The same man who escorted them to the office entered, while the three women from their group were led to a different room by a female official.
"Come with me," the royal servant said as he looked at three male newcomers, Oriana being one of them.
They followed the servant out of the office to go to another room.
Though Oriana’s calm and polite expression was faultless, she was panicking inside.
’How can I escape this situation? Not just that herb and my dagger, but I will also be exposed as a woman. They will surely imprison me for fraud, not to mention the crime of deceiving a noble and royal household. What if they accuse me of being a spy? They might torture me before killing me—’
Inside the room next door, there were two male servants waiting for them.
"Put your bags on this table and remove all your clothes."
’I am dead. I am truly dead— and that too with all my clothes gone. Such an embarrassing death! It would be better to be eaten by a wild animal in the forest rather than to be punished as a criminal in the palace..."
As she let out a frustrated groan, she realized her fellow companions had already started undressing. She averted her gaze from them.
’I sure don’t want to see naked men. Talk about seeing men’s naked bodies before dying. Gods, spirits, whoever is out there listening to me, please save me.’
"Lad, why are you not undressing?" one servant called her out.
"Apologies..." Her mind began cooking up different plots. ’If I say I am no longer interested in working as a royal servant, will they let me go? No, they will grow even more suspicious because I do not want to undergo inspection. What if they call for guards? Even if I run...I think I can only beat them with my magic, but if I do that, I will be charged with assault along with other crimes. Even if I manage to escape the palace with the help of my magic, I will become a criminal.’
Images of her running away flashed in her mind, and the ending was hergetting captured by a troop of soldiers. Not only would she be beheaded, possibly even Luke who was posing as her brother and Ken who was supposed to be their cousin would be dragged into the mess.
’No, I can’t let that happen!’
She was at her wit’s end. ’Seems like I have to tell them the truth that I am a woman. If I admit guilt on my own, I can reduce the punishment of fraud.’
Just as Oriana made up her mind, there was a knock on the door. It was Jade, the Head Steward, and accompanying him was a scholarly-looking black-haired man in his early thirties. Though he wore the same uniform as Jade, this man who appeared to be a gentleman with a kind smile wore a white cravat and a lapel pin of a silver oak tree and a white thistle.
"The butler from the Palace of Thistle is here," Jade said.
"Is this the servant assigned to the Palace of Thistle?" the black-haired man asked as he eyed Oriana.
The young woman observed her new superior. A soft appearance for a nobleman, one that would make anyone think he was a submissive person in nature, but for some strange reason, that smiling man gave off a scarier aura than Head Steward Jade.
"Yes, Butler Chadwicke. We were about to send him to you after we measured him for his uniform as well as conducting a primary inspection."
"I will take care of it," they heard Roman say, to which Jade did not refuse.
The servant in charge of Oriana looked at her. "You may leave."
Roman walked out of the room, his hands behind his back, his gait slow yet dignified, and Oriana silently followed him with her bag.
’So this is the butler I would be working under? But...I will still be in trouble if he checks my bag or gets me measured for my uniform...What do I do?’
Oriana remained deeply troubled even after Roman told her to join him in his carriage.
The Office of the Royal Chamberlain was at the outer region of the palace complex, while the Palace of Thistle was in the inner region, and the distance between buildings reminded Oriana of the vast Wimark Estate in the countryside, where a single garden spanned about an acre of land. If they were to walk, they would probably take an hour to reach their destination.
On the way, she got to see hundreds of servants, not to mention hundreds of royal guards, all of them working in different gardens, buildings and residences. Noblemen could be seen in groups, most of them officials under various ministries, while others their subordinates rushing about to run errands. There were also royal knights, either standing guard, on patrol or undergoing training.
Each palace official and knight was either a lord of a territory or an outstanding member of a noble household. At some point, Oriana saw men dressed differently, probably envoys from foreign kingdoms, as well as female knights who were rumored to be only a handful in existence.
For Oriana, who had only been recently acquainted with the rich and the powerful, the fact that a commoner like her had stepped foot into their world...it felt surreal.
It was such an eye-opener for a poor country bumpkin.
"Orian, am I correct?" the kind voice of the scholarly-looking butler floated to her ears.
"Y-Yes, Mister Chadwicke!"
"You may call me Roman."
"Yes, Mister Roman."
"There is no need for you to be nervous."
Oriana doubted whether that was possible, but she agreed on the surface, and made small talk with him. She gave a vague introduction about herself, along with her current skill set. Though she told him about being a housekeeper and valet before entering the royal palace, she dared not admit she only had a work experience spanning a grand total of five days.