Chapter – 01
The Princess Who Went to the Eastern Country (1)
They said the winters in that country were very cold.
Twelve-year-old Ana Rosa sat quietly, staring blankly as the maids hurried around her room, packing her luggage. They had already been packing for a whole week.
The head maid of her mother had been going in and out of Ana Rosa’s room every day, leading the work of filling the young bride’s suitcases.
They asked her what she wanted to take with her. But in truth, there were only a few things she was allowed to bring. She could not take the little dog that always slept beside her. She could not take the parrot she had raised with care.
She even had to leave behind the holy book she read every night when she prayed. Since she was to be crowned Empress of Munje Kingdom, it was said to be disrespectful to bring the scriptures of this land there.
Only then did Ana Rosa understand that an absolute truth in one land could become something forbidden in another.
“Your Highness, shall I bring you some tea?”
Ana Rosa turned her head and looked at the maid. This maid had become hers only two days ago. She would travel with her to the great empire of the East.
The playmates who once stayed by her side had already returned home. The maids who used to care for her belonged to her mother and could not go with her.
She had to take her own maid, but a young girl like her could not choose one herself. In the end, her mother chose for her. That woman was standing before her now.
“Blanca.”
Blanca La Repo. She had heard she was the daughter of the Repo family. She was of average height, a little plump compared to the other maids.
Her reddish-brown hair was neatly tied up and covered with a net. Her blouse, buttoned up to the neck, had no lace and no brooch. Her skirt had no wrinkles at all. The only noticeable thing was that it rose almost to her calves.
Ana Rosa had never seen a woman wear such a short skirt before. When she first met Blanca, she could not take her eyes off her shoes. It was even more surprising because Blanca wore boots, not heels.
“Do you think the tea we drink here exists in Mun Country too?”
Blanca answered honestly, “I am sorry, but I do not know.”
That was one of the strange things about Blanca. Unlike the other maids, she did not know everything. Because of that, Ana Rosa could trust her.
Though she was only twelve, Ana Rosa knew that maids could not possibly have answers to everything. Yet they always answered her without hesitation. They probably pretended to know, even when they did not.
Yes, the maids did not know many things.
When Ana Rosa said she did not want to go to Mun Country, they hugged her gently.
But they also said, “Her Majesty the Queen is so heartbroken to send Your Highness far away that she forgets to eat and sleep every day.”
They spoke sweet words to comfort her, even though they did not truly know. That felt irresponsible.
Suddenly, Ana Rosa’s cheek began to ache. She raised her right hand and covered her left cheek. It throbbed faintly. The mark from when her mother struck her—after she begged not to be sent away—was no longer visible. But sometimes she still felt the pain.
Tomorrow, she would leave for Munje Kingdom. They said it would take one month by ship. She would board an ironclad warship at the port. The thought frightened her. The only boats she had ever ridden were small pleasure boats. A warship—would she be safe?
“Blanca. Will the ‘New Era’ be safe?”
Blanca La Repo looked down at the young princess with confusion. “New Era”? That was not a word a princess should speak lightly. A new era? The king, her father, was still alive and strong.
Then the princess, holding the teacup with both hands, spoke her worry in a small voice.
“What if the steam engine explodes?”
Only then did Blanca realize that “New Era” was the name of the warship.
Ah.
Blanca swallowed a sigh. What could she possibly say?
I was dragged out of the temple only a week ago, Your Highness. I have never even ridden a train, let alone a ship. I had already devoted myself to God, but my violent father threatened to ruin the temple if I did not serve as a maid. So I had no choice but to come…
She could not say that.
This princess was already too unhappy.
She had heard that the Emperor of Munje Kingdom was a man who loved women too much.
That country had a concubine system. Unlike here, where even touching two or three women would cause serious responsibility, the emperor of Munje Kingdom had hundreds of concubines, thousands of palace maids—and in truth, all the women of the empire were his. Even those he did not take were still his, because he had the right to take them.
A man who had lived sixty-nine years.
And a twelve-year-old girl was being sent to marry him.
She had heard the political reasons. But no matter how people explained it, to Blanca this marriage was nothing more and nothing less than selling a young girl to a perverted old man.
“I heard it is an excellent ship,” Blanca said at last. “It took two years to build, and many people gathered for its launching ceremony.”
A monk who visited the temple had proudly described the ceremony. The priestesses had listened with shining eyes.
High-ranking nobles sat on a grand stage and applauded. When night fell, fireworks decorated the dark sky. Innkeepers and tavern owners called out to customers. Street vendors sold their goods. People talked, drank, and danced. Looking at the ship—like a giant wall—they believed in a bright future. They rejoiced.
And that magnificent ship was about to carry the princess as if she were merchandise.
It did not deserve such cheers.
Even so, Blanca tried her best to calm the princess.
As she retold the story of the launching ceremony, Ana Rosa seemed to relax a little. Her swollen chest slowly settled. Only then did Blanca realize the princess had taken a deep breath earlier and had not been able to let it out.
“If I sail on a great ship, I will meet a great ruler. I will be fine.”
The princess said this while looking somewhere beyond Blanca. Following her gaze, Blanca saw the stacked suitcases. She could not say a word.
After a full month at sea, Ana Rosa looked much thinner and more tired than when she had left her homeland.
When the ship finally arrived at Yeongyeon, the capital of Mun Country, and anchored at the port, the maids who came with her worked hard to make her look beautiful.
As they tightened the corset around her thin waist, Blanca swallowed dryly several times. Twelve was not a very young age—but it was far too young to become the bride of a man nearly seventy.
The maids pulled her waist so tightly, trying to make her appear as a “woman” before him, that it looked almost cruel.
Ana Rosa’s eyes met Blanca’s. Her long hair covered half of her small face. The one visible eye trembled like a wrecked ship in a storm. Her emerald-colored eyes—like melted jewels of healing—were filled with despair.
And yet, she lifted her chin high, as if reminding herself that she was still a princess.
For a whole month, Blanca had struggled with one thought again and again.
Should she run away with Ana Rosa?
There was no way it could be God’s will to offer this child to a powerful, twisted old man. Perhaps God had sent her here to save the princess.
But just as she could not escape in the middle of the sea, she could not escape in Yeongyeon either. The young princess was never left alone for even a moment—until she stood before the emperor.
The imperial palace of Mun Country was very different from the royal palace of Ausis.
Of course, the Casas Palace of Ausis was enormous—over three thousand rooms, grand and overwhelming. When Blanca first saw it, she had been amazed.
But the imperial palace of Mun Country was not just a building.
It was a territory—an entire domain that held countless palaces within it.
“Why are all the palaces separated?” Blanca asked.
She thought it would be difficult to control such a place. But the interpreter answered in surprise.
“Noble persons cannot live together in one palace.”
“…Is that so? Then Her Highness the Princess also…”
“Yes. She will become the mistress of the Gungjeon—the Empress’s Palace.”
To be given a personal domain inside the imperial palace—it was a strange idea.
In Ausis, even the king could not have a palace entirely for himself. Of course, the palaces here might be small, but still…
Still? So what? If she is given a small palace of her own, does that mean it is acceptable for a twelve-year-old girl to be held by a seventy-year-old man?
