The Evil Empress Adores Me-Chapter 1

"Charles, are you still not done?!"

At the sharp question coming from outside, I, who had been crawling inside the fireplace, froze my hands in the middle of cleaning.

"Th-that... um..."

"Honestly, why are you so slow?!"

At the harsh scolding, I instinctively hunched my shoulders.

"How can you not even clean one fireplace properly? You're absolutely useless!"

"Ah, I understand! I'll do it quickly!"

I held back my unjust feelings and scraped the dust inside the fireplace.

At least it was spring now, not winter, so there wasn’t much use for the fireplace. I was thankful for that.

Had winter passed without cleaning the entire palace’s fireplaces, I might have had to crawl into the chimneys and clean them myself.

"...Well, trying to think positively about it..."

But still, the amount of dust inside the fireplace wasn’t something to overlook!

After struggling with the dust for a while, I finally let out a harsh cough.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

The moment the sound of my coughing reached outside, an angry yell followed immediately.

"Stop whining, you have to earn your keep somehow!"

...That’s just low.

Becky, who’s also a trainee maid like me, why does she naturally assign all the work to me?

I stifled the cough that threatened to burst out and continued to move my hands quickly.

But with a sense of injustice, my nose kept stinging.

"Honestly, cleaning the fireplace... I shouldn't even have to do this!"

In the palace, there were professional cleaners hired specifically to clean the fireplaces and chimneys.

Not only was it dirty, but it was also pretty dangerous.

That meant, by making me clean it, Becky was just being petty.

Sure, in the past, children with small frames were often assigned chimney cleaning...

But come on, what era are we in?! Why am I being sent into the fireplace like this?!

"...Ugh."

With my heart full of resentment, something in the back of my throat kept rising up.

‘I can’t cry, if I cry here, Becky will make even more trouble for me.’

I blinked quickly, fighting back the tears that were about to well up.

I couldn’t afford to be disliked by the people around me in my current position.

‘The other trainee maids... they’re already looking at me with disdain just because I’m a maid.’

If I thought everyone would be kind to me just because I was young...

That would be a very naive way of thinking.

The palace, after all, is a world of survival of the fittest.

Of course, the atmosphere of a palace depends on the temperament of its owner.

But at least the training hall I was in had no room for leisure.

Besides, younger maids can’t do as much work as the older maids.

The physical strength is just different.

That meant, I was inevitably going to become the public enemy of the training hall.

You know what I mean, right?

The thing where they sacrifice one person to maintain the harmony of everyone else.

I was the one who was being "hated by all."

‘...So, I have to try harder.’

I steeled myself and resumed cleaning the fireplace.

Hours passed, and finally, I managed to finish cleaning and crawled out.

Becky was standing with her arms crossed, looking down at me from the side.

"So, do you think you can become a proper maid like this?"

"......"

"Why aren’t you answering? Is what I’m saying nonsense?"

Becky scolded me fiercely.

I hastily lowered my head, barely avoiding her sharp gaze.

"Ah, no... that’s not it..."

"If it’s not that, then what is it?"

"...I... I’ll do my best."

After hearing my meek reply, Becky tilted the corners of her lips upward.

It was a clear smirk.

"Goodness, Charles. You still can’t speak properly?"

"......"

"Even if you’re a little behind, you’re five years old now, yet still talking like that... tsk tsk."

Becky clicked her tongue like she was trying to make a point.

What does it matter if someone speaks with a lisp?

Do you think I want to talk like this?

I’m stressed too!

...I wanted to argue, but I suppressed my feelings.

"Well, I used to think you didn’t even move your lips, I thought you were mute..."

Becky, looking me over from head to toe, covered in soot and dust, continued with a mocking voice.

"I guess it’s something that you’re even talking at all."

"......"

"Anyway, it’s not like keeping a late-blooming child like you as a trainee maid is a loss for the palace, right?"

With that, Becky giggled in a way that made sure I heard.

"Anyway, go wash up."

Becky looked at me with a disgusted expression and added,

"You’re so dirty, talking to you feels like I’m getting dirty too."

With that, she spun on her heel and walked away.

...Excuse me?

I got this dirty because you made me clean the chimney, Becky!

Instead of shouting that, I lowered my head toward Becky’s retreating back with dignity.

Well, I could tolerate Becky being mean to me today.

Because today was...

‘The day I get to meet Rose Unni!’

Rose Unni.

The moment I thought of her name, I felt my heart fill with joy.

Once I confirmed Becky was gone, I dashed straight to the bathroom.

Though my face was streaked with soot and dust, I couldn’t hide the bright smile that appeared as I looked into the mirror.

‘I can’t show Rose Unni my dirty self...’

I carefully washed my face and shook out my maid uniform, removing any dust.

I wanted to see Rose Unni as soon as possible.

The place where Rose Unni and I had arranged to meet was a secluded corner of the palace, not easily visible to others.

It was our secret spot that only Rose Unni and I knew!

Actually, because of the nature of the palace, there were always people everywhere.

But the fact that such a quiet place still existed was incredibly fortunate.

As I stepped into the garden of the secluded palace, I couldn’t help but smile widely.

‘Ah, it’s Rose Unni.’

In the distance, I saw Rose Unni standing, her back to me.

The spring breeze softly blew, and her long red hair gently fluttered to her waist.

I silently moved closer, trying not to make any sound.

It seemed like she hadn’t noticed my arrival yet, and I thought I might surprise her...

"Charles?"

"Ugh."

I let out a breath, startled.

The moment I took a step, Rose Unni turned around and met my eyes.

"How did you know?"

"How could I not recognize my own Charles coming? There’s no way I wouldn’t notice."

Saying that, she smiled warmly.

Her deep green eyes, shining like a summer forest, curved beautifully.

"Watching Charles tiptoe over was just too cute."

Her kind voice made something in the depths of my heart flutter.

Ah, I couldn’t take it.

I rushed over and burrowed myself into her embrace.

"Goodness, Charles. Be careful or you’ll fall!"

Rose Unni, startled, warned me.

But despite that, her hands gently stroked my back.

The tenderness of her touch almost made me shed tears.

Sigh, I’m so happy.

Rose Unni’s therapy is the best!

After a while, Rose Unni carefully set me down on the ground.

She bent down to my level, her eyes filled with concern.

"Be careful, Charles."

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"Mm?"

"What if you fall and hurt your knee? It would hurt, you know."

"Well, but Rose Unni’s here... if I fall, won’t you catch me?"

At those words, Rose Unni’s cheeks twitched.

Ah, that expression! She’s about to hug me tightly!

"Ugh, Charles! How can you be so cute!!"

My prediction was right.

She hugged me so tightly I could barely breathe, and only after I was gasping for air did she let me go.

She looked at me with eyes full of love.

"Of course, if Charles falls, I’ll catch you."

"Mm, then..."

"Still, if Charles gets hurt, my heart would hurt too."

She spoke with teary eyes.

...Sigh, how could I resist those eyes?

"I understand, I’ll be more careful."

I nodded obediently.

Only then did her expression brighten.

She took my hand.

"Come on, Charles."

We sat down in the shade beneath the thickly blooming red vine roses.

After spreading a handkerchief on the ground, Rose Unni made me sit first before joining me.

She looked down at me and said with «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» a hint of surprise,

"It feels like we haven’t seen each other in a while, doesn’t it?"

I nodded enthusiastically and, squirming, pressed my body against hers.

"Wow, our little lady is being so clingy today."

Rose Unni, pulling me into a tight embrace, playfully scolded me.

But Rose Unni, even I need my time to recharge.

It’s been almost three days since I last saw her, so if I don’t make the most of it now, when will I get to enjoy Rose Unni again?

"Unni... I missed you so much."

"Really? Just how much did you miss me?"

"Mm... like the sky and the earth?"

I giggled, and Rose Unni burst into a laugh.