READING GUIDANCE!!
" This is a direct sentence in the present time."
" This is a direct sentence in the past time."
' This is inside character's mind sentence in the present time.'
'This is inside character's mind sentence in the past time.'
HAPPY READING!
***
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It's just like a usual daily day.
Just like waking up every morning when the sun still not yet rises even after she opens her window's curtain. Just like preparing herself for the day while breathing a fine nice refreshing morning air from the open window. Put on her shawl and go outside her humble room to cook her breakfast before taking a cold shower. Then, put some clothes on and prepare things to go to work. Something that she always does every single day without even asking why she has to do that every day.
... because It is just a common natural daily life that's somehow bonded human who still has life within their body. So, cliché -yes, but, that's how life is.
Yet, her life might be quite different from what most people could imagine. It is not her being a normal ordinary city girl in a sophisticated civilization. It is not also her being a countryside girl in a 'normal' world.
what is a 'normal' world is anyway? she could not even understand and knows about the answer to that kind of random question, but- her world somehow starts to feel different.
" Ms.Grace, good morning." said a humble old woman with a smile on her wrinkled face who lives in front of her humble house in the very humble district. Even though she, herself, still not yet gotten used to the atmosphere this humble district gives her.
It is like an alley that you can find in in the Victorian era, or if you ever watched Harry Potter movie then you will know a place named Diagon Alley- and, she is someone who lives in a similar kind of alley right now where her house is on the third floor of a three floors building that she rents in quite a cheap amount. Then, this humble old lady who just greeted her is, Mrs. Karley, her neighbor who she knows for quite a while who has a daily routine to greet her every early morning.
She smiles warmly while putting her key inside her bag and fixing the buttons of her coat. " Good Morning, Mrs.Karley," while she then helps the old woman opens the front sliding doors of Mrs.Karley's shop that are quite hard to open. " The suns still not yet rise, Mrs.Karley," she said.
and Mrs.Karley smiles silly, " You one to say, huh?" she said sarcastically and laughs happily with her bright smile.
she then just rises her shoulders while tying up her wavy long ginger hair, " Well, the palace gives us a strict rule."
" Ah yes, yes! Sure, you are a diligent girl," she said.
" This place is not a free rent, unfortunately."
and Mrs.Karley laughs out loud. " True right!" she said. " But... I am amazed enough at how you manage to be accepted in the palace. I was once dreaming to become one- Yet, here I am getting old without ever seeing inside the palace." she said.
Grace just smiles faintly, " If you become a maid in the palace, there is no way I will be full every dinner. So, you should not think about that."
and again Mrs.Karley laughs, " I will make beef stew so, just comes over after you finish your work, okay?"
Then, Grace nods as she then excuses herself to walk quite a while to the carriage stop where many people also lining up to ride on it and go to the Capital City of Solisa Empire. The famous empire where is known as the empire that is blessed by the god of the two suns, Solis, and- it is not exaggerating because literally, it is. Even Grace, could not get used to the whole sky whenever she goes to work every morning and looks at the two suns gracefully rising above the sky. It is given a bright beautiful purplish and orangish color before becomes a beautiful clear blue sky.
... Then, after a quite long time, not far from her eyes- a tall and big walls stand and surrounded a big circle capital that filled with a grand symbol of a god with two suns on its hands. The golden color dominates the whole atmosphere of the entire magnificent city. Quite different from her district because of course, even though her district still is part of the Solis Empire- it is quite different from the whole capital city where most of the people who stay are someone who could afford the high price of the lots.
' Even in the strange fantasy world, human society will be divided, huh?.' she said while pondering on her hands in the crowded carriage. ' ..., just like before.' before she was not even Grace Harvey, a normal countryside girl from an unknown world... before, she was someone who understand that two suns exist, or even before she knows that there is a world where people uses magic in their daily life.
Then she gasped, confused with what things she just thought. ' What the heck?' as again, something she should not think comes across her mind when she is not aware. It is confused her so much as it happens quite often recently.
she sighs, ' It is even harder to find the answer than final examination.' and she looks at a boy who sits opposite to her who filled his chubby cheeks while eating the bread that his mom gave. He's innocently looking at her which makes her smile warmly.
' Let's just forget about that.'
as she then chooses to hang out with the boy and the mother while the carriage going.
Then, just like that after a quite long journey, she arrived in the very magnificent palace of Solisa Empire.
***
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This world is called Althera. Something that her parents was once told her about a long time ago. It was so natural and she was never asked anything about it. Not only because Grace Harvey, herself, was known, and somehow is always known as a typical absent-minded person- but also because she never thought that it is matter to think about.
Who will ask questions about the world where she was born, anyway?
Maybe, several people might do so, but, her who is known as an absent-minded person who made her mother in this world worried about her moving out to the capital alone- will not ask that question no matter what.
" Grace, if you finish that, please do the east area." said the head maid from this Tertius Palace that is mostly being used by government servants, so that it is not strange for this palace to be crowded as it is right now because how great Solisa Empire is. " After that, you can get your break."
and she nodded while giving her a little bow in her long maid uniform before moving on cleaning the rest luxurious windows with an engraved beautiful pattern that is decorated with expensive material. She does not know about it though, but, fortunately, they are something that she could easily clean up. Then, after it becomes clean and sparkling, it is something that makes her happy.
'... grandma always mad at me if I am not cleaning it rig-'
and her smiles gone.
then she looks at the suns rise from the window as if she is lost in her thought. "... am I crazy?"
" If you asked me while looking at you stand up there and talking to the window, yes, you are crazy." Said Ella, her colleague in this area. " I know it's near lunchtime but, don't stop. Work!"
and Grace clicked her tongue, annoyed. " Workaholic."
" Shut up. Clumsy," she said. They just then pass away gracefully as the conversation never exist, and then, after both of them had already finished their works, they are now sitting together in the cafeteria that is specialized for the palace's staff.
It is quite a big cafeteria that could be filled by thousand people inside, with an elegant decoration that dominates with golden-colored decoration. Of course, it is still far from how elegant and extravagant the main palace is, but, this cafeteria could be one of the proofs of why the imperial servants are wanted by many people. The food is all prepared by the palace's chef for all the staff from all of the divisions except for the executive one. So, that is why many random people exist from maids, government officials, knights, and even gardeners. Yet, Grace even doesn't know how many divisions are inside the palace.
" Ah, I am so nervous," said Ella while filling her mouth with a spoon of food. Chews it for a while before looking at her again, " The test two days again, and I still not yet ready!"
and she picks up her food nonchalantly and takes a glance at her who shows her anxiety on her face. " ... You will lose immediately if you show that face."
Then, she glared at her. " I only do this in front of you."
" ....' the imperial maids should not show any emotion toward anything.', you lose. The end." she said.
" Then go take the test and show yourself!"
and she rises her shoulders. " Not interested." and smiles silly while picking up the last meatball of Ella's. " Don't worry, you will pass," she said. " My grandma said, ' just trust yourself and practice harder and you shall not fail'" she said.
then she laughs. " You never once met your grandmother, though," she said. " But, thanks." while somehow not aware that Grace's stopped her motion for a while.
' But, I do have.' and it still vividly engraved in her mind. The sweet smile with her wrinkles who liked to watch drama. Then, she will just sit beside her while working on her homework,
" ... Look! Look! how can a human could be that pretty?" she said while hitting her shoulder quite hard with her small fragile hand.
" Ah, come on grandma! it is just make-up!" she said.
" What is make-up? Look she looks pretty! She looks like an angel!" she muttered. " What is her name again? ... A...Amnara? Am...hmm...PRINCESS AMARA!" and she smiles widely with her faked teeth and looked at the tv while grinning.
" What is the drama about?" and she squinted her eyes as she looked at a beautiful woman with white hair, white eyebrows, white eyelashes, and sparkling golden eyes." Uwa, she is an albino?"
"No, She is an Epith!" her grandma said. " People hurts her -"
" HEY!"
and Grace startled while looking at Elle who is frowned at herself. " ... are you okay?"
" ... What?" and she tilts her head in confusion.
" The bell has ringed. Back to work, I guess?" and looks at her in the same confusion. " Please, don't sleep late or this kind of thing will happen."
and Grace just laughs as she then stands up while picking up her tray.
" The Palace might be busy, not only because of the Middle-level examination but because an international delegation will be here." and she looks at Grace who seems not to know anything. Then she sighs, " ... Come on, at least for this matter you should know. Ah, but... there is some strange rumor going on-"
" Come on, you talk about people in the middle of-"
" Not like that! but, they said that the Emperor brings a cursed child into the palace."
" What?"
and Elle nodded in a very serious manner, " They said, the child has white facial hair and the eyes sparkling in golden. Her appearance so terrifying they then covered it behind a long veil."
"... You kidding?"
" No!" she said as she then looks at the big clock in the wall and panicked. " Whatever, I will go back to my station. See you."
and Grace just smiles confusedly, as she then being reminded with a replay in her memories of someone who feels like her grandmother. Something so confusing because Grace still remembers vividly her own grandmother's grave that she once visited back when she was still a child. Yet, she could not deny the fact that she feels a strong feeling that the old woman inside her is her grandmother and she is the same person as the girl who talks to this old woman. Even they look so much different.
But, despite her confusion, the memory inside her is playing in her mind.
" She covered herself with a veil because people think she is terrifying!" said the old woman with her enthusiastic expression while looking at a drama on television.
... and it is so confusing as Grace never knows what television is.
She never heard about 'drama'.
Yet, her memories somehow understand it immediately.
then she laughs, " I really am going crazy."
***