Temporary Contract (1)

As Padrentia was drinking alone, Supanita was on her way back from delivering a gift from the Chrysanthemum Palace to the Rose Palace. The Court Lady Amitale gave a simple instruction to send a gift to the Rose Palace in the name of the Chrysanthemum Palace, but Padrentia had entrusted her with a sensitive and dangerous task.

Supanita sent the court ladies and maids who had come with her under the pretext of seeing the Rose Palace a little more, and then turned her steps aside for a moment, pretending to be nonchalant. It wasn’t deep inside the Rose Palace.

‘I wonder if the Princess-nim will give me a proper reward.’

Supanita felt uneasy, as if she were trying to scratch fur from a turtle’s shell. She understood why Padrentia had given her the order, but she didn’t agree with it. She was only following orders because she couldn’t argue with her master’s will as a mere tool.

The royals and high-ranking nobles were deeply concerned that if a part of their body fell into the hands of another, it could be used as material for magical curses. They couldn’t even leave a single drop of blood alone. So, it was customary to burn their hair and nails one by one and bury them in the ground or let them flow into the water.

While going in and out of the Rose Palace to prepare for the health examination, she was able to roughly hear the location where Mirabilis’s hair and dust from cleaning her Main Chamber were burned and buried. It was thanks to a light-mouthed person among the Rose Palace maids who had blurted it out. Although she had reported the story to Padrentia, both Supanita and Padrentia didn’t pay attention to it, thinking it was unnecessary information. But when it was decided that Mirabilis would be ennobled, the Princess-nim belatedly gave the order.

‘Am I a court lady or Changwei…’

Supanita grumbled inwardly. Originally, a court lady shouldn’t harbor disloyal thoughts towards her master, but doing this kind of work inevitably led to complaints. No matter how much it was an order from the master she served, being a mere pawn mobilized in the palace’s schemes felt really ominous.

She didn’t know how much Padrentia would protect her if things went wrong. But what would happen if she tried to back out here? She was afraid of how she would be dealt with, having learned something that shouldn’t be revealed. Like raw meat in a tiger’s mouth, she had no choice but to follow to the end.

The autumn sunlight flowed over transparently, but it was less warm than in spring. When the wind blew, the faint smell of grass and damp soil that was thickly spread between the trees was carried along. The pungent smell of sap flowing from the trees also slipped in and floated around. Although it wasn’t a garden, this place was also a part of the Rose Palace’s territory, and the soil, grass, and trees were intertwined, creating a strange atmosphere. The wild fragrance rose like a mist and melted into the wind.

The beautiful scenery of the Rose Palace looked like a deep pond to Supanita, the depth of which could not be measured. It was a dangerous place where she could fall into the deep water and sink to the bottom if she took even one wrong step. Unable to bear the anxiousness, she unconsciously bit her nails. She hurriedly turned her head in all directions, searching for her target.

The eastern edge of the large oak tree outside the garden, a place where the Rose Palace maids often dug up the ground, and where grass didn’t grow properly.

She couldn’t ask someone else to do this kind of work. If she had to do something that couldn’t be said out loud like this, the fewer people who knew the secret, the better. If Padrentia had ordered Supanita, he had to do it himself. Moreover, the only opportunity was during the time when the number of Rose Palace people was greatly reduced, during Mirabilis’s investiture ceremony.

Wandering around the oak trees, she noticed a place with blackish marks left by burning. Considering the direction of the sunlight, the marks were on the east side of the tree. Supanita put her backpack down on the ground and rummaged around for a trowel. From now on, it would be difficult to even deny it if she was caught by the Rose Palace people. Cold sweat flowed sticky from her forehead, and she had to wipe it with her sleeve.

She gathered her skirt and knelt down, placing one hand on the ground. A few ants with bulging bellies were carrying pieces of insects in their mouths, scurrying along and climbing onto her hand. Supanita nervously shook her hand to get rid of the black insects. Black soot stained her hand, but she carefully dug and stirred the ground with the end of the trowel in her other hand. Gray ash mixed with clods of soil came out from the end of the shovel.

Like a roe deer wary of predators, Supanita focused all her nerves on her ears as she rummaged through the soil. Imagining the future where this scene would be caught by the Rose Palace people, cold sweat ran down the back of the Chrysanthemum Palace maid. Her rough pulse throbbed rapidly, and the sound of her heartbeat came closer and louder. It felt like her heart, which would beat for a lifetime, was beating all at once in this place.

Among the gray ashes that appeared in the soil, a strand of golden hair with a melted and crushed end caught her eye. She swallowed hard and licked her dry lips with her tongue. She hurriedly put the hair in her sleeve. She diligently stomped on the dug-up ground to pretend that nothing had happened, packed her backpack, and quickly left the place.

****************

Mirabilis toured the capital and returned to the Rose Palace to receive congratulations, but the real celebration was scheduled for the next day. After dark, Serina headed to Mirabilis’s Main Chamber. When she opened the door and quietly entered, Mirabilis, who was sitting in a chair, turned her head to look at her opponent, then stood up with a smile full of her face.

“Older Sister-nim!”

Serina was momentarily taken aback. She hadn’t even taken out the Keyword to become her younger sister, but Mirabilis was already ‘younger sister’. But Mirabilis, completely unaware of Serina’s embarrassment, hugged her tightly and rubbed her cheek against hers.

“Ah, Older Sister-nim, my Older Sister-nim.”

Mirabilis’s voice trembled like ripples as she tried to contain her happy feelings. Serina stroked her younger sister’s hair, enjoying the feel of her soft and glossy hair. Then, she suddenly opened her mouth and asked.

“Since when have you been the real you?”

The Princess tilted her head with a puzzled look.

“Yes? Since the sun went down and I thought you would come here, Older Sister-nim.”

The mind was not a rock. Even if hypnosis gave suggestions to the mind, it could change differently depending on how the receiver interpreted it. Serina keenly felt the need to continuously check even if she gave suggestions through hypnosis. She had never expected that she would be ‘younger sister’ without any suggestion.

“Take off your clothes and show me your naked body.”

“Yes!”

Mirabilis smiled and happily took off her clothes. As her soft skin was revealed before her eyes, Serina sat in the chair that Mirabilis had been sitting in, tapped her knees, and said in an arrogant tone.

“Sit on my lap.”

Mirabilis sat naked on Serina’s lap. As her light and soft body leaned against Serina’s upper body, the court lady reached out and grabbed the Princess’s chest. As she kneaded the small breasts that fit perfectly in her fist, Mirabilis couldn’t help but be happy.

“Regina Lecta.”

As soon as she took out the Keyword at that moment, Mirabilis was hit with hypnosis head-on. Her focus was lost and her face became blank, but Serina couldn’t see her because she was sitting behind Mirabilis. She put her hand on Mirabilis’s chest and slowly caressed it, then put her mouth to her ear and whispered.

“Are you feeling good now?”

“Yes… Older Sister-nim…”

Mirabilis smiled faintly. Even if she couldn’t see her face, she could guess her happy and joyful feelings just from her voice. Serina put her hands not only on her chest but also on her stomach and legs.

“What is it that I’m touching like this now?”

“I like it…”

Serina had been constantly 고민[gomin – contemplating] about the suggestion she was about to put in now, even before coming to Mirabilis’s Main Chamber. Should she do it, would it be okay to do it.

Just the fact that she had used hypnotic magic on Mirabilis so far would be a serious crime if it was discovered. But the suggestion she was about to put in now was not at that level. Of course, her life was precious. But if it was just a matter of Serina’s life or death, she would have 고민[gomin – contemplated] less.

The Princess-nim who thinks of me as a friend, the lovely younger sister who treats me with kindness and affection. After blackening and tightly binding all the good feelings that the two personalities reveal because of my desires, can I still be confident? When she bit her lower lip hard enough to draw blood, the taste of a bitter body fluid swirled in her mouth.

It’s not the right thing to do. No, it’s an evil act.

Knowing that, a dark red desire flowed out like a spring. Her heart was filled with the feeling of wanting to possess and dominate everything about Mirabilis, even his body and soul. She wanted to stain every piece of flesh and every handful of the soul’s residue with Serina’s blood and carve her name on it.

Mine, my own Mirabilis that I can’t give to anyone.

Originally, it was something that could only be done in imagination. But now Serina actually had the power to interfere with Mirabilis’s mind, and the Princess had opened the door of her emotions wide open to him with overflowing trust and affection. If Serina wanted to, she could do whatever she wanted.

Pus cannot become flesh.

Once you set out on a path, you cannot turn back.

The fear that she could not turn back once she chose this path, and the wariness that she might regret this decision, bound Serina’s heart until the very end. But when she looked at Mirabilis’s face, which was full of smiles towards him, a dark red possessiveness suddenly raised its head, suppressing all other emotions.