Princess's Struggle for Survival-Chapter 168: Sourness after hearing that Princess gave cat to Amalia

Everything seemed to be heading in the direction Amalia least wanted. The next day, Livia still hadn't come to the castle. The room next door remained empty, devoid of any vitality.

The bright moonlight fell on the bedside, illuminating the girl's smooth and thick golden hair.

Amalia curled up her body, with only her head sticking out. Her pink lips were slightly pursed, and her thin, cicada-wing-like eyelashes trembled gently with her breathing.

Although her eyes were closed, Amalia wasn't asleep. On the contrary, her mind had never been more alert.

The sound of the wind whistling through the window, the subtle ticking of the clock, and the thumping of her heart from her left chest, everything around her was faithfully fed back to her brain. Every little change was clearly discernible.

People often find it difficult to cherish what they already have. These things that can be easily held in the palm of their hands often only reveal their true value when they are lost, leaving one filled with regret.

Amalia had never doubted her feelings for Livia. The latter treated her with meticulous care, and her every word and action exuded concern. Amalia liked this gentle older sister very much and had long realized how important she was in her life.

Livia had given her a sense of family that she hadn't felt in over a decade, and she had also affirmed her existence and abilities. Like moonlight, Livia had suddenly shone into her life at an inconspicuous moment, illuminating her who had been in darkness.

Yet, even though she was aware of this, when the day of separation finally came, Amalia realized she had underestimated Livia's importance in her heart.

Livia wasn't just a symbol of love and warmth; she was also the driving force behind her survival and progress.

No matter how much loneliness she endured during the day, as long as night fell, that angel-like person would descend upon the castle, alleviating the loneliness and longing in her heart.

When Livia was there, every dawn was a countdown to their meeting, and every evening was the prelude to their reunion.

As long as she could think of meeting Livia at night, everything else became bearable.

This chapter is updated by freēwēbnovel.com.

As long as Livia could stay... as long as she could stay...

Hugging a corner of the pillow, Amalia curled up even tighter. She pressed her cheek against the pillow, her skin gently rubbing against the soft fabric.

Perhaps due to her overly suppressed mood, Amalia's stomach had been uncomfortable all day. Aside from frequent acidity, she sometimes felt nauseous.

She had barely eaten anything and had mostly thrown up whatever she did eat. In the end, she only managed to drink some mushroom soup to fill her stomach.

Her stomach began to churn again. Amalia bit her lip and tightly wrapped her arms around the pillow. Under the covers, her ten small, delicate toes unconsciously gripped the bedsheet.

If she threw up again, there would be nothing left.

Outside, the silver moon hung high in the sky, and the stars were sparse. The cool evening breeze brushed through the garden in front of the castle. The purple roses she and Livia had planted together had long since sprouted and were gently swaying in the night breeze.

On the other side, in the princess's chambers, Astrid, who had just finished bathing and changing, pulled over a chair and sat gently by the window. Lyra stood behind her, using wind magic to dry Astrid's hair.

The room was filled with a sweet rose fragrance, the same scent Astrid usually carried. Lyra carefully controlled the wind elements with her spiritual power, her gaze on the other's hair particularly gentle.

The deep night, the cool breeze, and an unbelievably beautiful imperial princess, Lyra felt the atmosphere around her was exceptionally peaceful, and her mood subtly became more relaxed than before.

"Princess Astrid..."

"Hmm?"

"Have you ever thought about changing your hairstyle?"

"..."Hearing Lyra's words, Astrid snapped out of her thoughts, her tone slightly cold.

"Changing my hairstyle?"

"Yes."

"Why are you asking me this out of the blue?"

Taking advantage of drying Astrid's hair, Lyra's fingers naturally slipped into the strands. Feeling the smoothness of the woman's hair, the girl's heart softened even more.

"I used to braid my mother's hair when I was at home, so I'm quite confident in this area."

"If Princess Astrid is interested, I could give it a try."

Astrid usually didn't bother with braiding her hair. Whenever she went out, she let her silver hair naturally fall behind her. Occasionally, when she sparred with Lyra, she would tie her hair up tightly with a ribbon.

Thinking of the remnants of her villainous persona, Astrid frowned and asked coldly, "Can I interpret this as Lyra saying my usual appearance isn't good enough?"

Lyra quickly shook her head, her tone tinged with nervousness. "I-I didn't mean that."

She really just brought it up casually.

Besides, Princess Astrid usually let her silver hair flow freely, which suited her temperament perfectly. Especially when paired with the black dresses she often wore, it added an elegant yet mysterious charm that was particularly attractive.

Seeing the pink-haired maid slightly frightened, Astrid pursed her lips. "Good."

After a while, feeling that her hair was almost dry, Astrid said, "Since you know how, let's give it a try."

She wasn't in a hurry to sleep anyway.

Receiving Astrid's command, Lyra nodded and said, "Okay." She gently held the strands of hair in front of her and carefully began braiding, following the steps from her memory.

Feeling the subtle touches from behind, Astrid silently looked out the window.

The dense palace buildings blocked her view. Scattered starlight fell on the palace's spires and the glazed tiles on all sides, refracting bright yet cold points of light.

Her chambers weren't actually close to Amalia's castle. One had to pass through the alchemy workshop and several intersecting main roads to get there.

This was the third time Astrid hadn't gone to Amalia's place, and she didn't know what the golden-haired girl was doing now.

Was she reading or painting, or had she already gone to bed?

Thinking of Amalia in the castle, Astrid's gaze deepened. The faint moonlight fell into her crimson eyes, adding a sense of fluidity.

Lyra diligently braided Astrid's hair, her gaze inadvertently falling on the dressing mirror nearby. Through the mirror, she saw Astrid's unfocused gaze.

Princess Astrid... is she troubled by something?

Lyra continued braiding out of habit, her fingers moving without pause, fluttering back and forth like two nimble butterflies.

Having stayed at Countess Charlotte's private estate last night and now spending the night in her own bedroom, combined with Astrid's absence the day before and her later decision to bring the fourth princess out of the castle, Lyra didn't need to think much to guess what Astrid was pondering.

Princess Astrid... must be thinking about Princess Amalia...

At this thought, Lyra unconsciously lowered her gaze, a complex sense of helplessness rising in her heart.

Countess Charlotte could help Princess Astrid with her title and experience. The head maid was capable and efficient, handling both internal and external palace affairs while also possessing considerable combat skills, making her the perfect bodyguard.

Only she was insignificant. Aside from serving tea and water, grinding medicine, and combing hair for Princess Astrid, it seemed there was nothing else she could do to help.

She also wanted... to do more for Princess Astrid...

Outside, the silver moon hung high, and the two, each with their own thoughts, remained silent. After a while, Lyra stopped her movements.

"Princess Astrid, I'm done."

Hearing Lyra's words, Astrid turned her head to look in the mirror. The silver hair in her vision no longer flowed freely but was braided into several thin strands, resembling wheat ears encircling her forehead.

This braiding style did give her a somewhat medieval princess vibe. The wheat-like braids added a gentle and intellectual aura, but it didn't quite suit Astrid Calliste's cold exterior. If anything, it might have been more fitting for Livia in Amalia's eyes.

Lyra also noticed this, and paired with Astrid's cold expression when facing her, it didn't seem to match well.

"It seems... it's just okay..." Lyra said.

Astrid nodded in agreement with Lyra's assessment. Seeing this, the pink-haired maid pursed her lips slightly and then reached out to gently undo the laborious result of her work.

It seemed Princess Astrid was still better suited with straight, flowing silver hair.

After finishing this, the pink-haired maid spoke up at the right moment.

"Princess Astrid..."

"You seemed distracted while I was doing your hair... were you thinking about Princess Amalia?"

Astrid's crimson eyes narrowed slightly at this, but she didn't deny it.

"Yes, why?"

Hearing Astrid's cold inquiry, Lyra felt a moment of panic. After a moment, she lowered her voice and responded softly, "It's just... didn't you say Princess Amalia might come to live here soon..."

"I wanted to know what the fourth princess is like, so it would be easier to get along with her in the future."

Amalia was, after all, Astrid's younger sister, and the latter seemed to like her very much. Once she moved in, they would, in a sense, be living under the same roof. Lyra hoped to get along as well as possible with the golden-haired girl.

Astrid was somewhat surprised by this. She casually brushed back the long hair that fell over her back, a strand of silver hair dancing in the air and inadvertently brushing against Lyra's nose.

Thinking about it, she should probably tell Lyra about Amalia. In the original story, Amalia and the heroine didn't get along well. Aside from temporarily forming an alliance against her, their common enemy, they were usually quite cold toward each other. By the later parts of the novel, Lyra even planned to force Amalia to stop the war through assassination.

"Amalia is actually a very well-behaved child, though she might seem cold in daily life."

"She loves painting, and I'll have Elise buy another set of painting tools soon."

"Also, Amalia doesn't like spicy food much. Her taste leans more toward sweet flavors, so she loves cakes and chilled grape juice..."

Listening to Astrid's lengthy explanation, Lyra raised her eyes and noticed the princess's expression in the mirror had softened without her realizing.

It seemed Astrid liked her younger sister more than she had imagined.

"Oh, and we'll need to prepare more cat food. You remember the cat Elise caught, right?" Astrid said.

The cat? Lyra suddenly recalled that a few months ago, Elise had brought back an orange cat from outside the palace. That cat wasn't afraid of people at all. As long as you fed it a few cakes, it would let you pet its belly, and its back fur was incredibly soft, almost as soft as her own dog's.

Lyra actually quite liked that stray cat, but since she was living under someone else's roof, she couldn't suggest keeping it. When Astrid gave the cat away later, Lyra had been quite upset for a while.

So the orange cat was given to Princess Amalia?

At this thought, a faint sense of sourness rose in Lyra's heart. But remembering what Elise had said about Amalia's circumstances, this baseless sourness quickly dissipated.

Princess Amalia had been staying in the castle all year long, with no one to talk to. She must have been stifled to the point of illness.

She needed this little darling more than I did.

"I'll go prepare tomorrow," Lyra said.

Astrid nodded and added, "The cat is now named Auri."

"Did Princess Amalia name it?"

"Yes."

Who would have thought that the once agile orange cat had now grown considerably fatter under Amalia's care.

"It would be best to buy two more yarn balls for it."

"Alright, Princess Astrid."

After finishing the related matters, Astrid spoke in a low voice, "You should go rest too. Today counts as overtime for you."

Usually, by this time, she would already be in the castle, accompanying Amalia to sleep.

"It's my duty, Princess Astrid."

Performing a standard maid's curtsy, Lyra tilted her head and gave Astrid a sweet smile.

"Good night, Princess Astrid."

"..."

"Good night."

Watching Lyra leave the room, Astrid stood up and sat on the edge of the bed. After a while, she lifted the covers and lay down.