Silver opened her eyes in an unfamiliar room. She was lying on a cloud-like mattress, a comfort she never felt before. Above her was an intricate canopy with a sheer, almost blinding fabric draping over it. She was surrounded with things she only saw in the movie. Her confused gaze wandered across the room a mix of amazement in her face.
It was clearly not her shoe box apartment. Her apartment could hardly fit a single functioning adult, that space was hardly enough for her to sleep and bath. But the room she woke up in was filled with intricate design. The gold and royal blue accents of the furnitures, the chandelier shining despite it not being lit. At the left side of the room was a veranda overseeing a massive garden. The room was massive, it was even bigger than the office she used to work in. It was unlike anything she could ever dream of.
"Your Highness! Quick, call the Imperial Doctor! Her Royal Highness just woke up!" a woman's panicked voice echoed across the room. Silver's gaze shifted at her as she hurriedly scurried into her direction. The room was full of stranger wearing the same clothes acting as if they knew her. But none of them was familiar to her.
A woman came at her, her hair was dull red, the corner of her mouth has a small wound from biting it out of habit. Silver tried to lift her head but the pain hindered her.
Based on the clothes the women was wearing, Silver assumed they were maids. They were wearing the same set of gown like the woman in the garden. She couldn't even afford a better place to live in, there's no way she can have a maid.
Not even a moment had passed the room was filled with even more strangers. Each doing their own thing, it was too confusing it's making her head hurt.
An old man carrying an old wooden box wearing a simple but intricately pale green fabric came at her and sat at the chair fixed next to her bed.
Silver's gaze fell at the tips of his finger busily fumbling through his journal, it was stained with brown. Probably from working with medicine for a long amount of time. An indicator of his years of experience. Silver wanted to ask a million of question right that moment. But instinct from her years of experience in an office setting is telling her keep quiet.
She decided to just quietly observe and assess the situation. Carefully.
In her previous life, she made it a habit to observe people's mannerism. It was an important skill especially in the office if you wanted to please the clients. It wasn't so useful in her situation though.
The old man, which Silver deduced to be the Imperial Doctor the woman was referring to earlier quietly set upped his wooden box and the variety of mini porcelain jar neatly arrange inside. He gestured her to give him her arm and she held it out forward out of instinct.
The old man held it as gently as possible, and with his two fingers he checked her pulse. It was the first time in her life that someone was taking care of her. It felt so strange. Even the nuns in her old orphanage tend to just ignore them.
Silver stared at the old man blankly. Trying her best to comprehend what was happening. But she still couldn't come up with a possible explanation. She was as her wits end.
"Your Highness, you're already aware that you have a weak constitution, so I hope starting today you stop doing things that could put you into stressful situations," the old man advised before opening his box.
Her brain stopped working for a second. She was in fact, not aware of her weak constitution. She used to be as healthy as a horse.
The old man took out a small bottle made of porcelain. Inside it was a red pill that he held out to her. The woman near her readily holding a glass of water. Silver stared at the small red pill in her palm reluctant to take it. She didn't know if it was safe but the anticipating stares pressured her take the pill, so she hurriedly threw it inside her mouth and swallowed it. God forbid if it was poisoned.
The old man closed his wooden box and stood up.
"Then, I will be leaving, Your Majesty. I have to report about your situation to the Emperor," he excused himself, carrying the same wooden box as one of the woman with a green hair escorted him out. Emperor? Did her country become a monarchy?
Silver with all her might waved her hand at the woman with the red hair that was standing timidly next to her bed, she gestured her to come closer. The woman leaned in a little at her.
Doing nothing won't do her anything so she decided to just ask for it. No matter how much she thinks about it all she come up was a million more questions. She's not always the sharpest tool in the shed.
"What's your name and what is happening here?" she asked in a tight whisper.
The woman look at her confused but answered anyway.
"We are your personal attendants, Your Majesty. I am Mila, I'm in charge of delivering your meals. That was Natasha—" she pointed at the woman with green hair who escorted the doctor out and had just returned.
"She's the one attending to your personal needs, Your Majesty…" she explained. She bopped her head as if something is finally making sense but it's not. She doesn't even know someone named Mila, the heck even is Natasha? And attending to her needs, is she desperate enough to have a better life she started making up things in her dream?
"After you lost consciousness earlier the whole palace was thrown in panic. This is your first time losing consciousness this month so…" she added reluctant to continue, her eyes carefully observing Silver's reaction as if treading into thin line.
Silver gestured her to continue.
"U-uhmm…" she stuttered.
"Nevermind." she stopped her. She doesn't look lik she was willing to continue anyway.
Silver kept trying to piece the situation together using all the new information she gathered. She doesn't want to act impulsively since she has no idea where she was. Everyone felt like they're role playing a skit in a drama.
Then she decided. Since Natasha is the one attending to her personal needs it felt like she was the safest option to be answering all her questions.
"Uhmmm… will all of you please leave except Natasha?" she asked politely. All the women inside the room exchanged confused glanced. They couldn't understand why the Princess was using such a polite tone. Mila, the woman she was talking to took up the honor to answer her.
"Your Majesty, you don't have to say please—we are here to serve you. Then we excuse ourselves…" Mila replied before bowing and leaving with all the other maids except Natasha.
"Is there something wrong Your Majesty?"
Silver threw herself out of the bed but she was caught off guard by the height of it that she almost fell face flat on the ground. Fortunately, Natasha's quick reflexes caught and supported her to regain her balance.
"Uhmm… Natasha? Can I ask you a question?" Silver asked timidly.
"You can ask anything, Your Majesty," she answered quickly.
"Where am I?"
Natasha, who was helping her back to her bed, paused for a second. She turned to look at her with a puzzled look.
"You are now in your room at the Eastern Chamber, Your Majesty, at the Spring Mansion," she replied before flashing Silver a gentle smile. She fixed the blanket over her gently.
But her answer did nothing but made her even more confused. One answer birthed ten more. Eastern Chamber? Spring Mansion?
"Why do you call me Your Majesty then?"
"Because you are the Crown Princess, Your Majesty. That is the title you deserve." despite the weird question, Natasha didn't probe and answered quickly.
Crown Princess? Silver cannot help but internally chuckle. It just felt ludicrous to her. She used to be broke beyond compare but now she was a princess? Impossible.
What kind of joke was she in?
Silver tried to open her mouth, closed it, then opened it again. She was hesitant at first but she finally got the courage to ask what she'd been wanting to ask since she woke up.
"Who am I?"
Natasha shot her a confused look but decided to pass it as the princess's way of testing her. After all, the nobles words are the law.
"You are the only daughter of the Emperor Vanhaussen Archaumbault, Hiraya Archaumbault, the Crown Princess of the Archaum Empire, Your Majesty." she proudly answered.
Silver's eyes grew wide as soon as she heard the name. All kinds of strange memories flashed in her mind. She winced at the gushing pain in her head , a pain as if she was struck directly by a thunder, a sharp and throbbing pain.
She heard strange voices and saw images she'd never seen or experience before. She grabbed her head to try and ease the pain but nothing is helping.
Stop. Stop! It's painful. During that moment the pain became unbearable she badly wanted to cry.
"Your Majesty! Are you alright!?" Natasha's voiced was laced with panic.
Archaum Empire. Hiraya Archaumbault. Only daughter. Crown Princess. Everything was familiar to her. She tried to remember where she knew that name until it finally clicked.
It was the protagonist of the novel she read before in her previous life , titled The Doll of the Archaum Empire. She internally cursed, gripping the mattress as hard as she could.
It was tragic story of Hiraya Archaumbault. A protagonist who was destined to die at a very young age.
She was so fucked.