"Be… a mute?" Alice stared at the Queen of the Beast in disbelief. "I-I don't understand, Your Majesty…"
"You heard it correctly. I want you to stay silent, you're just a mute now," Swan repeated. "I've heard from other servants that you're quite the chatty type who'd always listen and gossip, so the punishment is fitting. I will make sure that every servant and guard in this castle will know not to talk to you. They will treat you like you don't exist."
Alice was just too stunned to speak. She knew that her punishment would be harsh, but as long as she was not killed, she thought she could handle it and continue to find a way to spread gossip and gather information from other servants.
But with this punishment, she was as good as dead. Nobody in this castle would be able to talk to her anymore. She was nothing but a living ghost now.
"B-but Your Majesty, how am I supposed to eat if I can't even talk to any of them?!"