~°|| My Royal Haven ||°~

|| Chapter 7 ||

Philip was wandering in the hallways of the palace. He was on a morning stroll to clear some stuff in his mind.

That's when he passed by a door where he heard a shrieking voice,making him stop short to listen what it was all about.

"No,no,no!Lift that chin higher!Higher,I said!"the voice of a woman commanded.

Curious,Philip peeked in. He saw an elderly woman wearing a uniform similar to the maid's uniform,but it was like an upgraded version.

She paced back and forth infront of a line of younger-looking women that stood side by side.

They had stacks of books on their head while holding a pair of small plates with teacups on them. All the women had nervous expressions crossed with an irritated look.

The older woman was barking orders,telling the younger women to raise their chin higher,to raise their cups and balance the books on their head.

"Careful!If you break those cups,you clean them."the elderly woman warned.

She stopped in her tracks when she saw an eye looking through the gap between the doors to the room.

"Who are you?Are you new here?"the elder asked,making Philip flinch.

"U-Uhm,I-I..."Philip stuttered.

Before Philip could make a proper response,he was pulled in by two lady-like-looking women. The older woman stepped towards him,observing Philip.

"Good body,you look graceful,a pretty face,and nice hair...But those are the least priorities."the woman said.

"Wha..."Philip mumbled.

"Now,let's see how good you are at work."the elderly woman told.

She dug around a basket and pulled out a black dress. Next,she pulled out a white apron and what looked like a headband with frills. Lastly,some shoes.

"Put those on. Quickly now. You're late for training."the woman told.

"Huh?Who..."Philip was too confused to let out a complete sentence.

"I am Elizabeth Lavodile. But you are to call me Miss Lavodile,understood?"the woman said.

Philip only nodded. The two ladies,who were still holding his arms,pushed him into a small compartment,which was the changing room,and closed the curtains.

"Hurry now. No time to waste."Miss Lavodile called.

The prince put on the uniform. He opened the curtains,revealing himself wearing the clothing he was given.

And again,the two ladies pulled him and dragged him all the way to the end of the line of the younger women,who were trainee maids.

"Balance these. And don't let them fall."Miss Lavodile told.

She placed a stack of books on Philip's head. Then,she gave Philip two plates with teacups of each one to hold on both his hands. What Philip didn't notice was that he had to stand on his toes.

"No wonder the girls were taller."Philip thought."What have I gotten myself into?"

For 30 minutes,Philip balanced on his toes. Finally,Miss Lavodile gave two claps,making Philip sigh as other maids took off the books and the teacups.

"Alright. Next stage. Follow me."Miss Lavodile told.

The trainee maids made a single file with Philip at the end. Miss Lavodile led the girls to a room that looked abandoned. The furnitures were covered in dust,cobwebs hung in corner of the room,and the light bulb flickered.