This Villain Wants To Be The Empress
- 05 -

Estera continued to look ahead, seeing Cassius smilingly staring around. Besides, Brigitta gave a warm look to all the would-be servants in the hall. Esther looked angrily at Cassius until she was awakened by Anin.

"Afta, it's our turn soon. Don't be nervous, we'll pass it." said Anin trying to calm Estera down.

Estera was speechless only answering Anin with a faint smile. A few minutes passed, the taster messenger who was the chef in the palace gave a different reaction and response. Starting from group one with the usual reaction to the confused reaction when looking at the cake from group three. When the group of five, Estera, Anin, and Secca came forward to hand it over to the six-man tasters.

"Can you explain to each one why you chose this tea and its companion?" ask one of the tasters.

Secca answered first. "We make each tea to be enjoyed in some situations. This is Russian Caravan tea, a tea that has a heavy aroma is very suitable combined with spice cakes such as Gingerbread".

The person in front of him simply nodded and looked at Estera for a turn. "This is Rose Congou tea which is famous for its soothing aroma, it is perfect when drinking it in the afternoon with sweet and fresh fruit cakes".

It was Anin's turn to answer. "And this is jasmine tea, a light tea that is very suitable to drink at dusk with honey cakes. The light and sweet taste of both of these blends is in demand every weekend to be enjoyed while relaxing".

The tasters did not say much and began to taste all the tea from group five, and their reaction this time was the same as the previous group, just ordinary. Even one of them stared dislikefully at the tea that the group of five provided. One by one the golden spoons touched the mouth along with the cake they had scooped. The reaction was a little satisfying because one of them seemed to like gingerbread, but two of them even looked at the disgust of the gingerbread. Is it because too much ginger is used?

Estera himself could see Anin sweating a little on her thinness. The nervousness was even more when the Emperor's emissary told the representatives of the group of five to retreat back to the starting place without any comment from the tasters, in contrast to the previous group who got comments from tasters. Disappointment can also be seen from the expressions of the other five group members, accompanied by satisfied and pityed gazes from the other group. Whether the wrong thing is in the tea or cake, which must be the reaction of the tasters is very unsatisfactory.

Anin took the backmost spot, it seemed like she was going to cry. Cessa who had been feeling excited at once her feelings turned into disappointment, their hard work seemed to be going to waste after this. A bad Carrie helps cheer Cessa up with Secca. Jason followed Anin in the back. Estera was also disappointed, if this was the case then his efforts would fail.

Mimia patted Esther's shoulder, trying to encourage her. "Hey, don't be sad. You're great, I think you're just a spoiled girl, but you can clear the test until this second. We are all great to survive, we have tried our hardest, is not until this point an extraordinary thing? Many have not passed the previous selection. Next is still a chance".

Estera let out a long, deep sigh. It's fine, Duke Rigvsen will definitely help me. Anyway what sucks is the tasting chefs or something. After all, they were not gods who could arbitrarily judge something.

Arizet had just been silent to regulate the rough breathing. The conscious Esther nudged him.

"Sorry, Afta. My anxiety seems to be relapsing" he said with a faint smile. Without a cue, Mimia embraced Arizet intending to calm him down. This mimia is not actually evil, but rather mature and wise, Estera thought.

Adnan who saw his group like that could only shake his head, "you guys are nothing. We're gonna graduate, anyway. What's weird is that if we don't pass, it's weird that we don't pass." he said.

No one ignored Adnan's words, because his words even made others feel more hopeless. Adnan is very anxious about this group, why should he be in a group whose people easily give up like this?

"Listen, don't let me be disappointed with you guys, can you get excited just a little bit? The disappointing thing is not a matter of graduating or not us, but how our cooperative efforts are felt to be in vain just because they did not graduate. You think the point of this challenge is just to cook? No, it is precisely this challenge made for us to learn the meaning of cooperation between members. Be grateful we can cooperate even though it is not until the end." annoyed Adnan staring at his group.

Everything is realized, there is also a point Adnan said just now. The most important thing they learned from earlier was not cooking, but there was another meaning in it, namely cooperation and cohesiveness. Patience in doing it all became the point they just realized. The most important thing is not good cuisine but the meaning of the challenge.

Estera seemed dizzy thinking about all this, should she ask Duke Rigvsen for help now? But he thought there was a point in Adnan's words just now, but would they really pass just because of that? Or is there any other meaning to Adnan's words?

"Right, there's still plenty of time for us to wait for results. And don't forget our answers are in paper, we can. Cessa let's get excited" Carrie said excitedly.

Cessa wiped her tears and looked at Carrie with a laugh, "haha! Right, I was like a whiny baby earlier. Let's wait for the results!" Secca smiled when she saw Cessa smiling, she stroked Cessa's back slowly, she felt calm when her sister turned back like before.

Jason came by clasping Anin's hand, while Anin just looked down and covered her flushed face. No one asked anything about what happened to the two lovebirds, as they began to sink into each other's thoughts.

...***...

The evening of the big banquet was held as a form of appreciation of the participants in the dining hall. The dining room of this hall was very spacious, enough to accommodate people up to hundreds. And now is also the moment of waiting, the moment of determination to enter the next stage.

The announcement will be read by Emperor Cassius. Everyone who had been focusing on food, now turned to look at the Emperor who was in front of the dining hall. No sound came out until the Emperor announced the group that would graduate.

By standing firm and authoritative it holds the paper that there are selected groups that will pass at this stage. "Good night to all aspiring imperial light escorts. I am very happy because you are very diligent in following this selection and I hope that you can be earnest in this task. The most important thing is that you don't run this selection just because of money, right?"

All of the would-be maids were silent staring at each other.

"Haha, I hope you guys don't. If you're negligent, I could have cut your head off in front of everyone".

That's no joke, stupid, but today you're so handsome! inner Estera.

"I don't like to wait, so the next group is one, three, six, eight, ten, eleven, twelve, fifteen, sixteen, and last twenty. Besides sorry, you guys didn't pass".

Disappointment began to envelop the room, especially for the group of five. Those who had felt that they would be fine and hoped to graduate, in fact nil, it was only their dreams.

Estera could feel a sense of disappointment from other members, ranging from Arizet whose anxiety relapsed again, Anin who cried in Jason's chest, and Cessa who tattered in Secca's arms. But not there, Emperor Cassius drew attention again.

"Oh, I forgot something. There is one group that I will escape because it is a group that has already consort Brigitta and I agreed from the beginning to qualify. Group five, you're elected".

The members of group five immediately turned to look in shock at the Emperor who turned out to be glancing at them. The other group members who did not pass also glanced at group five with envious feelings. What's the matter? Could it be like this?

The others were silent, this was out of the zone of hope indeed, but this was enough to make them happy. At least they graduated, but something was weird.

"Human? Did you do anything?" this time Cessa asked Adnan with the suspicion he was harboring.

"You think I can't wear an insider? My mother was the empress' only personal servant, so my mother slightly seduced the empress to let us go." she explained proudly.

Others do not think, this is not as horrendous as before, but does this not mean cheating?

"That means we're cheating? Isn't that overkill?"

"Anin, look, this isn't cheating, but it's a play on reason" Adnan said proudly.

After the last sentence from Adnan, no one else wanted to open their voice.

...***...

"Greetings to the month of QillianG the glorious King Zeckiliam Warnden".

The man put the letter he had brought on the king's desk. King Zeckiliam Warnden or King Liam is the King of the north who is famous as his northern tyrant.

King Liam simply stared at the letter without the slightest initiative of reading or touching it. Then the man in front of him cleared his throat and fixed the glasses that were almost down.

"As long as it's not Estera's info, I don't want to take it. Take back the letter, Theo." said the King.

Theo sighed harshly, it had been the past few years that his boss had always talked about that stupid girl. Maybe when he wanted to mention the name of the girl. I don't know what made this cruel King like the village girl that not even known to many people.

"Your Majesty, this is an important letter. It has nothing to do with Miss Barckif. But this has to do with former empress Maya De Cransrifgh. You sure you don't want to read it, your majesty?"

Hearing the word 'Maya', King Liam immediately took the letter. Open letters show long writing without dialogue. And now it was King Liam's turn to exhale violently his breath, throw the letter on the table and massage his temple.

"How can my man die again? Do I need to send all the troops to ambush that crazy woman?" the upset.

Theo shook his head slowly, "what is your highness frustrated right now?"

"Ck, can you get rid of your annoying nature at a time like this, Theo?"

"I'm sorry, I can't get rid of my nature. But do you know this, your majesty? The person you like is passing the cooking test".

A mischievous smile was implied by the King. "Of course, because she's my future wife" he said arrogantly.

"That's not what I mean, your majesty. Because the group that Miss Barckif was in shouldn't have graduated, most of the judges there didn't like Miss Barckif's group's cooking".

"So you want to make fun of my future wife?"

Patience Theo patient, you can face this bull...

"You don't suspect that the Queen Mother interfered in this? He probably knew from the beginning that Miss Barckif was undercover".

King Liam propped up his chin, "i'm not that stupid. It wasn't the Queen Mother that did it, but it was Brigitta's subordinate who asked for it. Brigitta's subordinate was one of the parents of the members of the group Estera occupied".

"How do you know that?" theo asked by raising his eyebrows.

"You think I just hired you?"

"No".

"good. Now I have a task for you and your subordinates. Kill the entire family of Count Lysandres in the capital. You can, right? Kill them today".

"Sure, I will do it".

Theo left the room and left King Liam alone. The man then took something from his drawer. He took a frame with a picture of a beautiful woman with purple-eyed brown hair. King Liam then rubbed the image of the woman who had been coated in glass as a protector.

"I'll make sure no one can have you, Estera. Even dad. You see? Your father I've been beheaded, yes, so don't feel pain or constant fear, I'm here, Estera, I'm here".

...TBC...