The Tyrant’s Leash Is Held by a Maid

Liana walked out of the Prince’s bedroom at a brisk pace. With her head bowed politely, she moved calmly as the bedroom door closed.

A subtle lamp was lit in the corridor where the sunset was already set. The color of the sky, which had not yet completely darkened, was purple. A sweet breeze carried the scent of flowers and tickled Liana’s red cheeks. It was a chilly evening breeze, but she only felt cool on her hot face.

Liana’s steps, which had been gentle so far, began to speed up little by little. The gap between the sound of shoes hitting the marble floor narrowed more and more. Liana’s heart was pounding fiercely as if she had done a sprint.

‘It’s because I’m running, of course. My heart beats because I ran.’ Liana repeated as if to comfort herself, moving her legs harder.

“Kiiee!”

Running on her shaky legs, Liana eventually fell. She fell hard, hitting the marble floor with her elbows. After a moment of silence, she put her hand on the floor and took a deep breath. Luckily, the floor was as white as snow.

After a long period of intense workout, her heart was pounding in her chest. But the heart wasn’t just beating. Not knowing exactly where it was, the area around the pit of her stomach was tickling.

‘Why do you feel so bashful?’

Liana, who had been lying on the floor for a while, soon found the reason for her emotions. Had she been Deborah or Annie, she would have been very nervous.

Because he is the most honored man in this empire. Because a simple maid chose his clothes…

Liana slowly caught her breath. She had her head bowed down on her knees, and before long she lifted her eyelids.

“Uh…?”

Liana blinked her eyes at the copper-skinned hand that was held out in front of her. Her head went up along her hand.

A man in exotic attire exposing his arms was tall enough for her to lift her head to see his face completely. No matter how tall she was, Liana was crouching down and could only see the man’s strong arms and thick neck.

As she grabbed his hand but didn’t show any signs of getting up, the man grabbed her hand tightly and pulled her up.

Woah. As she rose from the floor assisted by the stranger’s hand, Liana’s face showed pure amazement. The copper-skinned man, as if well tanned by the sun, had silver hair and mysterious golden eyes that were uncommon in the Kadogan Empire.

If His Highness Prince Illyd was handsome like the sun in midsummer, the man before her felt like a full moon rising in the dark night.

Liana, who had been observing his face without realizing it, belatedly noticed her rudeness and lowered her head.

“Thank you for your help.”

“…Hurt.”

“Yes?”

The man’s voice was deep as if it emerged from a cave. However, unlike his serious voice, the words he spoke were unusual.

“…Sore?”

As Liana stared with her eyes wide open, the man paused for a moment before saying another word.  At his slurred pronunciation, Liana realized he was a foreigner who was unfamiliar with the Imperial language.

As she hesitated to find something to say, the man spat out a few words in his own language as if frustrated. Liana asked carefully about a language she had never heard of.

“Perhaps… Are you from the Kingdom of Etaila?”

Hearing the word ‘Etaila’ he nodded slowly, then he pointed to Liana’s knee.

“Sore.”

“Ah, you’re talking about the wound. It’s okay. I didn’t fall too badly…”

Rather than pain, she felt ashamed of the way she fell. Liana looked at the man with her expressionless face and smiled as if she was okay.

“Thank you for your concern.”

The man looked at Liana’s knee and spoke sullenly again.

“Care.”

“Care… umm, I don’t need treatment. It’s just a little bit peeled.”

‘If I had known this would happen, I would have asked Phoebe to teach me some simple words.’ Liana waved her hand in belated regret.

The man spoke a new word with a blunt expression on his face.

“My room.”

“…Would you like to treat me in your room? No. Thank you, but I will just accept your kindness.”

Even if she was seriously injured, she had no intention of receiving treatment in the room of a man she just met for the first time. In addition, she had already been delayed too much while choosing Prince Illyd’s clothes.

Liana opened her lips as she recalled the return path the court ladies had given her.

“I’m sorry, but I have to go to my Lady now. Thank you for your help today. Then, be careful on your way home.”

Liana, who greeted him politely, hurriedly turned her back thinking about her master waiting for her.

However, she couldn’t take a single step. Because the man grabbed the sleeve of her dress with a timid but firm hand.

Caught in the man’s hand, she turned her body again. The man had a somewhat grumpy face.

“My room.”

“…No, I’m not going.”

Liana’s expression hardened a little at the repeated rude request to go to his room. She pushed the hand of the man who grabbed her sleeve.

“In the culture of the Etaila Kingdom it may not be a big deal for women to go to a man’s room they see for the first time, but in the Empire, it is a big deal, so I won’t go.”

“I do not know. My room.”

The man grabbed Liana’s sleeve again. Liana’s brow furrowed at his continued rude attitude.

“If you don’t know, learn now.”

“I do not know.”

“This is Kadogan, not Etaila. When you come to the Empire, you have to learn the culture of the Empire.”

Seeing her stern expression, the man timidly let go of the sleeve he was holding. Nevertheless, the man murmured again, as if not giving up on the invitation to the room.

“…I do not know.”

“That’s none of my business. I’ll be on my way.”

Liana turned with a determined expression and gesture. 

‘Seriously, what’s the point of being that handsome? They all think the same!’

Liana walked fast while punching her chest from frustration.

“My room, I don’t know…”

The man looking at Liana’s back walking away muttered sadly in his poor Imperial language.

However, the woman he asked to show him the way to his room had already vanished over the stairs, huffing.

*    *    *

Sitting on a bench in the backyard of the servants’ dining room, Deborah wore a slightly gloomy expression.

“How was yesterday?”

“Well… The Prince seemed to have a great interest in Miss Natasha.”

Liana continued speaking while eating very small pieces of a madeleine.

“Yesterday, he asked me to choose clothes that she would like. I guess he really wanted to look good for Miss Natasha.”

“Clothes? You?” Deborah, who had been depressed, raised her head.

“Really? How? Did His Highness call you directly? Did he ask you to pick his clothes?”

Deborah, who was talking with an excited face as if she had never been depressed, suddenly looked around and lowered her voice.

“So, did you select his clothes personally?”

Deborah grew closer and whispered, her eyes were sparkling.

“Okay. How was it? The other ladies don’t hang out for nothing, right?”

[tl-n: she’s asking about Illyd’s body lol]

“Wh- what nonsense!”

At the inappropriate question, Liana shook her head startled.

“Of course, as a servant, I changed his clothes! I just did it. He didn’t call me in the first place, I was lost and met him while I was wandering.”

Liana told the whole story and sighed as she saw the madeleine, which was brought from the commercial district.

“That’s why I chose clothes for him. I don’t know what you’re thinking, but it didn’t happen. And he didn’t even wear the clothes I selected for him.”

She quietly added, recalling Illyd wearing colorful clothes and not what she had chosen.

“I think the clothes I chose weren’t very good…”

“You’re a very picky person. Didn’t Miss scold you for being late then?”

“Fortunately, I didn’t get scolded because Miss Natasha was tired and took a bath. By the time I returned, it was time to arrange her hair.”

“That’s a relief.”

Soon after, Deborah lost interest in the story and popped the last piece of madeleine in her mouth. After drinking milk, she let out a small sigh.

“It’s a shame. I also wanted to visit the Imperial Palace’s flower garden.”

Liana rolled her eyes at Deborah’s lifeless utterance. As she looked at her friend who had tied back her dark-navy-blue hair, she clumsily spoke words of comfort.

“You can go next time. Looking at the eyes of His Highness the Prince, I’m sure he will invite Miss Natasha again.”

“Mm… I hope so…”

As she lowered her head and fiddled with her teacup, Deborah revealed her true feelings.

“Liana. Actually, I’m ashamed.”

Lunchtime in the middle of Spring was warm. They were in a remote dining room dedicated to servants in the Count’s residence, but sunlight fell evenly, ignoring status.

“I… I was punched in front of all the other maids. Honestly, I’m ashamed, my pride is hurt, and I’m upset.”

In the sunlight shining in the yard where the bench was placed, Deborah murmured with her drooping shoulders. Her voice did not match her usual lively appearance. She had been beaten up by Angelica yesterday, and her cheeks were still swollen.

It must have been quite traumatic for her to be hit in the face and kneel in front of her friends.  Deborah’s eyes were as swollen as her cheeks, and she muttered as she picked at her cuticles.

“I was wrong, but was it right that much? I, who got down on her knees there, feel truly ashamed of myself. To be honest, I didn’t have to kneel, but I didn’t want to be fired.”

Deborah sniffed. The sunlight that fell equally on all people was stroking Deborah’s red cheeks and comforting her. Liana also wrapped her arms around the shoulder of her sulking friend.

“Everything that involves money is dirty. But I still think you’re really cool.”

“Are you teasing me now?”

Deborah frowned, pouting her lips and glared at Liana. Wiping her friend’s eyes, Liana let out a small giggle.

“Why? It was cool. If it were me, I wouldn’t be able to say something like that because it would hurt my pride.”

Liana continued to speak while looking at the sturdy wildflowers on the dirt floor.

“If it were me, I would pretend to be okay until the end. It’s too painful to admit that my pride was hurt. So I would have just pretended to be okay from the start. Pretending that nothing hurt my pride in the first place, just like that.”

The wildflowers that bloomed in the remote yard were small and boring, unlike the flowers in the garden that the gardener carefully raised.  However, the unique health of the flowers drew attention alone.

“But you honestly admit it. ‘It hurts my pride. I felt humiliated.’ How great is that?”

The rustic flowers fluttered their petals and boasted of themselves. Liana was proud of the appearance, so she tapped the petals with her toes.

“How great is it to be honest with yourself? You may be ashamed of yourself, but I’m not ashamed of you at all.”

“Liana…”

Deborah dug into Liana’s arms, making a sound like a puppy crying. What Liana said to her wasn’t a lie. She was genuinely proud of Deborah.

Most people did not face their wounds. They often fled from or hid them deeply and pretended to be none the worse. Liana was one of those people and truly envied Deborah’s candid and healthy attitude.

In fact, she was even ashamed of herself as she was yesterday. Liana was also ashamed of her actions the day before. Her friend was slapped in the face and she acted calculating every move. All the right things she said weren’t for the sake of the friend she thought of as family, but for other reasons.

“Everything that involves money is dirty,” Liana said those words for herself, too. However, unlike Deborah, Liana wasn’t honest.

She calmly patted her friend’s shoulder.

Gently patting Deborah’s shoulder, Liana’s forehead wrinkled. Grasping the situation, she calmly whispered into her friend’s ear.

“Hey, Deborah.”

“What?”

“Don’t blow your nose on my clothes.”