Petrus (1)
The Flower Kingdom's New Year celebrations last for a week, followed by a week-long holiday. During this time, only taverns, theaters, and casinos are open. Mi had nowhere to go, so she considered visiting Bertram; for Mi, the New Year was always a time for family reunions.
On the second day of the New Year, Mi wandered alone through Sun City, familiarizing herself with its routes, mainly focusing on the route from Flower Inn to Derek Palace. She learned which was the most convenient and fastest way, which alleys were least crowded, which rooftops offered temporary shelter, and which areas were too brightly lit to linger in. As evening approached, Mi returned to the inn, ate an early dinner, and told Sheila she needed to rest after a long day. She locked the door tightly, reverted to her witch form, and slipped away again to Derek Palace under the cover of twilight.
The Derek Palace complex is vast. The sun had just set, and the sky still held some vibrant sunset colors. The towering palaces cast huge shadows on the ground, making the dim light perfect for Mi to wander through the palace grounds. Entering through the palace gates, one faces the Niss Tower. Behind the Niss Tower are two rows of single-story houses, housing numerous court ladies, officials, and guards. Further back is a vast garden and a racecourse, surrounded by stands and stables; this was also the venue for court martial arts competitions and horse races. Beyond that is a tall tower, its four-room domed ceiling carved with star patterns. A huge observatory and complex astronomical instruments are set up there, and several scholars in grey robes are constantly recording different data with their instruments.
To the left of the tower are the Derek Gallery, the king's residence, and the Blue Moon Palace, the queen's bedchamber. These are two interconnected three-story buildings, with the reception room in the front and the bedchamber in the back. The Derek Gallery is on the left, and the Blue Moon Palace is on the right. The queen's ladies-in-waiting and attendants all lived in the Blue Moon Palace.
As night deepened, noble carriages arrived one after another. The streets of Derek were lined with lights, and the first floor of the Palace of Nys was also filled with candles. Crystal chandeliers illuminated the entire palace, making it magnificent and sparkling in the night. At eight o'clock sharp, King Derek, accompanied by Queen Angelus, descended from the second floor to begin the first ball of the year, leading the first dance.
King Derek was an excessively thin man. His grey eyes made him appear lifeless, his hooked nose gave him a cunning air, and his frail physique made him look sickly. His jewel-encrusted crown did not make him more dashing; the glittering ornaments almost overwhelmed him. The king looked more like a support for Queen Agnes. Queen Agnes was exceptionally beautiful. Her broad forehead, fair skin, and dahlia-red lips all indicated that she was a woman of strong will and vitality. The king's finery would not have looked out of place on her. Although the queen was strikingly beautiful, the extravagance of her royal attire could not overshadow her radiant eyes. Her seaweed-like hair was elegantly tied beneath her crown, and her entire being was impeccably refined. In contrast, King Derek, after the customary first dance, would release the Queen's hands and mingle among the beautiful ladies. If it weren't for his strikingly melancholic eyes, they would be described by the people of the Flower Kingdom as "wise eyes" and "gentle decisiveness." Queen Angelis, on the other hand, did not flirt or play among the women. She was either silently seated on her throne or whispering with the Minister of Finance. The ladies-in-waiting around the Queen were all granted the title of Lady-in-Waiting, but even with this title, they were not given an office upstairs in Angelis's Palace. More often, they gathered in the Queen's Blue Moon Palace reception room to convey messages from the Queen.
The royal palace was dotted with numerous three-story castles, the only exception being two long buildings in the western part of the palace. These were twin towers; the first floor housed common areas such as study rooms, playrooms, and a dining hall; the second floor contained individual rooms, each inhabited by a young child. One tower housed boys, and the other girls. The children ranged in age from about ten to seven or eight, their skin tones indicating they came from different regions. Each girl was accompanied by two maids who attended to them day and night, even sleeping with one maid making a makeshift bed at the foot of the bed. The children were strictly supervised, never alone for a single moment, twenty-four hours a day.
The rooms were numbered from 1 to 43. Mi followed a blonde girl into room number 17, where a little girl with black hair was sitting. The little girl had big, round eyes and a chubby nose. Looking at this miniature version of Zara, the 17th city lord of Lin City, Mi knew she had come to the right place. She quietly hid in the shadows of the curtains, waiting for a chance to speak with Bertram.
"Petrice, you don't want to go to the ball again?" The blonde girl pulled up a chair and sat down opposite Petrice. "You can't do that. Her Majesty the Queen will send someone over soon."
Petrice sat on the bed, her eyes red-rimmed, stubbornly turning her head away without speaking. The blonde girl took Petrice's hand gently and said, "Don't hold it against Haina; she's always like that."
“Elijah, why do you think the Queen arranged for me to stand in the first place?” Bertram lowered her head and stroked the down comforter for a while before raising her head. Her eyes were filled with tears. “Is it my mother?” Bertram lowered her head and stopped talking. Tears slid down her cheeks and wet the back of Eli’s hand.
“Don’t think like that,” Eli quickly cupped Beatrice’s face and wiped away her tears with his thumb. “Look, it’s Hena standing in the front row. The Queen didn’t insist on that arrangement. The lord of Lin City 17 will be fine.”
"Really?" Beatrice forced a smile, staring nervously at Eli, wanting reassurance.
“Of course,” Eli nodded firmly. “You’d better get up and change your clothes quickly, and come with me to the ball.”
"Cough cough, I'm sick," Petrus said, comforted. She buried her head in the blankets for a while, then coughed twice, her cheeks flushed. "Eli, you should go back quickly so you don't catch it." After saying that, Petrus lowered her head again and buried it in the pillow in her arms.
"Are you really sick?" Eli raised his hand to stroke Petrus's forehead, then placed his hand back on his own head to compare. "Where is your maid? How has she been taking care of you? Why haven't you summoned the physician?"
The maid beside Beatrice remained seated, so Beatrice quickly reached out and pulled Eli over, saying, "Keep your voice down." As she spoke, she took out a hot water bottle from under a cushion, "I used this to warm myself up."
Bertram smiled apologetically at the maid, "Lily, I need to talk to Eli for a bit." The maid, Lily, stood up and pulled two chairs to the doorway. She handed one chair to the maid who had come with Eli and was standing at the door, and sat down herself on the other.
Petrus pulled Eli away from the doorway and said, "Eli, don't be angry."
Eli sighed, "What are we going to do if your health keeps getting worse?" Eli lowered his voice, "The snowy region is always unsafe in winter. I have no choice. Can't you go back?"
“Eli, don’t say anymore,” Beatrice said sadly, lowering her head. “Did Ryan come to see you?”
“Oh dear, I forgot about Ryan,” Eli said, slapping her forehead. “You rest well, I’ll be right back.” With that, Eli hurried away as she had come, her maid following behind, softly reminding her, “Miss Eli, please maintain your manners; Miss Eli, don’t lift your skirt; Miss Eli, don’t run…”
Lily moved a chair in and said, "Miss Petrus, why don't you go to bed early?"
"Lily, I'll look at the moon a little longer before I go to sleep. You go to sleep first, I have nothing else to do." Bertras sat by the window, looking at the blue moon outside. The night was dark, and the blue moon emitted a pale light. Bertras looked at Lily, who had spread a blanket on the floor, and said, "Lily, you sleep at the foot of the bed. This bed is big enough; I don't need that much space."
“Miss Beatrice, servants have their duties.” Lily continued to squat on the floor and spread out the blanket.
"Lily, where do you live?" Petrus gave up on trying to persuade her and started a new topic.
“Miss Beatrice, my home is just outside the city. All the maids in the Derek Palace come from the suburbs or the royal estates; none of them come from anywhere else.”
"Didn't they come from anywhere else? Not even from Star City?"
“No, Miss Petrus, you still have to go to the ball tomorrow. You can’t keep missing the ball without a medical officer’s note,” Lily interrupted Petrus without hesitation.
Bertram looked longingly at the moon: "Lily, the blue moon in Sun City isn't as bright as the one in Lin City. Our blue moon in Lin City is so big and bright, it's much prettier than the one in Sun City." With that, Bertram drew the curtains and walked towards the bed.
“Miss Bertram, you can say these things in your room, but please don’t say them outside. I don’t want to report to you every day how many times you’ve mentioned Blue Moon in Lincheng.”
“I know, Lily, I know, thank you, Lily, I won’t tell anyone.” Petrus burrowed into the covers. “Lily, if, I mean if one day I invite you to see Blue Moon in Lincheng, you must go.”
"Yes, Miss Petrus, go to sleep, Miss Petrus."
"Okay, Lily, we've agreed. Goodnight, Lily, thank you, Lily."
* * *
The royal court ball is filled with melodious music and fluttering skirts. Amidst the clinking of glasses, handsome men and beautiful women smile with joy. This is another world of peace and prosperity.
In the last towering star observatory of Derek Palace, Severus calculated and recalculated a pile of data. He finally confirmed the result, adjusted his robes, and headed towards the Derek Gallery. The King was unwell and had been recuperating there recently; Severus had good news to deliver to him.
A grey-robed stargazing apprentice looked in the direction Severus had gone, picked up the manuscripts he had discarded at the star observatory, and knocked on his teacher's door.
"Come in," the teacher, wearing round glasses, looked up at his student, Calvin, and asked, "What's wrong, Calvin?" A large pile of draft paper covered with star charts lay before him.
“Teacher, Severus has gone to see the King,” Calvin said, taking out a stack of papers. “These are the manuscripts he left behind.”
The teacher came out from behind the desk. He looked through Severus's manuscript, his face growing increasingly serious. He quickly put the manuscript away and said, "Go back and find the star map according to Severus's calculations."
“Yes.” Calvin asked no questions and turned to leave. The teacher stared at the closed door in deep thought for a long time before finally putting on his hat and going to the Queen’s drawing room to request an audience.
"Your Majesty, Sifre has found the guide," the teacher reported to the Queen.
"Do you know who the guide is?" The Queen looked at the old man with gray hair in front of her. This stargazer, Aris, had been following adventurers around observing star charts since he was an apprentice. She thought that no one in the entire Flower Kingdom could predict the stars better than him.
Ares shook his head: "Your Majesty, Severus has a unique method of calculation. He does not take on students or communicate with others; he is loyal only to His Majesty the King."
"What did you figure out?"
"The guides have entered Derek Palace and are entangled with the Queen's crown," Aris said in a deep voice. "Your Majesty, please thoroughly investigate those who have entered Derek Palace these past few days."
"Recently, Lincheng 17 sent the progenitor Colin. What is his relationship with the Queen's crown?" The Queen pondered for a moment and said, "Alright, I understand. I will have Wen give you the list of all the people who have entered and left Derek's Palace."
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