Chapter 7: Simple Test

"My Lady, is there something that's bothering you?" 

Ett is currently in her boudoir eating freshly picked grapes. Akan stands beside her, serving her food by mouth like a mother to her child. He kept saying, 'Your Ladyship,' no matter how she told him to refer to her as Your Grace, Empress Dowager, etc. 

"You quickly settled into the role of my new butler." 

Akan laughed. 

"An adviser, as well as a butler, isn't so bad, Your Ladyship. After all, we have few people living in this humble abode." 

Such humour, neh? Humble abode, hehe. 

"How's the preparation for the bouquet?" 

"Oh, it's been the talk of the town, Your Ladyship." 

"That's not what I want to hear first." 

Akan chuckled, "Well, His Majesty, your son pushed some of his duties to your former butler." 

Ett nodded. She expected as much that Guren would push the work of Butler Xiwen. 

Secretary? Sorry, these royal people don't do that kind of efficiency as they like doing it alone. The advisers and the butler will handle things they are too lazy to do. Officials? Well, the Adiand royals don't have any meetings or assemblies where they meet their subjects. The speaker and presenter would always be the adviser.

"The preparations have already been completed with Butler Xiwen's dedicated efforts. The invitations are still being written and have not been sent to the Upper Echelon families." 

"It would cause a little bit of…upsetting feelings for the lower classes, as this is the first after years of not holding a banquet in the palace." 

"Let them be." 

Guren announced it to have a specific noble class to attend, and she's too lazy to give suggestions as much as she wants to see the novel's FL, who is typically like any other protagonist born from a barony and an illegitimate child with a tragic Cinderella halo nah. No, never mind. Not now. 

"Then tell me something odd about the rumours." 

Akan leaned closer, "Your Ladyship, you see, there's a rumour circulating that it would be to look for a marriageable partner for His Majesty." 

Ett frowned. "That's not odd." 

"Oh, then that was my mistake. The other one is that His Majesty has accepted the request of another empire after the first banquet in years." 

"And what empire might that be?" 

"The Larak Empire. It was the first to be invited, and can they stay three days in our Empire." 

Ett raised a brow. Larak Empire? 

Indeed, Akan mentioned this before. 

"What is so unusual about it?" 

"They deemed it an honour to stay in the Adiand Empire for about three days since, in most of our records, no one, not even someone from the other Empire and the Seven Star Countries, could stay in this palace." 

What's this, a new Adianness world record that will re-record a new world record after some time? I'm confused.

"The second is the nobles contemplate if this is a move made by His Majesty to assess their usefulness. In doing so, it must be pretty massive." 

Ett muttered. 

"Indeed, Your Ladyship. But the Larak Empire seems to be more excited about being here with the second intention in their mind." 

"It seems I was too busy looking out for the nobles in our Empire." 

"Your Ladyship has a dire reason to do so." 

In the novel, before even going to the Adiand Empire, the Larak prince is killed near another Empire, and then he is blamed on that Empire. What was the name again? Anyway, it had never pointed traces to Adiand. Perhaps there was, but there was no clear evidence. More so, it is to say, the Adiand invited the Larak Empire. Why would Adiand make their move now?

 Wouldn't it be ridiculous to do so? 

They didn't wage war with one another, but one way or another, they became wary of each other. More so, it was a test to see what the reaction of the Larak Empire would be. Actually, this exaggeration doesn't need to be done. The standing of the Larak Empire was already known the moment they accepted the invitation. This Adiand royalties just want to go to the extreme, huh? 

Just a bit, "Delay their time coming here." 

"Should we kill their men or their horses as a warning? Don't worry, Your Ladyship, and there will be no evidence but enough thought for them to know what it means." 

Although Larak has some use, it doesn't seem that important… for the time being. 

"Just injure their soldiers, two-day delay." 

"Take excellent care, both the Larak prince and the commander."

Let's test it out. Injuring rather than killing, would the same perception by those who want us to wage war with the Larak Empire still have the same intention? 

If the plot remains the same, we can manoeuvre it. But if it's less of a reaction from the hidden enemies, then let's reevaluate. The important thing is an event had taken place rather than nothing.

"Understood, Your Ladyship and the Ostenian?" 

"Let them play." 

As usual. 

"Will do, Your Ladyship." 

Now that they're done with that part, she should go back to the library and study more about the Empire and other necessities she needs to know. External factors might arise because some were changed. Ett needs to learn and conceal herself as much as possible. 

The only catch was when Guren became the Emperor years ago, and no one even knew if the mother of the Emperor was still alive. Not once had Ett appeared in the light. She was constantly concealed, vigilantly monitoring and studying many things from her enclosure. 

Ett should call this her haven from now on. In the novel, the person destined to kill Ett is her son, but if she is not careful enough, it would be anyone from this palace. She's just Level 1 yet! 

There's still a long cough-way. 

"You may leave." 

"Then I'll excuse myself first, Your Ladyship." 

Akan kissed the back of her hand, smiling at her like an old fox, and closed the door. 

"…" 

As soon as Akan went outside, Ett returned to her bed feeling tired. She slumped on her bed, flailing her hands, yet accidentally pushed a block on the wall at the side just beside the edge of her headrest. 

Startled, her drowsy eyes opened in curiosity. Gradually, it slowly revealed a dim tunnel-like hallway. 

"Cool~." 

To think she had discovered something that didn't appear in the novel. A hidden passage is used as an escape route if Ett wants to go out.

If only she had found it out earlier, then escaping and coming back wouldn't have been a problem.

Hmp. From now on, she should be more specific about what to say to Eru, or else it will happen again. 

Getting a hood and her small pouch with money, the exit on her bedroom closed as she entered the tunnel. 

"Eh? What's this?" 

Ett quickly reached the enormous chest that only an adult woman could. Well, she could, but it'll tire her out to death. 

There were two chests. As Ett opened the first one, it was full of weapons. Instead of heavy blades and bows, there were light weapons. Most were daggers, whips, and slingshots; from the scratches and marks on the handles, most were used frequently. The second chest was more of a piece of clothing for disguise. 

"So that's it." 

It was not written in the story, but it exists. Indeed, you can't have one hidden passage only, and it's impossible that she didn't go out.

Then, why was she going out?

Ah, fudge, I don't know. If she went out undiscovered, was it to get information by herself? Is it because the Ett in the novel doesn't trust Akan's intel, so she orders him to go to another Empire to do it herself before he returns and the time she came to this book? 

"What a headache." 

Ett sighed, glancing at the black wig. Beside it was a cloak that covered her face entirely, a vial, and two pieces of scrolls. The first scroll was a map going to the House of Isotel. 

"Must have taken her great effort with this health of hers." 

In the novel, it was like an information guild, and the second one was… 

"I get it now." 

The vial was an eye drop to make your eye temporarily change its colour. It's not magic, but herbs and other plants are ground as one until they pound to dust and boil and are made repeatedly until they become liquid. The Ett in the novel was doing something on her own. It may also be the reason why she turned into a child. 

Maybe it's true, and perhaps it's not. 

Even so, it is a good invention in this kind of setting… 

Now that she is inside the novel, a strange event must have led to this. The story didn't have this kind of information, so she should do it alone. Secretly, if she was going out, it could also mean she was searching for someone to help her. 

"Is it the Earl of Valharam?" 

As soon as Ett dropped a little of the liquid in both her eyes, it spread not a moment after she screamed in a whisper. 

"Ah. Ah. It hurts."

My eyes…it burns!

Her eyes felt like they were on fire, something crawling in her eyes, slithering like tiny worms and snakes from the edges of her lashes, roaming her eyeballs as tears dropped from her cheeks.

A lump formed in her throat, and Ett quickly took out her handkerchief and vomited blood. This thing affected her mood. Was it always like this for Ett whenever she used this? Enduring this kind of eye-changing colour? Ett mourned, remembering the days she wore contact lenses. Ugh.

After about three minutes, the ordeal ended. Still, there were times she would sniff and cough lightly. Taking one of the spotlessly clean daggers and the lamp, she tries to see her eye colour through the knife's reflection. 

"Hazel." 

Well, that's not too bad. It was closer to her eye colour when she was on Earth. Her eyes are bloodshot as if she had taken drugs, but everything worked out well. Closing both chests, Ett stood up, grasping the two maps in her hand. 

Cough. 

"Alright, Ett, let's see your first unfinished business."