Chapter 26
It must be true, Rosetta thought, that a room can tell you a lot about its owner.
Unlike the colorful paintings in the hallway, there was nothing in the room. The walls were painted a dark blue, and only the necessary furniture such as a bed and a desk were placed. There was a fireplace on one wall, decorated with small statues, and a large window on the other side, half-hidden by a red cloth.
The only luxury here was the fluffy carpet on the floor. Rosetta didn’t have to look hard to recognize that it was of the finest quality, made in Catan. Carpets and woolen goods from Catan were so well known that they were favored even in the Kingdom of Lisa.
The woman who showed her the room never mentioned that this was Rashid’s room, but Rosetta could tell by the atmosphere that this was where he lived. Oddly enough, the room mirrored its owner’s aura.
Running her fingers across the age-worn desk, Rosetta soon approached the window and opened the curtains to look out, where she could see not only the castle but also the sights of Edirne. It was only then that she realized she was in a completely unfamiliar place.
Just then, there was a knock on the door.
Four maids burst through the open door carrying a large bathtub. Rosetta’s mouth dropped open at the sight.
“Is this…. bath water?”
“Yes, just wait a minute!”
One of the maids replied cheerfully, then set the tub down beside the bed. Soon they were busily sprinkling something into the water and laying out a change of clothes and towels on the bed.
Rosetta blinked her eyes a few times as she watched. In Lisa, there was always a bathhouse in the quarters with clear, warm water, and she used to bathe in it. But here, judging by the fact that the maids had to carry all these heavy things, there was apparently no such facility.
[From now on, I will take over. You are all free to leave.]
At the brunette maid’s words, everyone else left the room, and she turned to Rosetta and said in a cheerful tone, “I’m Benny, I’ll be taking care of Rigaina from now on. Is the water temperature okay?”
Introducing herself as Benny, she spoke Latisse clumsily and gestured to the water with her hand. Rosetta realized that meant she wanted to check the water temperature herself, so she quickly dipped her finger into the water.
“I think this is fine.”
Regardless of the circumstances, Rosetta was so happy to have a bath after three days that she almost wept tears of joy. It had been so routine to end the day with a bath, and she was now acutely aware of how precious it was.
Rosetta waited for Benny to undress her, as her maids did, but strangely enough, she did nothing but stare at her.
“Ah…”
Rosetta soon realized that Benny wasn’t going to do it for her, so she hastily undressed. She kept forgetting that she was in a completely different place, not the royal palace of Lisa.
Rosetta piled her clothes on a chair, along with the ribbon that held her hair up. As she stepped into the water, the fragrant scent enveloped her, and Benny began to scrub her body with a soft washcloth. The treatment she received in the bath was not much different from that in the Lisa Kingdom.
“You have such beautiful hair, Rigaina, and your skin is so soft,” Benny said, smiling from ear to ear. She began to use every other word she could think of to compliment her on her beauty.
So far, the men had been hostile to her, with the exception of Shika, and the woman who had led Rosetta here had been strangely neutral. Benny, on the other hand, has been friendly from the start.
Rosetta wondered if the younger ones, unlike the adults, held no ill will toward the Basques, or if they had no idea what had brought her to this place, and as she thought about it, she heard Benny suck in a small breath.
“What’s wrong?”
“Oh, nothing.”
But contrary to her words, Benny’s eyes were glued to Rosetta’s right back. Rosetta soon figured out why Benny was doing it.
“It’s a scar from when I was a kid, but it’s all healed up now.”
There is one scar on her back that she’s had since childhood. She had been stabbed by something, but she couldn’t remember how. According to her parents, it was from playing in the garden.
“Thank goodness, an arrow would have hurt so much.”
“An arrow? Is this a scar from an arrow?”
Benny nodded. “Yes, this is an arrow.”
“No, it can’t be.”
Being born a princess and living only inside the royal palace until now, and then being shot by an arrow? And her mother and nanny, who knew about the wound, had never mentioned it, so Benny must be mistaken.
Benny tilted her head a little, then resumed her diligent rubbing of Rosetta’s body.
“I was really surprised to see Rigaina earlier, it’s the first time Riga has brought a woman here. Everyone else said it was just a guest, but I thought it was Rigaina, and then my friends said it was ridiculous and just…”
Rosetta burst out laughing at Benny’s ramblings. In the royal palace, maids were strictly forbidden to speak before Rosetta, except for her nanny. Never did she think a maid would speak to her first like this.
Although this situation was very unfamiliar, it didn’t make her feel bad.
“Benny, where did that man go?”
“That man?”
“Rashid, I mean, Riga.”
“Oh, Riga went to Elder Calante.”
“Elder Calante? Who is he?”
“He’s Riga’s maternal grandfather.”
Elder, I didn’t know much about the term, but it seemed to be a title here, perhaps akin to that of a noble. If he is the maternal grandfather of the chieftain he must be of that status.
“Is Elder Calante important to him?” Rosetta asked, judging by the fact that he went to him as soon as he arrived.
Benny nodded quickly. “Yes. Without the Elder, Riga wouldn’t be what he is now.”
“Then Rashid won’t be back today?” she asked, realizing that since it was so late, it was unlikely he would be back before the end of the day.
Benny’s eyes widened for a moment, and she stared at Rosetta for a long moment, before giving her a sly look that seemed unbecoming of a young girl.
“Aha, is it because you’re feeling lonely?”
“No, it’s not that…”
Rosetta quickly shook her head, but Benny seemed to have an already made-up answer.
“Don’t worry. Riga always comes back the same day he goes to Elder Calante’s house, and he won’t be back tomorrow, he’ll be sleeping with Rigaina.”
“No, that’s not what I…”
“He’s not seeing any other woman. He doesn’t have any other women.”
“Okay…”
Rosetta didn’t know why the conversation had veered off in that direction, but denying it here would only lead to more words, so she just nodded. And she was somehow relieved that he would be back today.
“What’s the name of this flower, anyway?”
Rosetta held up a purple petal floating on the surface of the water. It was something she’d been wondering about earlier. For some reason, she recognized the purple flowers she’d seen so many times on her journey here.
“It’s lavender.”
“Lavender?”
“Yes. It has a nice scent and is used in baths and as medicine for sickness.”
“I see…”
Rosetta had never seen it before in Lisa, but it seems to be a flower that is mainly native here.
The purple petals, which are more blue than red, are pretty and have a very unique scent. At first, she thought it would be sharply scented, but the lingering scent was very delicate. It has a wild scent, but it has an elegant charm.
Most of all, this scent reminds me of an ocean I’ve never seen before. I wonder if this is what it must feel like to be in the ocean, with blue water all around you.
Meanwhile, with great skill, Benny washed away the dirt that had accumulated on Rosetta’s body over the days.
Another bucket of water was brought into the room. While Rosetta rinsed the soap residue from her body and hair, the other maids followed Benny’s instructions and carried out the used bath water.
“Put this on.”
When the bath was finally finished, Benny held out a piece of clothing. It was a white garment made of soft cotton. It was easy to put on by simply pulling it over your head.
“Let me dry your hair.”
After having Rosetta sit on the bed, Benny began to dry her hair herself with a towel. Just as Rosetta was getting tired, an empty chair came into her view.
Rosetta jumped to her feet. Rashid had given her the ribbon, which she had surely put there with her clothes earlier, but now there was nothing.
“Where did the ribbon go?”
“Yes?”
“The ribbon, the one that was on the chair over there.”
Benny just tilted her head, probably confused by what Rosetta was saying because she was talking so fast.
Rosetta then pointed her finger at the chair, and by this time Benny seemed to understand what she meant.
“The maids took your clothes earlier.”
“Took them where?”
“All the clothes to the flame… fire…” Benny stuttered, unable to think of the right word.
“Fire? They’re burning them?”
Benny nodded quickly at Rosetta’s words, “Yes. The maids will burn them.”
“What?”
Rosetta’s mind quickly went blank.
It doesn’t matter if the maids burn the clothes or whatever, but that ribbon is something they should never do. It is the only keepsake of Rashid’s mother!
“Rigaina, what’s wrong…”
Rosetta gripped Benny’s shoulders.
“Where is it? Where did they go?”
“Rigaina, I will go and–”
“I’ll go, just lead me there!”
“But…”
“Benny, that’s the only thing Rashid’s mother left behind!”
“Oh!”
Suddenly, Benny seemed to realize the gravity of the situation. Benny threw open the door and ran out. Rosetta ran down the hall after her, water dripping from her hair.
Their arrival caused everyone in the kitchen to look up in surprise.
[Benny? What the hell is going on?]
A well-built woman came over and asked Benny. Benny looked like she was about to cry.
[Did someone just come to burn clothes?]
[Yes, I put them in there a little while ago].
The woman pointed to the hearth of the fireplace. Rosetta understood what she meant and ran to the fireplace and knelt down in front of it.
“Ri- Rigaina!”
Benny shouted in alarm as she saw the soot on her freshly bathed skin, but what came next was even more alarming. Rosetta had stuck her hand into the flames of the fireplace.