"Mhmm....." I grumbled to myself, as I slowly opened my eyes.
"Wait...didn't I become a carpet...didn't I die?"
I spoke sleepily and slowly sat up.
I was so confused then I realized how small my hands were as I rubbed my eyes, I had very pale skin as well.
The bed that I am on is super comfy, it was very soft and I looked around...it was a bright and beautifully decorated room.
It was an expensive room for sure.
I sat there in silence for some time before my eyes started to wonder for a mirror so I can take a good look at myself.
I spotted a vanity and rushed there, tripping a little as I was running toward the mirror.
"Wow...." I stood in shock, slowly touching my face and my hair. It was so beautiful for me not to admire.
"I look so cute and my face, it's beautiful," I commented.
I looked like a five-year-old kid once again in their night grown.
"You know what is funny, I look just like Irene-"
Sounds of knocking interrupted my sentence midway.
"Young Miss Irene, may I come in?" said an unfamiliar voice, it was a smooth voice.
At that moment, I realized who I was.
I was now Irene Gracia.
"Uh...Young Miss, are you okay, can I come in?" said the voice again.
"Ah, yes...you may," I responded.
The mysterious lady entered the room, she was wearing a maid uniform with dirty blond hair tied into a bun with shining yellow eyes.
"Oh dear, what are you doing out of bed?" she said as she saw me sitting on the chair facing the vanity.
"Ah...yes! I just wanted to get out of bed early this time...Elle," I responded as she smiled and walked over to me and grabbed a brush, and started to brush my hair.
Michelle Jordan, Irene's maid, was like her mother figure. Irene was so close to her and called her Elle for short.
Thank god I remembered the nickname Irene gave to her personal maid, I thought to myself.
Elle stood with Irene till she met her death by saying that she was the one who pushed Alice down the stairs, not Irene.
Elle was such a sweet person, she loved Irene like her own child.
Elle started to take care of her when she was just 19 years old.
She was the only one who pitied Irene since she was deemed a child murderer because her mother died at birth.
Ah, Irene was me.
I zoned out for a while, it was quite relaxing to get your hair combed by someone else.
"Shall we get you ready?"
Elle asked.
"Uh no thanks, today I would like to get ready myself!"
I said a little shy.
"Oh...haha, aren't you cute? Okay, then don't forget to wash your face, your breakfast is waiting downstairs."
Elle sounded like a mother.
"Okay, thank you."
Elle nodded and exited the room.
Looking around the room to process things slowly, I slowly walked into Irene's washroom.
"Damn, all of this for a child," I admire the clean and sparkly washroom.
I walked around for a little bit and decided to freshen up after ten minutes.
"Okay wow, her closet is on another level..."
I looked up and down in Irene's closet room, clothes, and shoes were shacked.
I scanned the room to pick something simple for my first day.
"That dress is absolutely breathtaking, it is simple. This it!"
I picked out the dress and had a little trouble putting it on with my little hands, but eventually, I got the white dress with simple blue straps and bows on.
I looked around Irene's shoe collection and picked out a pair of light blue shoes with a white strap.
"She had some taste in clothes," I said as I admire myself and looked at my combed hair and wore a simple blue headband.
"Okay enough dressing up, I got to go downstairs," I said hurrying my steps to my door and opening it...
"Holy shit, where should I go."
I was greeted with long and bright halls, it hit me that I had no idea where I was going if I went by myself luckily there was a nearby maid.
"Oh, young miss let me escort you to the diner," she said bowing to me.
"Oh...thank you."
I replied with a sigh of relief.
While following the maid, I scanned the little details on the windows, it was floral patterns on the frame of the windows.
The house had two basic colours and shades: white and gold.
She had a lovely taste, I thought to myself.
Eventually, I was going down a massive grand staircase, I could see my own reflection on them, they were marbles.
This whole house screams a million dollars...
"Here is your breakfast, miss."
Irene sat down in the seats around the table that had many different types of food.
All of this for me to eat? All of this house and everything is mine? Is Irene's?
"No wonder Irene was never pleased, she most likely felt alone without anyone but servants in this house..."
I whispered to myself.
"Are you not pleased with the food, young miss?"
Elle appeared out of nowhere, "Uh no, actually I am afraid, I won't finish it."
She smiled at me, then a soft chuckle came out, "Young miss, you say the same thing every day, eat as much as you can, alright?"
"Alright..."
My eyes slowly drifted to the food lined up on the table and started to eat as much as I can.
And it was so good, the food was something I would die for.
"Are you finished, miss?"
A maid asked, "Yes, thank you."
Then the servants begin to bring the food back and cleaned the table, I cleaned my mouth.
I feel like going on a walk would be good for me to learn more about this place, I nodded to myself as I was about to wander off.
"Where are you going, young miss? Please with maids with you at all times."
Elle said firmly and snapped her fingers then two stepped out, "Please accompany Young Miss on her walk," she ordered.
The two maids nodded and walked behind me, I looked at them, but they didn't even glance at me.
Elle was the head maid in this mansion, Elle smiled at me and I instantly felt warm inside.
Something about Elle's smile was comforting.
I walked around the mansion, everything here was white and gold aesthetics.
This place was named white palace, Irene's home was nicknamed the "Ice Palace," or the witches' palace in the novel.
I walked through the garden and there were more colours here because of the flowers, however, it was only the main area of the garden that had colours.
Everything else was white and poisonous.
Irene wanted everything to be white even if it was poisonous, Irene loved it.
It was quoted in the novel that Irene admired the beauty of poison.
Not creepy at all, remind me not to touch these...
Chills were sent down my spine looking around and then I walked inside the mansion.
I was led to these two grand doors, and for some reason, my body told me to open them so I did.
It was the library.
Irene spent her time reading books here to become smarter and eventually she was a very gifted child.
I looked around, it was a lot for a child to read, and Irene did read all of it.
She did everything she could she gain her father's attention, now that I think about it, her childhood was an ass.
"Would you guys wait for me outside, I would like to read alone."
The two maids nodded and left.
I walked around, went past this sitting area then to one singular desk that had many piled books on top of it.
Irene often spent day and night here which explains the pile of books about...science?
I pushed the books aside and grabbed papers, I dipped the feather pen in ink.
"I need to remember what exactly happened in the novels and any red flags to look out for...the problem is, I don't know the ending of this.
"Let's start with the basics."
Irene was the fiancée of the Crown Prince, Josiah William Alden, it was a planned arranged marriage between the emperor and the Grand Duke.
However, the plan went south after Alice arrived, even if Irene was beautiful, gifted, and everything you want as a wife...
She was stated to have the worst personality.
There was one person against a couple of Alice and Josiah, the Emperor, who adored Irene very much.
The emperor felt pity towards the child and protected Irene as much as he could before he sadly passed away which left Irene destroyed.
Supposedly, Irene's personality went downhill after his death, and took out her anger often at Alice.
Oh, wait.
"Didn't Irene have a personal knight?" I asked who knows what.
But he was only assigned on her 6th birthday as a gift from her "loving" father, the Grand Duke, Elijah Oliver Gracia.
He didn't show up for her birthday, but a random knight did.
My eyes widened, and I had a sense of deja vu.
Now thinking about it seems like...
"Wow, so Irene was pushed into this role?" I pitied Irene, she was neglected like me for her whole childhood abandoned by her family.
Irene was surrounded in darkness after most of her loyal servants like Elle, Ralph, and everyone here started to die.
She and I are foolish people.
But there was something different between us, I got the realization and ran from a miserable place.
She did not, however, she wasn't always a spoiled brat.
Irene was just 13 when Alice came to her house, she was just a Count's daughter, and the Count died in a terrible carriage incident.
As he was friends with the Grand Duke, he decided to take care of his friend's wife and daughter.
Count Beverly was Grand Duke's oldest friend.
So Alice and her mother, Stella, both moved into the main mansion which Irene has been trying to live in for years.
Irene was jealous, but her jealousy only grew the more Alice stayed.
She was jealous of the fact Alice took her brothers as her own.
She was jealous that she gained her father's love within a year.
She was mad that Stella and Elijah ended up marrying.
Which made Alice and Irene, step-sisters, Irene got annoyed day by day.
Irene bullied and mistreated Stella and Alice which made her gravely lose her family's favor.
Like they even had liked her in the first place.
I soon realized that I didn't end up writing anything on the paper about the novel, I memorized enough.
I need the plan to save myself and make sure that the servants here do not sacrifice their life because of me.
"I am not Cha-hee anymore, I am Irene Gracia," I said to myself as I crumbled the paper.