with Via to his heart's content, Alex quickly put on the fallen nightgown, handed a dress to Via, and called out to the other side of the door.

The subsequent commotion was something she did not want to remember. She had not expected so many people to enter the room and take care of her.

She was wiped down with a cloth that smelled of scented oil, her hair was combed, and she was dressed in a complicated dress in the morning. Then she was led to this place and ended up here.

Via's honest feeling was that she was tired from the morning.

At least, she thought, the first night was over, and she had fulfilled one of her duties as a concubine.

If she could serve as a concubine for a few years until Celta's position was secure, she would be relieved of her duties.

The solitary meal was boring, but if she thought of it as a few years of endurance, it was nothing.

She wondered if the next time she would see the prince would be at the dinner party in five days, which would be her official debut.

She had to play the perfect concubine to avoid tarnishing her mother Zitti's name.

She decided to thoroughly review the attendees, seating arrangements, and the positions and family trees of the nobles she would be introduced to, and finished her long breakfast.

Thus, Via spent her first day as a concubine with utmost seriousness, but before dinner, a messenger from the prince came and told her to share dinner and the bedroom.

That night, when she was led to the room and asked the prince, "Do you always eat dinner here?" he replied, "Yes, but why do you ask?"

They sat across from each other at a six-person table, making it difficult to talk.

"Should I sit somewhere else?" Via asked.

"Where do you want to sit?"

"Next to you, Your Highness. I will serve you."

Alex looked at Via with interest.

"Do as you please."

Alex tried to dismiss all the maids, but the head of the attendants, who looked gentle, said, "I will stay," and remained in the room.

"This is Raphiel. You can trust him. He knows everything about my incognito visits."

After being introduced, Via smiled.

"Prince, you really are a troublemaker, going out in the lower town."

"Don't you say that."

Alex said in a surprised voice.

She had gone out of the castle many times, but this was the first time she had eaten on the street. The commoner's food was surprisingly delicious, and before she knew it, they had wandered around for hours.

She was even taken to a general store, where she spent a long time choosing a plated hairpin, and her attendant waited by her side like a servant. She must have been a troublesome princess.

"The Zitti I know was a chaste and obedient concubine, favored by the emperor, but it seems you saw her differently."

When he asked again, Via smiled happily.

"She was an optimistic, strong, and fun mother. Even at boring dinner parties, she would observe the nobles from behind her fan and give them nicknames, which she found amusing."

Her mother was good at finding joy in any situation.

She often said, "Don't hate, don't be sad, don't pity yourself, it won't do you any good."

"Mother wanted to go out of the palace, but she couldn't get the emperor's permission, could she?

Since Celta also has the emperor's blood, she was not allowed to go out. If she was suspected of rebellion, she could be killed, so..."

Via was the only one who could go out into the city.

"So, to find interesting stories for my mother and brother, who couldn't leave the palace, I worked hard to find them."

"For example?"

"The statue of the First Emperor in the center of Midas is holding his right palm up, right? If you stand with your back to it and throw a coin, and it lands on the palm, your wish will come true.

So that area is called the Palm Square. I think it had a long name, though."

"...Seth Monteni Square."

The First Emperor fought a fierce battle in the Seth Monteni Gorge and subjugated many tribes to found Ansheize.

It was a shock to learn that the name, which should have been passed down, had become Palm Square among the people.

"Also, sometimes you see beggars with babies, right? It's a business, apparently."

"Business? I thought they were people who couldn't make ends meet and were standing with babies."

"Isn't that what you think?"

Via nodded.

"Actually, they rent the babies. Apparently, it's more profitable that way."

Alex was speechless.

"You're tough."

"Yes. When I see such things, I feel I still have a long way to go."

Alex looked at Via with a suspicious eye.

"What are you aiming for?"

At least, now that she was a concubine, she shouldn't go out incognito, he warned, and Via nodded.

Of course, she would do her best as a concubine.

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