The Queen's Path

Chapter 5: The Unexpected Incident at the Palace Dinner

Rose Palace was a sprawling complex of palaces, with each adult royal family member having their own residence. After the early passing of her parents, Wilhelmina had moved into their former residence, known as the "Little Buckingham Palace."

The palace earned this name for its English-style architecture, inspired by the grandeur of the original Buckingham Palace, though on a smaller scale. Each palace in the Rose complex had a name derived from renowned historic estates; for instance, the Emperor’s palace was called “Sanssouci,” while the Crown Prince and his consort resided in the “Little Versailles.”

Wilhelmina's affinity for English architecture stemmed from her grandfather’s estate, Skylark Manor. The moment she set eyes on the beautiful house, she fell in love with it.

According to the Emperor’s instructions, the quarters of Prince and Princess Adams were preserved, while Wilhelmina resided in a grand suite on the second floor of the west wing. This suite had a parlor, a sunroom attached to a large terrace connected to the master bedroom, three additional bedrooms, a gym, a study, a walk-in closet, and four bathrooms, with the master bath equipped with top-of-the-line amenities. The basement and the rear garden each featured a swimming pool, one of which was an indoor heated pool.

Yet, the young girl didn’t fully grasp the luxury of these amenities. After a bath attended to by her maid, Wilhelmina climbed into the wide, soft bed and soon drifted into a deep sleep.

Hansburg, however, wasn’t as fortunate to get any rest. During afternoon tea, his transfer order had come through, officially assigning him to the Royal Household’s Secretariat as Wilhelmina’s official private secretary.

While his young charge slept, Hansburg went to the Secretariat to meet his new supervisor, familiarize himself with colleagues, and gain a better understanding of his duties.

The promotion sparked both envy and admiration among his former and current coworkers; luck like this was unprecedented in the empire’s history.

Hansburg graciously accepted the congratulations, with a maturity that belied his youth—he was not yet twenty-two but carried himself with the calmness of a forty-year-old. If he claimed he hadn’t anticipated this day, it would have been a lie. Yet, he didn’t allow himself to become blinded by the sudden rise.

His family, the Hansburgs, had a long lineage of mid-ranking military officers and no noble status. His grandfather had achieved wartime honors, but his father had never held a post in the imperial departments. Now, Owen Hansburg had surpassed expectations in the capital’s inner circle.

In the Department of State Affairs, he had been a low-ranking clerk until Wilhelmina’s summons reached the department. At the time, his coworkers had been more focused on mid-year reviews than on bringing back a little girl from a distant, underdeveloped planet.

If she had been a beauty like Princess Annabelle, his colleagues might have been more interested. That’s how they had joked at the time.

Hansburg had volunteered for the task, humorously dismissing it as a “galactic babysitting job.” He boarded the spacecraft to what was widely considered a remote and backward world.

The journey had been pleasant. Wilhelmina was an intelligent, polite child, who wasn’t fussy except for two quirks: she disliked olives and insisted on watching Channel 6 on the Monstlanka Children’s Network. Beyond that, she had no demands.

Hansburg thought it was merely a trip—a light, almost vacation-like task—until he met the Emperor and was immediately appointed as her private secretary.

He knew that his newfound glory was tied to that doll-like little girl. From that moment on, their fates were intertwined.

When Wilhelmina woke, she found Hansburg had changed uniforms. The black military garb with silver trimmings had been replaced by a dark blue three-piece suit, making him look more approachable and adding a touch of noble elegance.

“You look like a butler,” the child commented.

“A secretary isn’t all that different from a butler,” Hansburg replied, kneeling down and slipping a pair of new leather shoes onto her feet with gloved hands.

“Your grandfather, His Majesty the Emperor, is hosting a family dinner in Sanssouci Palace. Do you remember the dining etiquette I taught you?”

“I haven’t forgotten everything,” she replied impishly, playfully tapping her feet on Hansburg’s knee.

Hansburg gave a doting smile. “A few mistakes will be forgiven today.”

Wilhelmina leaned down to kiss her sleeping cat, Lucy, before letting Hansburg take her hand and lead her out.

In the small banquet hall of Sanssouci Palace, the family sat at a long table. Wilhelmina was seated to the Emperor’s right, across from the Crown Prince’s family, and next to Princess Catherine.

Wilhelmina struggled to spear a grape on her fork, but the slippery fruit kept rolling around her plate. Frustrated, she pressed harder, sending the grape flying in an arc right into the Crown Princess’s bowl of red beet soup, splashing bright red drops onto her ivory evening gown, making it look like a crime scene.

The Crown Princess shrieked in surprise, clearly flustered.

The Crown Prince cast his wife an indifferent glance and said in a low voice, “Can’t you be more careful?”

“It wasn’t me!” she snapped, throwing her napkin down as she rose to change her clothes.

Annabelle’s sharp gaze landed on Wilhelmina, who blinked back with wide-eyed innocence, causing Annabelle to hesitate, wondering if she’d misjudged the child.

Meanwhile, Princess Catherine wiped her mouth and said cheerfully to Wilhelmina, “Sweetheart, you must try the Milanese veal shank—it’s delicious. And next time, you can come to my place; our French chef makes the best escargot in the empire.”

The Emperor took a sip of red wine, sighed contentedly, and surveyed his children and grandchildren.

“It’s such a blessing to have the family gathered together for dinner, isn’t it?”

Everyone smiled and nodded in agreement.

After dinner, they all moved to the drawing room. Clearly, everyone would be staying with the Emperor for a traditional, if somewhat tedious, evening.

“Amelia, my dear, let’s have some music,” the Emperor called from by the fireplace.

The twin sisters curtsied. Amelia sat at the piano, while Georgiana, standing beside her, began singing a nightingale aria with her young voice.

For Wilhelmina, it was her first time experiencing such an atmosphere and hearing such beautiful music. She sat on the edge of the sofa, her chin in her hands, listening in fascination. When the performance ended, she clapped enthusiastically.

Everyone turned to look, and she sheepishly lowered her hands.

“My dear Willie,” Annabelle said gently, “we don’t clap here.”

“Well, that’s dull,” Wilhelmina said. “They were wonderful and deserved applause.”

Georgiana’s face flushed. “We’re princesses, not performers!”

Wilhelmina looked taken aback, clearly uncomfortable.

“Now, now,” Princess Catherine cut in to diffuse the situation. “Georgiana, don’t be so touchy. Willie didn’t mean any harm—she just liked your song.”

“We don’t need to take children’s disagreements too seriously,” the Crown Princess chimed in, “but I do hope her etiquette instructor is diligent enough to help her improve.”

The Crown Princess’s remark was like a slap to Wilhelmina. Though young, she could hear the rebuke. Her face flushed with shame and anger.

She looked up, wanting to defend herself, but Princess Catherine placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “I think Willie’s already well-educated,” she said. “All those rigid rules ought to be retired, don’t you think, Father?”

“Yes, yes, indeed,” mumbled the Emperor, already feeling the evening’s drowsiness.

Just then, Karns burst into the room wielding a toy sword, charging around and making a ruckus. The girls shrieked and ducked out of the way, but Wilhelmina’s eyes lit up.

“Cool! Is that the Saxon Knight’s Sword from Warriors of the Dragon?”

“Hey, good eye!” Karns boasted. “It’s the genuine article, signed by the lead actor. You can touch it.”

Wilhelmina reached out, but Karns quickly pulled it away.

“If you touch it too much, it’ll mess with my ‘aura.’”

“If you were strong enough, it wouldn’t affect you,” she replied, having memorized the film by heart. “This is a sword for the strong. If you’re not strong, you don’t deserve it.”

“Well, we’ll see about that.” Karns puffed out his chest confidently.

Watching them, Princess Catherine chuckled as she stroked Wilhelmina’s hair. “I’m sure you two will be good friends. And remember, Karns, I’ve told you about sharing.”

“No way!” Karns made a raspberry at Wilhelmina and ran off.

The next morning, Wilhelmina woke to see Hansburg standing by her bed, holding a small sword.