Who Brought the Head Maid Back? - Chapter 2

“What is that chocolate powder on your faces? Don’t tell me you ate the Second Prince’s snacks?”

The maids, who had been looking at Amy’s disheveled state with unease, froze at the sharp accusation. Their faces turned pale as they frantically waved their hands in denial.

“O-oh, no! We didn’t eat them!”

“Yes, that’s right. How could we possibly do such a thing?”

What a blatant lie, Amy thought, snorting inwardly. She had only realized this after arriving here, but perhaps because the Second Prince was the palace’s underdog, the servants under him were incredibly insolent, even going so far as to steal their master’s food.

Lacking the energy to argue, Amy simply waved them off. It was a silent command for them to leave. They hesitated.

“Um, you’re leaving tomorrow. Have the preparations?”

“Are they done?”

Amy could have bet her entire fortune that they hadn’t lifted a single finger. Sure enough, they wore expressions that asked why they should be the ones doing such a thing.

“No?”

“Then why ask? Just get out, all of you.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Rubbing the chocolate from their mouths, the two quickly hurried out of the palace. Amy just clicked her tongue, watching them leave without a shred of lingering attachment.

“Fine, go. They’re just the Crown Prince’s lackeys anyway. It’s better that they’re gone.”

Now that there were no watching eyes, Amy finally allowed herself to drag her aching legs up the stairs to her private chamber. It was a shabby room, hardly fitting for a palace, but Amy didn’t care in the slightest as she threw herself onto the bed.

Every inch of her body throbbed with pain, but her heart felt light enough to fly.

‘I did it! Escape is finally within reach!’

Amy felt a wave of immense relief at having passed the biggest hurdle.

‘I wondered if I really needed to go that far, but it was the right call. I have no desire to move forward with an enemy at my back.’

Amy exhaled deeply, her mind racing.

‘Now, all that’s left is to reach the North safely and raise the Second Prince well. I remember everything that will eventually make money, so.’

Thinking of the Second Prince made her hardened heart soften just a little.

‘And then, I’ll eliminate the Crown Prince.’

As the thought naturally followed, Amy pressed her hand against her chest.

Thump, thump, thump, thump.

Her heart was beating calmly, just as usual.

‘Yes, that’s how it should be.’

Amy let out a heavy sigh. Her body, which had endured torture and shivered in the cold, finally declared a strike. Closing her eyes, she whispered quietly.

“Let’s just sleep for now.”

“Amy?”

Startled by the voice calling her name, Amy jerked her head up. The Second Prince was standing awkwardly in the doorway, watching her. Amy, who had been sitting on the floor packing, slammed the lid of the trunk shut and beckoned to him.

“Come here.”

At her call, the Second Prince hesitated for a moment before taking long strides toward her. His black curly hair, a rarity in the Imperial Palace, swayed over his forehead.

The Prince folded his long legs and sat quietly in front of Amy. She looked at him with a sense of deep affection.

‘He’s seventeen, but he barely looks fifteen.’

Whether he enjoyed her attention or not, a slight smile played on his lips. Despite being a sensitive adolescent, he was quite affectionate toward her. Amy asked with a soft smile:

“Your Highness, have you eaten?”

“There was no one there.”

“Ah.”

She suddenly remembered that she had told all the maids to leave the previous day. Amy clicked her tongue and stood up.

“Come to the kitchen with me. I’ll fix you something simple to eat.”

“Okay.”

The Prince hesitated, then cautiously took Amy’s hand. He had only been at the Second Prince’s palace for two months. Starved for affection, the boy willingly took the hand she offered, oblivious to her ulterior motives.

Every time she felt the boy’s trust in her, Amy felt a prick of her meager conscience. Whenever her old guilt stared her in the face, she would intentionally brush it off.

‘I’ll just treat him well from now on!’

Yes. Wasn’t that exactly why she had traveled back through time?

Upon arriving at the kitchen, Amy sat the Prince in a chair in the corner. She put butter in a pot over the fire and took out vegetables from the shelf to chop.

“Your Highness, you know we’re leaving this afternoon, right?”

The Prince nodded, watching Amy’s hands move with mesmerizing speed.

“Yeah. You told me to pack my valuables separately, so I’ve finished all of that.”

“Good job.”

She sautéed the chopped vegetables in the bubbling butter, then added milk and cream to simmer. After preparing a simple salad and warming some bread, a delicious-looking meal was ready in no time.

“Please, eat.”

The Prince swallowed hard and picked up his utensils. He began to eat heartily with a happy face. Watching him, Amy smiled warmly, while her mind was busy calculating.

‘Let’s see, the route is planned, and I’ve made it so the palace guards can’t follow.’

All that remained was a leisurely and luxurious journey with the Prince.

‘If I had regressed just two months earlier, I could have prepared even more perfectly.’

Amy sighed as she watched the Prince stuff a piece of white bread into his mouth. She rested her chin in her hand and recalled her previous life, the life before she returned.

Amy had been the Head Maid of the Crown Prince’s palace. She was the only daughter of a family of founding contributors that had nothing left but their name. Her parents had gambled away their estate with debt, and Amy decided to escape before they could sell her off as well.

After much deliberation, she volunteered as an imperial maid and entered the palace. Her parents threw a fit when they found out later, but she couldn’t have cared less.

She was ten years old at the time. The Empress, the Crown Prince’s mother, chose her to be a maid for the First Prince, who was of a similar age.

Maid was just a title; she was meant to be a toy. The Empress likely threw her into the Crown Prince’s palace intending for her to be a temporary distraction before disappearing.

However, Amy had been stubborn and determined since childhood, capable of deciding her own future. Before long, she surpassed the other prominent maids to serve the frail First Prince as his closest aide.

The Crown Prince relied heavily on Amy, who was as mature as an older sister despite being the same age. He didn’t mind even when she occasionally lost her temper or acted out of line.

In fact, the more informal she was, the more he liked it. Amy soon came to think of him, who acted like a spoiled child around her, as a younger brother.

‘Amy, I like you.’

At thirteen, three years after entering the palace, Amy received a confession from the First Prince. Did she like it? Not a chance! Amy looked around with a worried expression and asked:

‘Who else did you say that to?’

Thinking Amy misunderstood him for a flirt, the First Prince cried out in horror:

‘I only said it to you, of course!’

‘Lower your voice! What did you do that was so great that you’re shouting?’

If the Empress found out, she was a dead woman. The First Prince, who had worked up the courage to confess only to be scolded, muttered despondently:

‘Amy, do you hate me?’

‘No? But I don’t like you in that way either.’

‘What is “that way”?’

Amy’s expression went blank. What was the point of being thirteen? He had as little knowledge of romance as a seven-year-old playing in the streets.

The Empress had strictly hidden information and blocked noble ladies from approaching the First Prince, fearing he would wake up to romance too early. The reason she didn’t guard against Amy, who was always by his side, was simply because she was from a fallen noble family.

‘In short, you thought of me as an object.’

‘What did you say, Amy?’

‘I said I need to buy some objects.’

The First Prince tilted his head, feeling like that wasn’t what she said, and asked again:

‘So, Amy, what’s your answer?’

Amy thought for a moment and then said:

‘If your heart hasn’t changed a year from now, I’ll think about it.’

Even though Amy hadn’t said she liked him, the First Prince was overjoyed. Amy made sure to keep his mouth shut.

When she threatened him by saying he would never see her again if this got out, the First Prince shed tears and swore he wouldn’t tell anyone.

A year passed like that.

‘Amy, I like you.’

Unfortunately, the First Prince’s feelings remained unchanged. Amy muttered, hiding her look of disgust:

‘You’re more persistent than I thought.’

‘You’re praising me, right? So, Amy, your answer?’

‘Your Highness is fourteen now, right? You’ll be invested as the Crown Prince when you turn fifteen, so I’ll think about it until then.’

Upset by those words, the First Prince stomped his foot.

‘Why does it take so long to think?’

‘Very important matters are meant to be considered for a long time.’

At the words “very important matter,” the First Prince’s anger melted away. He beamed like a fool.

‘Really? Truly?’

‘Of course.’

The following year, the First Prince was successfully invested as the Crown Prince. He ran to Amy in excitement, hugged her, and shouted:

‘Now I can marry Amy!’

‘According to whose wishes?’

‘What?’

‘I mean, everyone will want that now that you’ve become the Crown Prince. But.’

Amy persuaded him gently. Since all eyes were on them now, she suggested they wait until things settled down before making preparations. The Crown Prince grumbled, but since Amy was always right, he nodded again.

Amy didn’t hate the Crown Prince. He whined a lot, but he was like a slightly lacking younger brother who generally listened well. Furthermore, having spent so much time together, she actually quite liked him, if she had to choose.

Support Who Brought the Head Maid Back?