Esmeralda, hearing Blair’s voice, hesitated. Her expression seemed vaguely terrified, but it was hard to see because of the things blocking her view.

The half-awake child realized after a moment that the things blocking her sight were clothes and that she was inside a wardrobe.

Blair wiped her heavy eyelids and asked, “Why am I going into the wardrobe?”

“Blair, let’s play hide and seek.”

“Hide and seek…?”

“Yeah. Don’t come out until I tell you to. No matter what sounds you hear or what happens, absolutely not. Got it?”

Esmeralda insisted like that while continuously glancing outside the wardrobe.

Blair found it strange that Esmeralda suddenly suggested playing hide and seek and that there was something odd about her atmosphere. However, unable to resist the impending drowsiness, she nodded quietly.
Beyond the heavy eyelids that closed again, Esmeralda’s figure appeared, wearing a somewhat sad smile for some reason.

‘What made Her Majesty so sad?’

Normally, Blair would have asked and embraced her, just as Esmeralda always did.

‘When I wake up, I must ask. I must embrace her…’

But Blair succumbed to the overwhelming drowsiness and fell asleep.

How much time had passed?

Clang!

‘Huh.’

Startled by the sharp sound of objects falling and hitting the floor, Blair abruptly opened her eyes.

‘What’s this sound?’

Similar sounds followed several times. Sleep was instantly dispelled. In the silence that followed, an eerie premonition crept in instinctively.

Moreover, there was a smell.

The smell of something burning permeated through Blair’s nostrils, reaching deep into her lungs.

Instinct warned her. Death was approaching.

Blair quietly held her breath and peered outside through the gap in the wardrobe door.

In the room, there was someone in a maid’s uniform. Their profile made it hard to see the face. And in front of them…

‘Your Majesty, the Empress?’

Esmeralda was lying down. However, it didn’t seem like she was asleep.

Blair knew Esmeralda, the most beautiful, elegant, and dignified person in the world, wouldn’t sleep carelessly on the floor.

‘What is she doing?’

The limited view through the narrow gap had its limitations. Blair approached a bit closer to the door crack and rolled her eyes.

At that moment, Blair’s eyes witnessed an unbelievable scene.

The maid was wrapping a cloth around Esmeralda’s neck and tying it to the ceiling.

Even the young princess, who grew up without knowing the dark side of the world, understood what the maid intended to do to Esmeralda.

The maid intended to kill Esmeralda.

It was not a learned fear but an instinctive terror of death that she had carried since she was born.

Blair’s pupils trembled intensely as they witnessed the scene. Tears flowed uncontrollably in the overwhelming fear.

Why?

I don’t understand why this situation unfolded, but one thing was clear.

She had to save Esmeralda.

‘But… I’m scared.’

What can I do if I go out now? Can I defeat that maid? If I can’t save Her Majesty, what will happen to me…?

The smoke gradually rose, making it difficult to breathe. Blair trembled, trying to suppress the impending cough, shaking all over.

I wish all of this were just a dream.

Frightened, she opened her eyes, hoping to vanish in the warm touch of Esmeralda, who would hold her and comfort her while crying. It would be nice if anyone could rescue me from this nightmare…

But now, she had to accept the cruel reality that would not disappear, no matter how much she raised her head.

‘No one can save me.’

Right now, the only person who could save me is myself.
Blair tightly clenched her trembling hands. Wiping away the flowing tears, she peered outside the wardrobe once again.

The maid, who had climbed onto the coffee table, was still struggling to tie Esmeralda.

Blair instinctively averted her gaze from the horrific scene, and among the items scattered near the wardrobe, she discovered a candlestick. The pointed candlestick reflected a reddish glow, shimmering.

Blair’s heart raced rapidly upon finding it.

This is the only chance.

Blair slightly opened the wardrobe, emerged, and approached the nearby candlestick.

Fortunately, the maid seemed preoccupied with tying Esmeralda and did not notice her. Blair’s pounding heart felt like it would leap out of her mouth.

Quietly, Blair successfully grabbed the candlestick. From then on, there was no room for hesitation.

Blair firmly grasped the candlestick and rushed towards the maid’s legs.

“Stop!”

The child’s blow did not inflict significant damage, but just her appearance was enough to startle the maid.

“Ah!”

Thrown off balance by Blair’s attack, the maid fell under the table. At that moment, Blair could finally see it.

The face of the perpetrator who harmed Esmeralda.