After many days of preparation, the night of the much awaited banquet finally came. There was only an hour left before the party officially starts, so the head maid gathered the servants in the hall.

"Today, many powerful nobles will be gathering in the palace to celebrate the imperial princess' nineteenth birthday." Ma'am Olivia enunciated.

My redhead friend, Leila, kept squirming beside me. She seemed really excited. In contrast to her, there wasn't a single hint of zeal in Rumi's face.

"Work with your lives on the line!" The head maid exclaimed. "The honour of the Sun Palace rides on all of us, who proudly serve the imperial family!"

"Yes, Ma'am!" All of us answered in unison.

"If you encounter any problems, consult me first and avoid making a fuss." Ma'am Olivia added sternly. "Keep your heads lowered at all times!"

With that, we were dismissed. The servants went to their designated station. Some were assigned in the kitchen, some were positioned in guest rooms, and some were tasked to serve the nobles like me.

"Don't cause any trouble, Belle." Rumi warned me before separating from us. "You better behave."

"The hell?" My face contorted. "That bitch... Why does she make it seem like I'm a troublemaker?!"

"Now, now." Leila tried to soothe my anger. "She's just worried about you hitting your head again."

I rolled my eyes. "Worried, my butt."

Luckily, Leila and I were both assigned as servers. It's good to be around a familiar face. Anyway, we were awestruck upon arriving at the main hall.

"It's so beautiful!" My friend marveled.

Indeed, it was such a majestic view. The main hall was glowing more than usual with purple lamps, in honour of Princess Odette's eyes. Roses of the same colour also adorned each corner of the hall.

Aside from that, there was also a wide variety of cuisine prepared in the hall, such as the seafood specialty of Izumo from the east, the pastries of Muehler from the west, and even the exotic food of Surinam from the south. How extravagant!

My mouth almost watered ftom the abundance of food. I was still admiring the entirety of the party when a male servant approached me.

"Belle," The dude tapped my shoulder. "The grand duke requested for your presence in his chamber."

"What the heck?" The servant was startled by my seemingly annoyed reaction. "Did he say why?"

"W-Well, he didn't state the reason." he answered.

I sighed in exasperation. What does he want with me this time? Honestly, I don't have time for him.

Tonight's gonna be hectic for many reasons. First, all the important characters of the novel will cross each other's path in the banquet. This will also be the first appearance of Ingrid, the protagonist.

Second, a murder might take place in the garden while everyone's busy sipping wine. The victim is supposed to be me, by the way. I can't remember the exact details, but it wasn't an ordinary death.

"The culprit was possessed." I mumbled to myself.

Black magic was involved. It's the foreshadowing of the empire's enemies lurking in the shadows, who will make their first kill in the banquet as a declaration of war. Again, I'm the freaking victim.

Upon arriving at the grand duke's chamber, I knocked on the door twice. "Your Grace, it's Isabelle. I was told that you requested for me?"

"You may enter." He answered casually.

When I unfastened the door, I found the grand duke in the room fully dressed. He was clad in a military uniform, which emphasized his tall and well-built stature. His silver hair was also brushed up neatly, giving him a fresh and youthful look.

"Your Grace, how can I help you?" I inquired.

"Isabelle," He beamed. "There's a loose button."

My mind buffered for a moment. "I'm sorry?"

"There's a loose button." Alistair reiterated then pointed under his breast plate. "Close it for me."

Dude, are you kidding me? You called me here just to close a fucking button? Don't you have hands?

Despite his flippant request, I entered his room and did as he told me to. While closing the loose button, I prayed to every existing saint and asked them to grant me all the patience in this world.

"Pfft." The grand duke suppressed his laugh. "You look like you want to strangle me to death, hm?"

I faked a smile. "I wouldn't dare, Your Grace."

For a brief moment, his eyes stayed on me.

"I apologise." Alistair remarked softly. "The truth is, I simply wished to see you before the banquet starts. I haven't seen your face all day, Isabelle."

My heart pounded at his words. He's becoming more and more vocal of his interest towards me.

"Your Grace, do you have a crush on me?"

"I'm afraid I'm too old for that, Isabelle." He tilted his head innocently. "If anything, I desire you."

I shot him a horrified look. "What?"

He only feels that way because he hasn't met the heroine yet. Once he sees Ingrid later, he'll fall head over heels for her. I doubt that he'd even remember my existence. He'll be a lovesick man.

"I appreciate your honesty, Your Grace." I bowed respectfully. "But I'm sure your desire is fleeting."

"How can you be so certain?" His eyes twitched.

I smiled bitterly. "Because I am but a lowly maid."

"Enough." He raised his hand. "It seems that you're the type who likes to complicate things, but I am a simple man. To me, you are an attractive woman."

The way his golden eyes landed on me felt like he was shaken by my words. I was trying to draw a line between us, but it seems that no line could ever stop the grand duke from wanting someone.

"It doesn't matter if you're a maid or a princess." He walked past by me. Alistair looked hurt and disheartened. "My desire isn't based on status."

And it was clear that Alistair wanted me.

The grand duke stopped by the doorway and gave me a last look. "Have a pleasant evening, Isabelle."

With that, I was left alone with a heavy heart.

To be honest, I was almost swayed by the attention and sweet words that Alistair kept giving me. I am, in fact, attracted to him as well. But whenever my heart was about to give in, I reminded myself that I'm just an insignificant extra in this tragic story.

I don't even have the time to think about love when I'm already too busy trying to survive.

When I returned to the main hall, the banquet had already started. For the first time, I saw the female lead in the flesh, who reunited with Prince Dion.

"Dion?" Her sweet voice filled the formal and tense air of the hall. "You're the crown prince?"

Since I had met the villainess, I thought no woman could impress me anymore. I was mistaken, since the heroine was so beautiful to the point that her beauty was blinding. Her pink hair cascaded like a waterfall, while her emerald eyes resembled lush green fields. She was so radiant and full of life.

Even the grand duke, who said that he found me attractive as a woman, couldn't take his eyes off the protagonist. He was also allured by her beauty.

"It's okay, Callista." I whispered to myself.

I turned my back and quietly left the scene.

Go ahead. While you're all busy worshipping the female lead, I'll do my best to survive this chapter.

---

Yesterday, I spent hours trying to come up with a perfect plan to prevent my demise. While doing so, I sorted the information that I have on hand.

First, the female lead is supposed to catch the murderer red-handed in the garden, along with my lifeless body. Second, the man in question is under the influence of black magic. Since I can't recall the specifics, I have no idea about the type or extent of his abilities. Also, he was possessed.

I still don't know how much of the story am I able to change. In the prologue, despite my efforts to save myself, the novel progressed as it should.

"Call me a wimp all you want." I hugged my knees while hiding inside the closet. "I just want to live."

It was cowardly but this was the best plan I've got. After all, I don't know the exact contents of the novel and I only recalled a single passage.

"As long as I stay away from the garden and hide from the culprit, I'll be safe." I convinced myself.

The heroine would probably be fine even if she encounters the murderer as written in the novel. She has Prince Dion and Grand Duke Averill.

Compared to her, I only have myself, so you gotta understand why I'm hiding here like some rat.

Anyway, I actually got myself a pretty nice hiding place. This was a room located in the Sky Palace, which has been desolate since the empress' death.

I settled on the servants' quarters at the back of the Sky Palace and chose a random room of my liking. This room was even better since it had a built-in closet where I can hide myself.

Since all the maids and servants have occupied the Sun Palace, there's no one in this place at the moment. I was there alone inside the closet, like a newborn fawn trembling in the darkness.

I was scared. I was so scared of everything. The anonymous mage who's watching their sinister plot unfold. The nobleman who's supposed to kill me with black magic. The predetermined fate of myself as an extra, to live and to die repeatedly.

What if I don't get past this night? What if I wake up somewhere far away, with a different name and identity once again? What of my friends here? Leila, the sweet and thoughtful child. Rumi, whose tongue was sharp yet always laced with worry.

What about Alistair, the second male lead?

I had planned to watch him from afar. It's okay even if he falls in love with Ingrid in accordance to the novel. I can live through that. At the very least, I wanted to see him live and be happy.

If I die here tonight, will I ever see him again?

My mind was filled with those thoughts when I heard light and careful footsteps outside the room.

No way... Is the culprit searching for me?

The door to this room made a creaking sound. The footsteps became louder, an indication that whoever it was had already entered the room.

I grabbed the kitchen knife that I brought with me and held it with both hands. When push comes to shove, I just have to fight back. The man is being controlled by black magic and I'm just a normal human, but I'm not going down without a fight.

The footsteps stopped in front of the closet.

The second he opened the closet, I lunged towards him and swung the knife in a swift. However, the man nimbly avoided my attack by stepping away from me and catching my wrist with his hand.

"Isabelle," The man pulled me closer to him. "To think that you despise me so much, to the point that you would try to kill me. I feel a bit hurt."

The sound of his voice quelled all my fears. When the moonlight passing through the window struck his face, tears escaped from my eyes out of relief.

"What's the matter?" Alistair asked, his voice taut with panic. He cupped my face affectionately. "I apologise. Did I scare you? Stop crying, Isabelle."

I burst into sobs and desperately held onto his hands that were stroking my cheeks. All the pent up fears and frustrations that I've been keeping to myself felt like a river overflowing with water.

"Isabelle," He tried to calm me down. "Hush."

The grand duke wiped my tears with his thumb.

"The only time I want you to cry would be out of pleasure in bed or out of joy while walking down the aisle." Alistair whispered to me. "It is not yet time for that, so please save your tears until then."

---