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Prologue
I Have Come to Serve Your Majesty
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Her days were always the same.
She opened her eyes when dawn was faintly brightening. By then, her maid—who shared her distaste for sleeping in—had already prepared water for washing. After washing, she stood before the wardrobe herself. The maid was busy preparing breakfast, so she could not attend to her clothes.
Fortunately, the few dresses she owned were simple enough to put on alone. Changing did not take long, and there was always time to spare before breakfast. As it was the hour when the sun slowly rose, she would quicken her steps around this time to find the highest place she could reach.
The spire where she lived was very tall. There was nothing nearby taller than it. She climbed to the very top of the spire and opened the window wide.
She could see very far. Past the bushes visible as tiny patches far below, all the way to the blue, rippling waters in the distance. Her gaze always reached the far-off horizon and stopped there. Following the light of the rising sun, the horizon shimmered red.
She stood motionless, gazing at that horizon until her maid called for her. Then she took a deep breath. The refreshing dawn air filled her lungs completely.
Today, too, that distant horizon was tranquil, without a single shadow.