The Crown's Obsession (WN)

Lucy could see the excitement in the maid's eyes when speaking about the newsletter. The other servants, especially the maids, were curious to know about the news written down there. Since the servants couldn't read it themselves, they depended on the lady of the mansion, who was kind enough to read it for them.

On seeing their eagerness, Lucy chuckled. She asked, "How about we all go inside the mansion and have some tea while we read it?"

"Yes, milady!" The maid smiled and quickly headed inside the mansion before going to the kitchen while calling the others. They started to prepare the tea not just for Lady Lucy but also for them.

Since Lady Lucy had come to live in the mansion after marrying Samuel, some of the rules had been changed in the Grivelle's mansion, where the lady had showered her kindness to the people around her. Senior Mr. and Mrs. Grivelle had passed away somewhere in the middle of the last two decades, leaving the mansion in Lucy's in charge as Samuel was mostly away from the mansion because of work.

Lucy treated them with care, and it only made them love and respect her more, unable to imagine that the former princess was kind and sweet.

After the maids had prepared the tea, Lucy was informed about it, and she went to the kitchen. Lucy had grown up in a restricted family with rules and restrictions that had to be followed and not to be broken. Though everyone behaved differently when Samuel was home as he didn't like giving the servants leniency, it didn't mean Lucy followed it when he wasn't around.

Lucy didn't love Samuel, at least not the way she had fallen in love with the first person she had given her heart to. It wasn't that she didn't respect him, she did respect Samuel, but it was only that Lucy didn't believe in the divide of the status.

She walked towards the wooden table that was in the kitchen and sat down on the chair that wasn't plush but hard. The maids and other servants had paused their work so that they could hear what the newsletter had to offer about yesterday's grand Hallow. With teacups in most of the servant's hands, they watched Lucy unroll the rolled parchment, and she cleared her throat.

"Devon broke the tradition by not only celebrating Hallow earlier than the usual time but also by inviting commoners to join the royal castle's ball that has been reserved only to the elite until now. I would like to commend and praise the King for this, for allowing some of us commoners to visit the castle and be part of the celebration," Lucy read the paper.

"I didn't know commoners were also invited," whispered one of the maids who was sitting on the ground.

"Maybe it is finally time to break traditions," said another.

"Sshh," shushed the servant who was standing and waiting to hear the rest of what was written.

Lucy then continued to read, "The ball that was arranged for the invitees was extravagant, better than last year as word has it that the King had personalized it according to his own taste. There were dukes and other high status people, but the same cannot be told about the High House as none of the members had been spotted in there. It makes us wonder if the High House doesn't like the balls or they have something against King Calhoun."

"The clothes were vibrant and rich with colours, and the theme of the masks never fades away. Though we must let you know that it was hard to spot the King," Lucy gave a pause, wondering what it was about. "With the masks not being pulled away, it seemed like the King had decided to mingle with the people and if you are someone who was in the ball, you might have spoken to him or stood next to him. The thought leaves an intrigue in the mind. But it also puts a question, did the King attend the ball? What if he didn't?"

"Do you think he missed attending the ball, Lady Lucy?" one of the maids asked in curiosity.

Lucy shook her head, "I don't think so. As much as the King would tell that he doesn't like it, he still attends it."

Some of the maids quickly nodded their heads.

"What else is written in there, Lady Lucy?"

Lucy continued to read to them as they didn't have any other source of entertainment, "...out of the many red and dark clothes that twirled and moved in the ballroom, the girls who wore lighter colored clothes had many people's heads turn," she read some more before she came to read the lines, "King Calhoun's sister, Lucy Greville was not seen at the Eve of Hallow, and we wonder if everything is well. This is the second time she had missed it. Since the previous King and Queen passed away, it has been noticed that she keeps her to herself and doesn't talk to anyone…"

The maid named Jamie said, "I think that was a lot of information. We must get back to work now."

"Yes, time to finish cleaning," said another maid who looked at Lucy with concerned eyes. "Don't pay heed to the lines written in there, Lady Lucy, it is just a silly newsletter."

Lucy looked up from the paper, putting a smile, and she said, "I know. You should continue with your work. Also, I might have my dinner earlier than usual."

"Yes, Lady Lucy."

The servants left without mentioning the newsletter, and Lucy looked down at the paper. The smile didn't fade away because she knew something like this would come up, and she placed the paper on the table.

She was only glad that nothing more had been written, not that the people who wrote these newsletters would live to see the next day if they crossed the line because Calhoun would bury them alive, and the thought made her smile.