Princess’s Struggle for Survival

Although she was a bit reluctant, considering how much Livia had helped her and how little she had given in return, Amalia decided against keeping the painting for herself.

As long as Livia stayed by her side, she could always paint more in the future.

Hearing this, Livia's lips curved into a smile, her tone carrying a hint of joy.

"Then I'll take it~"

She couldn't see Livia herself, so if she wanted to know the specific features, she would have to rely on Amalia's painting.

After chatting for a while about the details of the painting's creation, Amalia openly admitted to peeking through the door.

"I'm sorry... I was too cold to you back then..."

If she could go back, she would never have treated Livia that way.

Hearing this, Livia smiled and gently ruffled Amalia's hair.

"I'm not angry. Anyone would be cautious when suddenly meeting a stranger."

At least in their subsequent interactions, Livia became increasingly convinced that Amalia wasn't particularly difficult to get along with.

Seeing the smile on Livia's lips, the unease in Amalia's eyes slightly eased. But soon, she remembered something else, the strand of hair left on her pillow, which likely belonged to Astrid.

If Astrid and Livia's relationship was as close as she imagined, she would have to change her strategy.

She couldn't openly criticize Astrid, as that might lower her standing in Livia's eyes.

It would be better to subtly and indirectly drive a wedge between them, gradually distancing their relationship.

Thinking this, Amalia narrowed her eyes slightly and spoke up.

"Sister, there's something I want to ask you..."

"What is it?"

"I want to sell all these gemstones."

With that, Amalia stood up and took out a tattered court dress from the bottom of the wardrobe.

Livia looked at the dress, one side of which was empty while the other was adorned with several gemstones. After a moment, she spoke.

"Were the gemstones you sold me before from this dress?"

For some reason, the more Livia looked at it, the more familiar the dress seemed.

Amalia nodded and answered softly, "Yes, I took them off one by one..."

Noticing that the dress seemed to have been deliberately damaged, Livia asked gently.

"If you were just removing the gemstones... the dress shouldn't have been damaged like this..."

Hearing Livia's question, a subtle emotion flickered in Amalia's heart, and she spoke slowly.

"Because it wasn't me who damaged it..."

Perhaps out of a slight sense of guilt towards Amalia, when Hibbort confined her to the ancient castle, he gave her the only treatment befitting an imperial princess.

The luxurious dress, similar in style to what Astrid usually wore, the exquisite honeysuckle brooch, and the velvet bedding that only the palace nobility could afford.

All of this was later discovered by Astrid, who moved into the palace.

As an unrelated princess without blood ties to Hibbort, Astrid always feared that one day she might lose the emperor's favor.

Thus, she took "special care" of Amalia, who was seen as an easy target.

Consumed by jealousy, she threw away the precious brooch and destroyed the white princess dress meant for the golden-haired girl.

Not only did she offer no compensation afterward, but she also falsely accused Amalia of starting a quarrel with her, punishing the latter by depriving her of dinner for an entire month.

From any perspective, Astrid was utterly malicious towards Amalia.

Long-buried memories suddenly resurfaced.

Livia looked at the tattered white dress before her and finally realized where the sense of familiarity came from.

This was indeed the princess dress that the original owner had personally destroyed.

Unexpectedly, Amalia had kept it and used the gems from it to trade with the maid.

Seeing Livia staring at the dress in a daze, Amalia narrowed her eyes, hesitating whether to continue her story.

If she brought up that it was Astrid who had ruined the dress, would it seem too deliberate, exposing her true intentions?

Wasn't Livia curious about what had happened to this dress?

After a few seconds, seeing that Livia still hadn't asked, Amalia pursed her lips and decided to reveal the answer herself.

"Once, Princess Astrid came to the castle... and ruined the dress..."

She still remembered how Astrid had cut the fabric with a knife in front of her and thrown the brooch over the fence.

As for resistance, not only did Astrid hold a far more significant place in Hibbort's heart than she, a bastard daughter, did, but Amalia had no chance to see the emperor, nor any means to voice her grievances. Any wrongs she suffered had to be swallowed in silence.

Hearing Amalia mention herself, Livia fell silent for a moment before speaking in a complex tone.

"Astrid... indeed went too far..."

Despite having almost all of Emperor Hibbort's favor, Astrid was still unsatisfied, jealous of Amalia, who had royal blood.

The original Astrid's character and narrow-mindedness left Livia speechless.

To simultaneously offend both the future heroine and the villainess, Astrid's knack for self-destruction was undoubtedly among the top three in the original story.

Feeling that Livia's tone wasn't as intense as she had expected, Amalia blinked and softly added,

"Maybe she was in a bad mood that day... she even threw away my brooch..."

Without Amalia's reminder, Livia could recall the events of that day and feel just how excessive the original Astrid had been.

Bullying a child was bad enough, but doing so with such a haughty attitude was almost like physically attacking her.

No wonder Amalia harbored such animosity towards Astrid. Anyone would dislike such a malicious stepsister.

"Astrid was truly immature..." Livia murmured.

This statement was both for Amalia and Livia's own judgment of the original Astrid.

If Astrid hadn't dug her own grave so many times, Amalia wouldn't have made her the first target of retribution upon ascending the throne.

Recalling the original novel's ending, where Astrid died miserably in prison, Livia strongly suspected that Amalia had secretly tortured her in jail after taking the throne.

This blonde tyrant was the epitome of holding grudges; she wouldn't let her stepsister die so easily.

As a chill ran through her body, Livia softly asked, "Let's not talk about Astrid for now. Does Amalia urgently need money to buy something?"

Amalia still had some unused funds with her, so there was no need for such urgency.

Amalia's intention wasn't really to exchange for money; she just wanted to use the dress to lower Astrid's standing in Livia's eyes. Seeing that the effect was minimal, she slowly replied,

"It's not that urgent..."

"I just wanted to buy a special dining plate for Auri and prepare some food for him..."

As soon as she finished speaking, Auri, as if aware that Amalia was talking about her, obediently pressed her head against the girl's palm and gently rubbed it.

Livia nodded, her tone gentle.

"If that's the case, there's no need to sell all the gems."

"I also like Auri. The plate and dried fish can be considered a belated welcome gift."

With that, Livia reached out and gently stroked Auri's back. The orange cat's thick fur felt exceptionally smooth under her hand, making her reluctant to let go.

Watching Livia lower her head to pet the cat, Amalia fluttered her eyelashes a few times, then wrapped her hands around Auri's belly, lifting the cat up so that her soft head was near Livia's palm, making it easier for her to continue petting.

Looking at Auri before her, and the cat's owner behind her, Livia smiled as she touched the cat's ears.

She remembered when they first met, Amalia had shielded Auri so tightly, afraid to let her touch him. Now, she was actively bringing the cat over for Livia to pet. The change was indeed significant.

After petting the cat for a while, Amalia suddenly spoke up.

"Sister."

"Yes?" Livia looked up at Amalia.

Amalia said, "I like you."

Just like how siblings in ordinary families like each other, she liked Livia.

"..."

After a brief silence, Livia replied, "I like you too."

At least the Amalia she knew wasn't the blonde tyrant summarized in just a few sentences in the book.

She also had a longing for love and, like a child, desired the attention of an elder.

If someone could illuminate her during these dark times, perhaps Amalia wouldn't become the tyrannical emperor of the future.

Hearing Livia's response, Amalia's eyes lit up, but then she heard Livia ask, "Why are you suddenly telling me this?"

Amalia often spoke directly, but this level of straightforwardness was indeed a first.

"I just wanted to tell you my true feelings."

Amalia whispered, her emerald eyes meeting Livia's.

"I like you the most."

What she really wanted to say was, could you like me the most too?

Seeing the sincerity overflowing in the girl's eyes, Livia suddenly felt a pang of guilt. She casually tucked a strand of golden hair behind her ear and softly said,

"...I'm happy to hear that from you."

If you knew that the silver-haired princess you hated the most was the very person you called sister, would you still like her?

Both harboring their own thoughts, the two sat by the bed petting the cat. After a quarter of an hour, Livia went to the next room to revise her manuscript, and Amalia followed with a book.

Under the soft yellow light, Livia dipped her brush in ink to make slight adjustments to the novel's plot.

Beside her, Amalia focused intently on the pages, her legs together and her arms resting on the desk.

Auri curled up in the space between the books, occasionally wagging her tail.

Livia's work hours today were slightly shorter than the previous night, so she and Amalia could return to bed earlier.

Removing her outer garments and leaving only her underclothes, Livia slipped into the bed.

She sniffed lightly; the sheets and pillow carried the faint scent of Amalia.

"Sister... Can you tell me a story?"

The golden-haired loli hugged Livia's arm, her cheek gently resting against the skin.

"What story would you like to hear?" Livia asked.

Amalia softly replied, "Anything."