The 17th Princess Just Wants to Live

In the middle of the night, a tremendous piece of news arrived at the Opal Palace. It was the news that the 12th Prince would visit soon.

“The 12th Prince? Why? For what reason?”

“We’re done for. We’re all dead!”

“Ugh, I should have told my kids I loved them during my last vacation…”

The servants of the Opal Palace fell into chaos. Some were astonished, others incredulous, and some lost their sanity in fear. Among them, there were even those who started writing their wills while crying.

The chaos enveloping the Opal Palace was proof of Richard’s terrifying reputation and also a glimpse into the quality of the palace’s servants.

Palace servants were essentially the hands and feet of the royal family. They worked in the most private places and heard the most intimate stories.

So, a good servant must be dexterous and quick-witted, as well as loyal to his master.

But the servants of the Opal Palace possessed none of these virtues.

It was only natural.

To begin with, almost all of the ten or so servants of the Opal Palace were spies sent by other imperial family members.

They had no loyalty, and their abilities were equally lacking. If they were capable, why would they have entered the palace of a minor imperial family member like the 17th Princess?

In other words, even if they were killed by the 12th Prince’s sword in such a place, their wouldn’t care.

The servants of the Opal Palace, who lacked skills but knew their place, understood this well.

So, they eventually turned to Lucilia.

At least outwardly, she was their master, a small girl with a soft heart who would often grant unreasonable requests.

Compared to the 12th Prince, she had almost no power, but as a fellow imperial family, wasn’t she far better?

The servants, having reached this conclusion, knocked on Lucilia’s door.

Please protect us when we meet the twelfth prince.

But the servants couldn’t even utter those words.

When Lucilia heard the news that Richard was coming, she spoke with an unprecedentedly firm attitude.

“No. Tell him not to come.”

And then she slammed the door shut.

Shortly after, the sound of a lock being fastened was heard.

“… I have to write my will after all!”

Someone shouted in a tearful voice.

***

What was going on?

What on earth was going on!

I grabbed my head and rolled around on the bed.

Richard was coming here? Why? For what reason?!

I had no idea where things went wrong. Didn’t we end things well?

Did he think it was rude that I left unilaterally? Or did he still think I was an assassin?

Considering Richard from the original work, it could be an incredibly simple reason. Maybe he thought I was arrogant for running away with his jerky and was coming to kill me…

“Princess! Princess!”

The servants knocked on the locked door from outside.

“The 12th Prince has already left the Ruby Palace! Even if you tell him not to come, he won’t listen! You must prepare to greet the prince!”

The voice shouting at me sounded quite desperate. Not only in my memory but also in Lucilia’s, it was the first time the servants had clung to me like this.

But right now, I had my own problems to deal with, you people who weren’t even on my side!

Ignoring the servants’ clamoring, I thought about how to get through this crisis.

I didn’t know why he was coming, but Richard’s target was surely the , not .

What if he found out my true identity in this situation?

Richard was incredibly capricious. Besides, he didn’t like lies or underhanded schemes.

The moment he found out I was the princess; he might get furious and kill me for lying to him.

But what if I locked myself in my room?

Richard had already committed the rudeness of barging into my palace without permission. In this situation, he wouldn’t force his way into my room.

He might search the Opal Palace for the , but if she was not here, what could he do? Once he cooled down, he might just leave.

Alright, that was it. I clenched my fist with determination.

In the unlikely event that Richard, being crazier than I imagined, broke down my door and barged in…

I would just beg for forgiveness.

It was a weak and sad conclusion. I grabbed my head again and rolled around.

***

Richard entered the Opal Palace with a terrifying expression.

The servants of the Opal Palace looked at him with dying expressions, trying to read his mood. Richard scrutinized them with sharp eyes.

At first glance, it was clear they were terrible human beings. But none of them looked starving.

There was not a single person as scrawny as the child he had seen in the forest.

Richard’s face twisted.

“Where is the princess?”

When Richard asked, the complexion of the man standing in the front turned pale.

“T-The thing is, she’s not feeling well…”

“Not feeling well?”

As the man was about to collapse under Richard’s murderous aura, a middle-aged woman beside him spoke.

“She has taken medicine and is now asleep. We are very sorry, but she asked us to treat you well. We know it is extremely rude, but…”

Though she had started speaking calmly, she gradually began to babble under Richard’s gaze. Fortunately, Luke stepped in to help.

“I heard the 17th Princess has been weak since birth.”

“Indeed.”

A sneer escaped Richard’s lips.

“I came to ask something.”

“Y-Yes! Please, ask anything!”

The man who first answered bowed repeatedly. He seemed to be the chief steward of the Opal Palace.

“Is there a blonde maid working here?”

“Yes?”

He unintentionally asked back, and then swallowed his breath under Richard’s fierce gaze.

“Y-Yes! There are two!”

He shouted.

“Who is younger?”

“Miriam. She is fifteen this year.”

A middle-aged woman answered instead. Richard’s expression turned strange.

“Fifteen? Is there no one younger than her?”

“She is the youngest child in the Opal Palace…”

The prince thought for a moment before speaking.

“Bring her here.”

“Pardon?”

Richard’s thin patience snapped upon hearing another question. Without a word, he drew his sword.

“Eek! I’ll bring her right away!”

As the chamberlain disappeared, a stifling atmosphere filled the room. Richard plopped down onto the worn guest chair, still holding his sword.

After what felt like five centuries but was only five minutes, the chamberlain returned cautiously with a maid.

“You called for me…”

Richard glared at her as if he would kill her.

She was a girl with short blonde hair, round eyes mixed with fear and curiosity. She seemed very ordinary, like a girl you could find anywhere.

“Ha.”

A laugh escaped from Richard’s lips.

The faces of the Opal Palace servants brightened. They mistakenly thought that the 12th prince’s mood had improved, though they didn’t know why.

However, Luke and his subordinates, who had served Richard for a long time, turned pale and looked at each other.

“Ha… ha ha…”

After the laughter died down, Richard stood up, still holding his sword.

“So, this is the answer my sister has given me?”

“Pardon?”

“Where is the princess’s room?”

The chamberlain blinked in confusion.

He couldn’t understand what was happening. He had only brought the blonde maid as ordered, but now this was the princess’s answer?

It was a perfectly reasonable and common question. The delayed response was natural, in a way.

However, that hesitation sealed his fate.

Thud.

It happened so quickly that neither the servants nor the knights immediately realized what had occurred.

“Ahhhh!”

Someone screamed and ran away. The strong smell of blood filled the air.

The chamberlain’s head was rolling on the floor.

“This is my final question.”

Richard spoke in a calm tone as if nothing had happened.

“Where is Lucilia?”

“In the innermost room on the second floor!”

One servant shouted in a voice that seemed to tear apart. Richard turned and left the drawing room.

“Your Highness, wait!”

Luke hurriedly followed, but Richard did not wait. He quickly ascended the stairs.

His grinding teeth and eyes were full of murderous intent.

‘You dare lie to me?’

Richard thought as he climbed the stairs.

The girl he had seen before definitely worked in the Opal Palace. So, he had pressured the servants, but they still didn’t show the girl despite fearing for their lives.

So, there was only one answer.

Lucilia, the owner of the Opal Palace, was hiding the girl.

Richard’s logic was full of holes. But he was never one to think deeply, especially not in a rage.

He firmly believed this to be the truth and stood in front of the innermost room on the second floor.

Without hesitation, he kicked the door open. The thick wooden door shattered like a sugar cookie.

“Eek!”

He saw a small figure roll off the bed inside the room.

“Are you Lucilia?”

Richard asked as he looked around the room. There was no one else in the princess’s room.

He approached the child trembling under the bed and forcibly pulled her up by the shoulder.

“Where is that girl…!”

His words trailed off.

The red eyes slowly widened and then froze.

“I’m, I’m sorry…”

It was a girl with long blonde hair and a worn-out dress. Her round green eyes were filled with fear. She trembled as she spoke.

“I did something wrong, I’m sorry…”

“You, you are…”

It was a familiar face.

“You are the princess?”

***

From the moment Richard broke down my door, I was so scared I couldn’t make a sound.

Even though he was insane, who would have thought he would break down a locked door because I said I was sick?

Moreover, Richard held a sword in his hand, and if my eyes weren’t mistaken, there was blood on it.

I couldn’t maintain my sanity.

“Eek!”

I tried to get off the bed but slipped and fell to the floor. I felt my trembling hand press against the floor.

“Where is that girl…!”

Richard forcibly lifted me off the floor. My shoulder, gripped by him, felt like it was about to break.

The murderous intent filling the small room made it hard to breathe. It felt like the air had weight and was pressing down on me.

“I did something wrong, I’m sorry…”

I didn’t even know what Richard had said. I had reached the point where I couldn’t understand what I was saying.

Was this the end for me?

Was yesterday the last miracle for me…?

Maybe because I was so close to death, I suddenly felt like it was easier to breathe than before.

Come to think of it, my shoulder hurt much less now.

“You, you are…”

Was this heaven?

“You are the princess?”

A beautiful face was in front of me.

Ah, this was definitely heaven.

I smiled foolishly.

“An angel.”