Chapter 14: Plot Changes

Ariel, she was a narrow-minded servant; she threw the mop forward in annoyance. Perhaps Temi resented how frightened she was from the warning she received from the beautiful saint that she was determined to work Ariel to the bones.

“How am I supposed to clean all these stairs by myself?”

Leandro informed her of his preoccupied schedule. He was to tend to the military officials for a few days with a hunting competition. In the meantime, Ariel was given a difficult time. She could hear laughter and giggles from afar. Miffed, she turned her head toward the servant laughing at her. She sighed. Annoyance filled her, but she was helpless. No matter how many times she warmed the emperor’s bed, Leandro had yet to give her the title as the emperor’s woman. It was an open secret to the court ladies, too, that he held Ariel in his embrace every night, and unless it was publicly announced what she meant to him, she was powerless. Even the freckled-face Temi was in a much better position than she was.

Putting that aside, the frantic shaking of her waist last night left her sore. The side of her muscles clamped violently and ached. Breathing proved difficult. 

“Ughh…” When she squatted to clean the stone-marble stairs, a sharp searing pain was felt. Ariel frowned and clenched her teeth. This is temporary, this hardship, Ariel thought. Soon she would become Leandro’s only woman and take control of the palace, but… her current predicament was driving her wild.

As she scrubbed the stone-marble stairway clean, groups of shadows touched the floor in front of her, indicating someone was behind her. Ariel turned around, muttering irate words to herself, “What do they want now?”

“What is it?” asked Ariel, softly.

A group of maidservants looked at her, their gaze cold-chilling.

“There’s a hierarchy among servants. You’re a slave and you dare speak to Temi arrogantly?”

Temi hid behind the backs of the maidservants and stared blankly at Ariel, wondering if the saint had the courage to deal with the group of servants alone; Temi doubted it. But much to Temi’s dismay, Ariel was not afraid, only irked at the thought that she was not able to finish her task quickly because of the bothersome maidservants.

“So?” Ariel shrugged. “What do you want me to do?”

“…What?” The maidservants were left baffled. They thought a frightened look would cross her face. They looked at one another and exchanged perplexed glances at the saint’s nonchalant expression and calm speech, wildly different from their expectations.

“And what will you have me do? You’ll punish me for misbehavior?” Ariel laughed inwardly. This hierarchical structure, how oddly amusing.

“…Hold her,” the freckled maidservant muttered. The rest of the maidservants rushed to Ariel and grabbed her arm with force.

Ariel’s composure loosened with shock. She did not have the talent to beat the crowd herself.

“You seem to believe in that face of yours. If this beautiful shell breaks, will His Majesty ever try to embrace you again?” Temi jeered.

“What do you mean…?” Ariel quickly recalled her scattered memories, checking if this event ever occurred in the book. Though the freckled-face Temi bothered the original female lead incessantly, Temi never made a move against her.

“You won’t be able to hide your ugly heart despite having a beautiful face. How about mutilating this pretty face of yours to match your ugly insides?” Temi smiled crookedly.

“L-let go!” A cold sweat broke out from Ariel’s temples. She read the book several times, even memorized its contents and Temi had never dared to hurt the female lead. What was going on? Was it because she was not the female lead and she knew what would happen that the plot changed?

Temi pulled a slender knife out of her pocket. Ariel struggled futilely to escape from the crowds of women holding her down. It was impossible to deal with five or six of them at a time.

“Stay still. If you struggle too much, I might end up cutting a large area of your pretty face. It’ll only be a loss to you.”

The future events of the book changed from what she knew because she reacted differently from what the original female lead had done. Otherwise, the predicament she was put in would not have happened. 

Harm upon her was highly possible at this moment. A shivering chill ran down her spine.

“…You’ll scar my face… which His Majesty loves?” Ariel needed to act and change the minds of the maidservants. She swallowed her fear and clenched her trembling hands; she raised her chin high as if nothing harm would come upon her. “Yes, try and think about what will happen to you. Do you believe that His Majesty would abandon me merely because of a simple scar on my face? You don’t think he won’t dare to find out who hurt me? Think carefully and act properly.”