Chapter 16: 16: An early day of work
'I thought I was supposed to be a guard for the princess. Then, what the hell am I doing in the kitchen so early in the morning? Why was I even asleep in the princess's castle anyway?'
It was barely 04:30 in the morning, and Sui was in the kitchen of the princess's castle, cutting and peeling vegetables.
Her hands moved automatically as she picked up a new vegetable to replace the previous one she had worked with.
Sui thought her work speed was decent, but it seemed different for the cook in charge of the kitchen.
"Oi, newbie, stop daydreaming and get back to work. At this rate, you will not be finished with the pile in front of you."
The head cook sounded cranky during the morning hours, and the other employees looked used to her rude behavior.
Sui looked at the massive pile of vegetables before her with a bitter look.
'There is no way I can finish this heap alone anyway! Do you want me to spend my whole day peeling off and cutting vegetables?'
Not that Sui would mind doing that the whole day.
This would be the most relaxing day of Sui's life if her only task was to peel off vegetables and cut them for cooking.
However, …
"Hurry up! We need to get started on breakfast. We will use everything in our stock today to make it a big breakfast. The Emperor will be dining with us all today, so let's give it our best shot."
The head cook looked even more annoyed after giving her speech.
She rubbed her eyes and her head, clearly indicating that she had a headache.
'How will I finish all this off alone?'
Sui thought as she looked at the supply in front of her.
Thankfully, one of the friendly maids decided to answer Sui's question.
"Don't worry too much. The head cook will calm down once she has her morning tea. Just bear with it for ten more minutes. Once she is calmer, you will have more people to help you out."
Those words gave Sui hope, and she went back to her work.
Fifteen minutes passed, but the head cook did not return to her regular self.
Sui was beginning to feel hopeless when the tea aroma reached her nose, and everyone around her sighed in relief.
The head cook took the tea and sipped it carefully.
Sui had never seen anyone's expression relaxing as fast as the head cook's changed once the tea hit her system.
"Now is our chance. I will show you how to do things around here."
The maid from earlier assured Sui before she quickly stood up.
"Head cook, we need more hands to wash and cut the vegetables and other preparatory work. Should we help with it first?"
Sui watched the head cook for her reaction.
"Yeah, sure! That is a good idea! Get all the bothersome work done first so that we can get started on the actual cooking."
The head cook carelessly waved her hands.
If Sui had not seen it with her own eyes, she would not have believed this calm person to be the same head cook who had yelled at her.
The maid who helped Sui out grinned while looking at her.
"See! It was a piece of cake, right? Also, I can tell that you are hurt, so take it easy. It will be more troublesome if you collapse now. We are short-staffed in this castle, but the princess's nanny refuses to hire more hands. That's why thank you for coming here."
The maid sounded genuine, and it made Sui feel guilty.
After all, she was not here because she genuinely wanted to be here.
And if things continued as they were, Sui was sure she would not be in the princess's castle for long, either.
"Anyway, my name is Fubuki Shiranui. It's a pleasure to meet you, and I hope to see you around."
Sui tried hard not to show the surprise on her face when the maid introduced herself.
'Ah, this just makes me realize how big the difference between everyone and myself is. I should not even be serving the princess.'
Sui knew that everyone who served the imperial family was nobility by birth or adopted into it.
Even Fubuki was a noble (likely from a branch family) and was in the princess's castle to make connections and to find a good match.
Sui felt out of place, not knowing what to say to Fubuki now.
The older female was still waiting for Sui to introduce herself, and Sui knew that this was to learn about Sui's family and connections.
"..."
That was why Sui remained quiet and pretended she did not see Fubuki's intentions.
This was not Sui's first time in this situation, so she deployed the same tactic she had used every time it had happened.
She remained quiet so the others would feel awkward and not ask Sui for her name.
It was working since Fubuki looked uncomfortable and finally looked away.
Most nobles had a superiority complex and a thin face. Fubuki was the same in this regard.
When she felt ignored or insulted, she turned her face away and did not ask Sui any more questions.
They worked in silence until the pile was finished.
By the time the head cook threw Sui out of the kitchen, it was already noon.
Sui stood in the corridor like a lost child, not knowing what to do next. She had finished her kitchen duties, and nothing else had been assigned to her so far.
"Oi maid! You are not assigned anywhere, for now, right? Then come, follow me! I need you to help in the barn. The stable boy called in sick today, and we need more people."
A soldier pointed toward Sui and called her over.
The soldier noticed Sui's thin and weak build, but he did not care about her safety if he met his objective.
'This guard is lucky. He managed to find one of the only maids who would not kneel over while dealing with temperamental animals in the military stable. And since I was able to eat breakfast, I also have more than enough energy to deal with this situation.'
Some were some famous last thoughts Sui had before she was thrown into chaos.
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