Talia stepped into the bath.
A moment later, cold water cascaded over her head.
Pushing aside the hair covering her eyes, she rubbed at the stinging sensation.
The nurse seemed anxious.
After pouring an entire bottle of fragrant oil over her, she began scrubbing her body vigorously with a large brush.
It was closer to washing a dog than attending to an Imperial Princess.
But Talia accepted it without complaint.
Her dulled senses meant it didn't hurt much.
“Come out now.”
After dousing her head with cold water four times in succession, the nurse urged her impatiently.
Water dripping from her body, Talia climbed out of the bath.
The nurse wrapped her in a large towel, dried her, and dressed her in undergarments and a petticoat in the blink of an eye.
She never knew someone slower than a grub could move so quickly.
Watching in wonder, she saw the nurse wipe the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand before rushing out to summon the maids.
Soon, Talia found herself surrounded by dozens of women.
No.
Surely there weren't dozens.
One person became two, two became three, then four before her eyes, so there were probably fewer.
Regardless, they looked like dozens to Talia.
Her dizzy eyes blinked before she closed them altogether.
By the time she opened them again, the maids had finished preparing her and were leading her somewhere.
It felt as though she had been swept away by a current into the endless sea.
When she regained her senses, she found herself riding inside a large carriage.
Talia gazed out the window with clouded eyes.
She saw the dark, ink-colored sky and the enormous cathedral standing beneath it.
The moment that hazy sight entered her vision, an inexplicable anxiety reared its head.
Staring at the entrance of the cathedral drawing closer and closer, cold sweat poured down her body.
She seized the door handle.
Just as she was about to throw the door open and leap outside, the carriage came to an abrupt halt.
The sudden stop sent Talia tumbling onto the floor.
Her knee struck hard, and a sharp pain shot all the way to her pelvis.
Biting down on her lips, she swallowed her groan.
Then—
The carriage door swung open, and a deep shadow poured over her.
Startled, Talia raised her head and held her breath.
Varkas stood there, surrounded by the dim gray curtain of the overcast sky.
Clad in pure white ceremonial attire and loosely draped in an overcoat embroidered with the crest of House Siorcan, he bent down toward her.
She could feel those blue eyes slowly tracing every feature of her face.