Ceres woke up feeling unbearably heavy.
It was expected, considering how much she cried last night.
What she hadn't expected was how longing was also included in the discomfort and pain that her low HP amplified.
She had been missing her parents, her friends, and Zeus ever since she woke up in Solmara. But it had always been bearable.
Last night, however, when she saw the fireworks, she broke.
If she had been a weaker person, feeling that kind of pain, she might have ended her life right then and there.
Not that she could die.
Thanks to that bastard Lucifer.
Ceres let out a deep sigh.
Still curled up in bed, she hugged her knees to her chest and stared at the open window, the morning sunlight spilling into the room.
"You can't think of them right now, Ceres," she whispered to herself, but even as she spoke, tears slipped down her cheeks.
The pain began to amplify.
"Not now. Or you won't function properly. You have a goal. You have to reach that goal. Focus. Just focus."
She wiped the tears away quickly.
That was when she realized something odd.
Delphine wasn't in the room.
At this time, Delphine was usually inside, preparing her bath.
Ceres frowned.
"Ori, what time is it?" she asked.
'11 AM, Your Highness.'
"11 AM?!" Ceres sat up, her frown deepening.
Why isn't Delphine here?
She climbed off the bed and walked toward the bathroom, expecting the tub to be filled with warm water, but it was empty.
The usual set of clothes that should have been laid out for her, missing.
A sudden sense of unease settled in her stomach.
She hurried out of her room.
Legion was not outside her door, which was even more alarming.
Ceres froze, her heart skipping a beat.
"Did they… leave me?" she murmured to herself.
It would make sense.
With the Emperor gone, there was no more budget allocated to the Empress Palace.
Maybe they went to look for another employer.
Ceres clenched her fists.
Who could blame them?
It's not like she had anything to offer.
A single fruit a day wasn't exactly enough compensation for their work.
"Who was I kidding when I told them that?" she muttered bitterly.
Still, even if she understood their reasons, the thought of them leaving her alone… hurt.
She had only met two people since she was thrown into this world by Lucifer.
And she had been serious when she told them she would find a way for all of them to live comfortably.
She wouldn't have abandoned them.
She would have taken care of them.
But Ceres wasn't someone who jumped to conclusions easily.
She needed to check if they were still in the palace.
Ceres moved through the vast palace, searching every room.
She had never actually explored the entire Empress Palace before.
Her former body had been so heavy that even a few steps left her breathless.
The only exercise she ever did was running in the Empress Garden to lose weight, after which she would go straight back to bed to recover.
Now, she was seeing it all for the first time.
She searched the entire second floor.
The library was the only room filled with anything useful, with endless rows of books stacked neatly on the shelves.
The guest rooms, which should have been luxurious, were completely bare, with only a single bed in each.
It was clear that no visitors had been hosted here for years.
Then she moved to the first floor.
The dining room, which she had never used, held a long banquet table but was devoid of any decorations, making it look cold and empty.
The kitchen is almost completely bare.
She had no idea what kind of miracle work Legion and Delphine had done to feed her every day.
Sure, the food was flavorless, but considering the severe lack of ingredients, it must have been the best they could manage.
Yet she still hadn't found them.
Ceres was starting to feel uneasy.
Finally, she reached a small door tucked away in the farthest corner of the first floor.
This was the last room she hadn't checked.
If they weren't inside, then it was clear,
They had left.
She stood in front of the door, taking a deep breath,
Then, she heard a muffled sob.
Ceres's eyes widened.
"No, please!"
A desperate, tearful voice, Delphine.
Ceres froze.
Her heart slammed against her ribs.
What the hell was happening?
Was Legion doing something to his own sister?!
But, that didn't make sense.
Legion had never struck her as that type of man.
And if there was one thing Ceres prided herself on, it was her ability to read people.
It was how she had immediately seen through Ciena's bullshit when everyone else thought she was innocent.
Legion had been nothing but composed and respectful since the moment she met him.
Still, she prayed she was wrong.
Taking a deep breath, she flung the door open, without knocking, making sure whoever was inside had no time to cover up their tracks.
"I'm going to kill him," Legion's voice was seething with fury, his body shaking with barely contained rage as he held his sobbing sister in his arms.
"What's going on here?" she demanded, stepping inside.
The moment she spoke, both Legion and Delphine snapped their heads toward her.
Delphine quickly wiped her tears, but the distress on her face was unmistakable.
Legion, on the other hand, was still shaking with rage, his jaw clenched tight, his face twisted in barely controlled fury.
"It's nothing, Your Highness," Delphine said quickly, standing up and approaching her.
Ceres narrowed her eyes.
"Nothing?" she repeated. "Would you be crying like that if it were nothing?"
Delphine forced a weak smile, but it didn't even reach her eyes. "I'm fine. It was just a small misunderstanding in the Royal Kitchen earlier."
Ceres let out a long sigh, crossing her arms.
"I'm giving you one chance to tell me the truth," she said, stepping closer.
Then, with deliberate slowness, she tucked a stray strand of Delphine's hair behind her ear, her voice dropping to a calm but chilling tone.
"Because if I'm not satisfied with your answer…" she said, "…I will find out the truth myself. And trust me, it's better if it comes from you rather than someone else."
Delphine stared at her.
For a moment, her lips trembled, her body stiff with hesitation, and then, her composure broke.
She burst into tears.
Ceres panicked.
She wasn't good at comforting people.
Empathy wasn't something she openly displayed, her version of caring always came out in rude, blunt words rather than gentle kindness.
But before she could even think, her body moved on its own.
She pulled Delphine into a hug.
A real hug.
A comforting embrace that felt foreign to her.
And, to her horror, it only made Delphine cry harder.
Ceres's eyes widened as she stared at Legion, silently begging for help, but the guard looked just as shocked as she was.
He had never imagined he would see an Empress, a noble, hugging a commoner like this.
And yet, here she was, holding his sister as if she truly cared.
Delphine sobbed into Ceres's shoulder, her small frame trembling.
Legion said nothing.
He simply watched, silently standing guard, as if his presence alone could protect his sister from whatever had hurt her.
They stood there for a long while, just the three of them, in the small, dimly lit room with two narrow beds.
Finally, when Delphine had calmed down, she slowly pulled away, wiping her tear-streaked face with the edge of her apron.
"I'm sorry, Your Highness," she murmured.
Ceres shook her head.
"It's fine," she said, gently wiping away the last tear on Delphine's cheek with her thumb. "Do you feel better now?"
Delphine nodded, though her eyes were still red and puffy.
Ceres grabbed her hand, leading her to sit down on one of the beds.
Delphine hesitated, looking like she was about to protest, but Ceres simply glared at her, daring her to say no.
With a small sigh, Delphine sat.
Ceres took the spot beside her, her expression dead serious.
"Tell me what happened."
Delphine swallowed.
"If you don't…" Ceres added, tilting her head slightly, "…I'll just assume Legion did something to you."
Delphine gasped, her eyes widening in horror.
"Your Highness, no! Legion didn't do anything!" she said, frantic.
Ceres smirked.
"I know," she said, crossing her legs. "But since it's just the three of us here, and I know I didn't do anything to you, he's the only suspect left."
Delphine gulped.
She knew the Empress was trapping her.
"Now, talk."
Delphine let out a shaky breath, her hands clutching the fabric of her apron.
"I went to the Royal Kitchen this morning," she began, her voice slightly hoarse. "To collect your monthly food supply."
Ceres remained silent, listening.
"But when I got there…" Delphine hesitated. "The Royal Head Chef told me that there was nothing allocated for the Empress Palace anymore."
Ceres's eyes darkened.
"I begged him to give me at least a little, just enough for us to survive," Delphine continued, her voice breaking slightly. "But he said all the supplies were already accounted for, unless…"
She swallowed hard.
"Unless I agreed to his terms."
Ceres's fingers curled into fists.
"What. Terms."
Delphine's tears began falling again.
"He… He said he'd give us food…"
Her voice trembled.
"Depending on what I was willing to do."
Silence.
"Depending on how well I could please him."
Ceres's blood ran cold.
Her entire body stiffened as rage boiled inside her.
Her low HP only amplified her emotions, making the anger burn hotter, more explosive.
"Did that bastard touch you?" she asked, her voice deathly quiet.
Delphine shook her head.
"I, I kneed him before he could lay a hand on me," she confessed. "Then I ran back here."
She lowered her head, guilt settling in her chest.
"But he said…" she whispered, voice shaking. "That he would make sure the Empress Palace never received food again until I come crawling back to him."
She clenched her hands.
"I'm sorry," she said. "It's my fault if you don't get food any more, Your Highness…"
Ceres sat completely still.
The rage inside her was suffocating.
She felt it coiling tightly in her chest, making her breathing uneven.