Is that woman the famous Sione?

Talia tensed inwardly and stood at an inconspicuous edge.

A moment later, Sione opened her mouth with a curt expression, scanning each individual.

“You’re already aware of the tasks you’ll be undertaking, so I won’t go into detail. However, there are certain matters you must familiarize yourself with if you intend to work in our palace.”

Her tone was more befitting a soldier than a chamberlain; it was stern and rigid.

As the frightened crowd hesitated to reply, maintaining their silence, she continued.

“First, do not approach Princess Bella too closely. Second, do not enter her chambers. Third, do not disclose anything you see within the palace. That’s all.”

“So… how close is too close?”

The woman who had spoken with Talia on the carriage mustered the courage to ask.

“Unless on special duty, do not approach the princess within five steps. Particularly with her chambers—maids have been specifically assigned, so it’s best you don’t enter at all,” Sione responded in an emotionless, cold tone.

“Do the maids do the cleaning and tidying themselves…?”

“There are not many staff currently in Rose Palace. Maids may also act as servants at times, but only with my permission.”

“That’s…interesting.”

In fact, in most noble households, maids attended to their masters while housekeeping was left to the servants.

Moreover, in royal palaces, many of the maids—sometimes of noble origin themselves—served the royals directly.

From their point of view, being a maid in a royal palace was a high-ranking position. Therefore, the fact that maids also acted as servants was rather novel.

‘Seems there are fools among us who think they could be maids.’

Reading desire in the eyes of a few people standing with her, Talia snorted inwardly.

Based on her observations during their carriage conversations, aside from herself, the remaining three had little to no connections with nobility.

They weren’t from the capital, nor had they served in a noble’s house for more than two years.

Cultured but not particularly clever, they were virtually orphans, with no close family or relatives.

Essentially, they were handpicked under the assumption that anyone could betray the palace at any moment.

Given that Sione and her close circle already had the maid positions covered, there was no chance for the newcomers to fill those roles.

“So, what happens if one breaks any of these three rules?”

Another woman standing next to Talia raised her hand to ask. Sione narrowed her eyes.

“Violate any one of these rules, and you will be expelled from the palace immediately. Moreover, if any suspicious behavior is detected, you will be banned from the vicinity of the capital. Conduct yourselves accordingly.”

For a moment, disappointment filled the faces of those who had momentarily harbored hopes and expectations.

They belatedly realized that working under Sione was not as easy as they had thought.

The atmosphere, which had been buoyant with the excitement of their new palace roles, suddenly grew cold.

“You will be assigned rooms. Follow the soldier in front. After unpacking, go to your designated work areas for job training. Leaving the palace on unauthorized days is strictly forbidden. If you have any outside business, report to me directly.”

Sione, having finished her business, vanished somewhere shortly after.

They moved to a building where the palace staff stayed, led by imposing soldiers.

Upon arriving at their humble accommodations located behind the dazzling main palace, someone assigned to the same room as Talia voiced their complaints.
“Hey, Lina. What do you think of that woman named Sione from earlier? Isn’t her way of speaking really annoying?”

“……Well, she did seem a bit intimidating.”

“Exactly! No matter how great she thinks she is, she’s just someone working in the palace of a deposed princess, isn’t she? And yet, she looks at us as if we’re potential criminals. I can’t believe it.”

Talia softly laughed, humoring her tantrum.

She also pretended to sigh in concern, not knowing how they would endure this going forward.

But in reality, Talia’s mind was racing with different thoughts.

‘The princess is likely to have only a small number of bodyguards. But access doesn’t look easy.’

According to her investigation, about twenty people lived in the Rose Palace taking care of the princess.

This included four maids, including Sione, three cooks, and five servants responsible for cleaning and odd jobs like herself.

Besides, there were eight to ten soldiers who patrolled the inside of the Rose Palace, so in fact, the number of people in the princess’s palace was exceedingly small.

Of course, this was possible because Sione was exceptionally skilled, and unlike other palaces, the Rose Palace was surrounded by high walls.

Access by foot from outside was impossible, and the boundary outside the walls was tightly guarded by knights and soldiers dispatched from the main palace. Therefore, they could manage the palace with fewer people.