I Became The Extra King With Seven Wives-Chapter 43: Awful Morning For Regina

Regina woke up early within the cramped confines of her small home.

Raising her aching body from the thin mattress and yawning softly, she quickly checked outside through the tiny, dirty window. She was relieved to see that the morning sun was just barely on the verge of rising above the jagged skyline.

She still had plenty of time.

She was not going to be late.

Glancing over her shoulder, she saw her mother still sleeping peacefully.

Smiling softly to herself, she quietly moved toward the back of the small house, deftly tying her long hair into a swift ponytail.

She checked the large wooden water container situated just outside the back door, carefully prying off the heavy lid. She let out a soft, tired sigh upon seeing that it was almost entirely empty.

Replacing the lid, she picked up a large empty bucket and walked toward the front of her home to begin her morning chores. But the exact moment she pulled the front door open, she froze in her tracks, coming face-to-face with a towering, bear-like man in his forties, possessing a massive, protruding belly, standing directly in her doorway.

Regina visibly stiffened at the sudden sight of him.

He was Onark, the cruel and perverted husband of Rona, the harsh woman who had originally permitted them to live in this terribly cramped house within the capital, and who had provided Regina and Ada with a arduous job just to barely survive.

As for exactly why Regina stiffened in slight dread upon seeing him, the middle-aged man’s lustful gaze raking over her body said everything about his vile, lascivious intentions.

"Did you just wake up, little Regina?" He asked, a greasy smile stretching across his face. His narrowed eyes slowly traveled down from her face directly toward her cleavage. Because he towered over her, and because she was only wearing a simple, loose tunic, he eagerly took his time ogling any exposed skin he could find, greedily making the most of the meager sight.

Regina, completely repulsed by his stare, simply looked away.

"Do you want something..." She asked, her tone curt.

Onark’s dark eyes instantly flared with anger. His massive, calloused hand violently shot out, forcefully grasping Regina’s delicate jaw.

"That’s how you talk to the man who keeps you and your sick ma fed?" He growled, glaring down at her.

Regina stubbornly glared right back at him, her bright blue eyes blazing.

The man’s chubby, flushed face twisted into an ugly, threatening scowl.

"You want me to throw your ma out in the street myself? Drag her by her hair and leave her for the rats? Plenty of bastards out there worse than me, girl. They’d love to find a sick old woman with nowhere to go, he threatened coldly.

At his threat, the challenging glow instantly vanished from Regina’s eyes, and she began to tremble violently.

"Please..."

Onark’s lips immediately curved into a wicked, triumphant smirk.

"Then shut your mouth and do what you’re told. Unless you want your ma sleeping in a gutter tonight," he said, slowly reaching out his other, meaty hand to grasp her shoulder, letting his thick fingers trail lower.

"P—Please..." Regina choked out, her teeth audibly clattering together in paralyzing fear.

"I said shut your hole," the man growled, his wandering hand reaching dangerously close to her bosom.

"Regina!"

At that moment, Ada, her mother, suddenly arrived, frantically grabbing Regina by the arm and yanking her backward, pulling her entirely out of Onark’s grasp.

She then immediately turned and glared at Onark, raising her trembling hand to slap his face.

But Onark easily caught her slender, sickly arm mid-air.

"You hit me? After I took your worthless ass in? You ungrateful old bitch!" He roared, shoving her backward with force.

"Mother!" Regina shrieked, managing to catch her mother’s frail body, but the momentum caused them both to violently tumble down onto the hard floor.

"Cough! Cough!" Ada suddenly began coughing, a dark spray of fresh blood speckling her lips.

"Mother! Please, look at me," Regina cried out in terror. She gently laid her mother flat on the ground and hurried to the small back room serving as kitchen, quickly returning with a small cup of fresh water. Dropping directly onto her knees and gently cradling her mother’s head in her lap, she helped the gasping woman drink from it, her own eyes brimming with unshed tears. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

"You useless, pathetic old lard!"

Onark loudly grunted in surprise as a boot kicked his massive rear from behind.

It was a similarly chubby scowling woman. It was his wife, Rona.

And the one who actually gave this home to Ada and Regina.

She glared at him, hands planted on her wide hips.

"The fuck you doin’ out here this hour? Tryna force yourself on that girl again?" She shifted her mean look toward Regina. "Ain’t got no shame, do ya?"

Onark puffed up, glaring right back. "Someone gotta watch ’em work proper. That one’s ma’s good for nothin’ now, so might as well get somethin’ outta the daughter." He jerked his chin at Regina, who was patting her mother’s cheeks, with the same wicked smile.

Rona’s face went redder. "That girl works in the bloody royal castle, you dung-for-brains!"

"Heard that a hundred times. Don’t mean shit. She don’t bring enough coin. Sell her arse and we get more. Simple. Let me handle it."

"Shut your gob and get the hell out!" Rona barked, shoving Onark hard enough to send him stumbling through the doorway. Then she turned her piggish eyes toward Regina. "You! Shouldn’t you be at the castle already, or did they finally realize you’re useless and decide to chuck you out?"

"I—I’m going. I just need to get ready," Regina mumbled.

"Then move your arse!" Rona spat before stomping away.

Regina bit her lip as she looked at her mother, whose breathing was still ragged and shallow.

Gently, she helped Ada back onto the straw bed and adjusted the thin cushion beneath her head so she could rest more comfortably.

"Just rest, Mother. I’ll get you something to eat," Regina said softly.

But Ada could not even answer properly. Her chest rose and fell with painful effort, and her eyes remained shut.

Regina stayed there on her knees for a brief moment, watching her helplessly, before forcing herself to stand. Taking the empty bucket, she stepped outside and hurried toward the public water pipe not far from their house, where water from the nearest springs was distributed.

There were only two for the entire sector, and since the outskirts had grown so large, there was naturally always a line.

And Regina was certainly not the only one who thought early morning would be the best time to come and avoid the worst of the crowd.

It was still better than midday, but not by much.

After hurrying for around ten minutes, she finally reached the nearest public pipe. Regina felt a small flicker of relief when she saw that it was not quite as crowded as she had feared. Joining the line behind about ten or so other people, she set the large bucket down and quickly wiped away the tears that had slipped from her eyes earlier.

Then she lifted her gaze toward the sky once again.

She did not want to be late.

She had already taken enough time off, nearly two full days that Lumiel had granted her. She had spent it caring for her mother and staying by her side, but now she had to return.

Her work at the royal castle was everything.

It was the one thing holding her fragile life together, her home, her mother’s medicine and food, and whatever little safety they still possessed.

And Lumiel had made her his personal maid even though he already had Alice. She could not keep asking for leave, and besides...

She wanted to see him.

That life at the castle was a bubble, an isolation from reality she needed to hold herself together.

"Hey, Regina!"

At that moment, a voice suddenly rang out.

Regina recognized it at once.

It was Robert, a boy her age with light brown hair.

He was not exactly wealthy, but he did not live in the slums either. His family had a better house in the outskirts, in one of the cleaner upper areas, and they were doing fairly well for themselves. His parents worked for a court noble, so their situation was far more stable than hers.

Regina had met him a few years after she and her mother had settled here. He lived in the district above theirs, where the slightly better-off families stayed, and their acquaintance had begun by pure chance. Over time, they had become something close to friends, or at least, he was the only person Regina could think of as one.

Around here, most people were filthy in more ways than one. And the fact that she lived in a house belonging to Rona likely played a part in why others kept their hands off her. It was also why Regina preferred, whenever possible, to stay outside during the day rather than be trapped at home. But now that she served as Lumiel’s personal maid, it might become difficult to return before nightfall.

Still, she managed to give Robert an awkward greeting.

She was not in the mood to talk.

And she was in a hurry.

"Fetching water yourself? You could just pay someone for that, Regina," he said, offering a bright smile.

"Unlike you, I don’t have enough coin to waste on a water carrier," she retorted, her tone coming out sharper than she intended.

Robert quickly realized that she was in a foul mood and that something was wrong.

"Let me help you, then—"

"I am fine, Robert," Regina interrupted, frowning as she pulled the heavy wooden bucket away from his reaching hand.

Robert gave her an awkward, strained smile, and a sudden pang of guilt pierced Regina’s chest.

"I mean... I just have to hurry. I need to get back to the castle for my shift," she explained softly.

"Oh, right... you are working in the royal castle. I would dream of working there, but what about you? Are you doing well?" He asked curiously.

Until now, Regina had always given him brief, polite reassurances, despite the harsh reality. Since she had started working there half a year ago, her desperate attempts to get on Lumiel’s good side had repeatedly failed, and she had been bullied by the other maids who easily saw through her ambitions.

They were bitterly jealous, not just because she was naturally beautiful despite her broken background and current residence, but because of her bold assertiveness and charm.

But as of today, things had finally taken a turn for the better yet dangerously for the worse, as well. Every time she felt a surge of joy remembering she was now Lumiel’s personal maid, a dark shadow would immediately remind her that she was securely tied to Roland Kestrel’s plot. The cunning man was clearly not acting out of genuine worry or simply ensuring Lumiel thrived as the new King.

Roland harbored twisted, treasonous plans against Lumiel, and he was undoubtedly going to use her as a pawn to execute them.

"Good... I am doing good," she finally replied, forcing a smile.

"Oh, that is great! By the way, I am actually going to start my squire’s training soon," he announced proudly.

Regina stopped dead in her tracks, staring at him. "You are what?"

"I know, I know," he laughed, clearly amused by her shocked expression. "But it is completely true. I start next month."

She openly gaped at him. Robert? With his heavily scuffed leather boots and permanent dirt packed beneath his fingernails?

"Rob... squires are exclusively the sons of sworn knights. Or high lords. Not—" She quickly caught herself.

Even from her limited perspective, she knew perfectly well that commoners were almost never accepted into such prestigious ranks.

"Not tanners’ boys?" He didn’t look offended. If anything, his grin widened. "That’s the thing. You know Viscount Crumber? My father’s been tanning leather for his household for fifteen years. And you know Mother’s the head laundress at the manor. They went to him, my parents did, and asked if he’d take me on as a page."

"A page?" Regina knew the term vaguely, boys who served in lords’ houses, learned manners, ran errands. "But that’s for..."

"For nobles, usually. I know." He shrugged. "The viscount said yes. Or rather his butler there. Said he’s known my folks long enough, and I’m... what did he call it? ’Sturdy and not stupid.’" He laughed. "High praise, that."

Regina advanced a bit as three people cleared in the line. "So you’ll be a page first? Like the little ones who fetch wine and learn to curtsey?"

"Not curtsey. Bowing." He nudged her. "But yes. I’ll live at the manor, learn how to behave at table, how to serve, how to handle horses.

"That is..." She searched for the right words, momentarily stunned. "That is good, Rob. Really good."

He seemed to catch something defensive in her tone, because his eager grin immediately softened. "Hey. Are you alright? You look completely exhausted."

"I am always tired," she replied shortly.

"Is it about your mother?"

Regina shot him a sharp glare at the probing question and quickly stepped forward in the line, putting distance between them.

Robert immediately looked regretful.

Regina despised being pitied, and Robert was constantly doing it. It was something she truly hated, and she could clearly see that familiar, patronizing look returning to his eyes right now.

He quietly apologized to her, and she merely shrugged it off. They stood in tense silence until it was finally her turn at the front. She positioned the large wooden bucket beneath the pipe, filling it to the brim with fresh, cold water before grasping the heavy handle.

"Here," he said, gently reaching for the handle. "Let me carry it the rest of the way for you. If I am going to be a proper knight, I have to practice my strength somehow, right?"

She almost instantly refused. Fetching the water was her daily task, her personal burden, and she prided herself on being an independent woman. But she could not afford to be late to serve Lumiel.

"Fine," she relented with a sigh, letting him take the heavy weight.

"So, Regina... I was actually thinking," Robert started, his eyes darting around nervously as they walked down the dirt path. "You know, because of my upcoming training, we probably will not be able to see each other very much. So... maybe we could do something together before I leave?"

He blurted the words out in a rush, but the moment he met Regina’s blue eyes, his cheeks flushed bright red and he quickly looked away.

Regina stared at him briefly, her expression unreadable, before turning her gaze back toward the road ahead.

"I am directly working for the King now, as his personal maid. I am going to be far too busy," she said.

Robert’s jaw dropped open.

"Y—You are working for His Majesty?!" He gasped loudly.

"Shh!" Regina hissed, frowning deeply and looking around in panic as a few nearby passersby briefly turned to stare at them.

Robert snapped his mouth shut immediately, his eyes wide.

"Really?" He whispered in disbelief.

Regina gave a single nod.

"And... are you going to be okay?" He asked, his tone suddenly shifting to genuine concern.

"What exactly do you mean by that?" She asked, her eyes narrowing suspiciously.

"Well... you should be careful around him, Regina," Robert started hesitantly, leaning in to whisper in a hushed tone. "My father secretly overheard Viscount Crumber speaking of His Majesty. He said King Lumiel is a upcoming lustful tyrant, just taking all the pretty young women directly to his bed and completely ignoring the actual needs of the Kingdom—hey!"

Before he could even finish his sentence, Regina furiously snatched the heavy water bucket right out of Robert’s hands, water sloshing over the wooden rim.

"I do not need your help," she snapped dryly. She stormed off down the street at a brisk pace without bothering to look back, leaving a completely dumbfounded Robert standing alone in the dirt.