In the bedroom, deep purple swan-patterned bedsheets wrapped around the slender body of the girl.
Tii lay on her side, merging her figure into this soft ocean.
She wore only a loose white slip dress, the fabric falling casually, outlining the graceful curves of her chest.
The night grew heavier. Tossing and turning, Sista couldn’t fall asleep no matter what.
She half-sat up from exhaustion, and the slip’s strap slipped off unintentionally, revealing smooth, fair shoulders and the curve of her collarbone.
“Can’t sleep again…”
The door was closed; no one would come in at this hour. That gave Sista a certain sense of relief.
In the palace, she always followed the strict rules imposed by the royal family—clothing immaculate, words and actions displaying the nobility of the Blood Clan, always keeping up appearances.
Only when alone like now did she allow herself a slightly relaxed expression.
After Moria returned, Sista became even more vigilant, never allowing the slightest slip in front of Moria.
Because she knew very well she was not yet strong enough to defeat that woman.
She once openly opposed Moria during a Council of Royal Authority meeting about reforming the Capital guards.
There were two reasons: first, the matter severely endangered the king’s and her own interests; second, since it involved many vested interests, she could exploit the ministers’ agendas to refute Moria’s proposal.
This was a reluctant move but caused Moria’s hostility and suspicion to deepen.
Sista understood all too clearly how wary Moria was of her. Allowing her to participate in the Council of Royal Authority was already Moria’s greatest concession.
If she acted rashly again, Moria would surely seize the chance to completely remove her from Steyat’s side.
If that happened, she would lose her only support, and there would be no one left to rely on—not even the dull King Steyat.
Therefore, after much thought, Sista decided to be a bit wiser and more cautious, avoiding direct confrontations with Moria unless absolutely necessary.
As she thought this, she pressed her hand on the pillow and felt around for a moment before finally grasping the familiar little bunny doll.
Sista held the doll close, cherishing it.
That said, she still couldn’t help but worry about Moria’s plan to continue the war against Warivadan.
Though the human faction’s uprising had been largely quelled by counts and other nobles, the restless public sentiment had never truly calmed.
If hatred toward the enemy worsened now…
“If the rebellious human faction and the officially organized human faction unite…”
If it truly came to that, Moria’s actions might drag the entire Blood Clan of Ansels into the abyss.
“Haha, how laughable… I am a Blood Clan Princess, yet I can do nothing.”
Sista gave a bitter, self-mocking smile, hugging the little bunny tighter.
Her fingertips gently stroked its ears, and her heavy heart eased a little.
Sleepiness finally washed over her. She lifted the doll to her face, gazing into its round, bright eyes.
The image of a silver-haired girl surfaced in her mind.
She gently pinched it.
Then, her lips whispered softly,
“Good night.”
She spoke quietly to the empty room.
In the boundless darkness far away in the sky, inside a small village nestled deep in the mountains, a cat-eared girl sat beside a flickering candle on her bed, holding needle and thread.
On the small wooden stool before her lay a pile of cotton and several pieces of faded yellow hemp cloth.
Phil gathered the fabric and was sewing a little bunny-shaped doll.
“Maybe… like this? Such a hassle. How did Su Ling manage to make hers back then?”
She complained with some dissatisfaction, holding up the rather crude doll toward the ceiling.
After leaving the valley, the uprising squad had successfully retreated from their original base and used their knowledge of the terrain to shake off the troops sent by the Count.
Still, due to lack of sufficient food and supplies, the group trekked through the mountains for several days.
Gradually, some of the older people and children began to lose strength. After a few more days, some even started falling behind.
At that time, they came across an unnamed small village willing to take them in.
The village was tiny, but since some larger rebel groups had done propaganda there during the early uprising, and the villagers had long suffered under Blood Clan oppression, they were relatively tolerant of the rebels and provided them temporary refuge.
This small uprising team thus preserved its last shred of hope.
The food problem was temporarily solved, but as autumn deepened and the cold increased, keeping warm became a serious issue.
Phil dared not reveal her identity as a former palace maid, fearing the villagers’ hatred toward the Blood Clan would turn against her.
So she lied, claiming to be the daughter of a tailor in the Capital and volunteered to sew winter clothing for everyone.
Fortunately, the villagers were simple and honest, and few doubted her story, allowing Phil to be accepted into the group.
Today was another busy day of work for her.
In the quiet of night, Phil couldn’t help but recall her life in the palace.
Every time she thought of that day, regret filled her heart.
Su Ling had personally sewn and given her the little bunny doll, but she had listened to Karsanna’s advice and thrown it away in the Abandoned Grounds.
Su Ling must have been very hurt then.
After all, Su Ling was the only one in the castle who had ever been truly kind to her.
Neither Duli nor Karsanna were anything more than casual acquaintances.
Phil knew clearly that none of them ever regarded her as a real friend.
Of course, neither did she. The palace was a web of intertwined interests; everyone maintained superficial relationships with false pleasantries.
That was the rule—the survival rule of a maid.
Even the seemingly gentle Tii was just a more skilled actress.
Phil disliked Tii, mainly because Tii was better at exploiting these rules to gain higher status.
In a world like this, a girl had appeared who broke the rules.
She shattered not only Phil’s survival laws but also Phil’s entire understanding of this world.
Despite being framed by her, she had helped her out in front of Sista, forgiven past grievances, became friends again, and was willing to trust her and Karsanna once more.
Phil understood clearly that this kindness was not naive or foolish but came from Su Ling’s desire to get along well and trust them.
After discovering she had been framed, the girl quickly realized the true mastermind was Seban and discreetly exposed him before Sista, saving herself.
Had it not been for Su Ling’s recent arrival, Phil probably wouldn’t have been so easily framed.
Phil was almost done sewing the last stitch on the little bunny. She looked it over from every angle but still felt it wasn’t quite like the one Su Ling had given her.
In fact, after that day, she had secretly dragged Karsanna back to the Abandoned Grounds, hoping to retrieve the bunny.
But after searching for a long time with no luck, she had to return empty-handed.
“Su Ling, will I ever see you again?”
If just if she ever had the chance to meet Su Ling again, could she ask her to make another little bunny for her?
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