I had been sleeping peacefully, oblivious to my surroundings, when a splash of cold water hit my face. I bolted upright, instinctively reaching for the source, and froze. A woman in maid attire stood before me, smirking with amusement.
Without thinking, I lunged, grabbing her by the neck. Normally, I would have sunk my nails deep, pierced her heart without hesitation. But this time, I held back. Still, the rage coiling inside me made my grip firm, unrelenting.
In that moment, my eyes caught my reflection in the cracked, grimy mirror across the room. This was not my body. My hair, once glossy black, now flowed in long golden waves. My lips were rosy pink, my skin fair, almost delicate. Crystal blue eyes stared back at me, and my frame was lithe yet fragile, like someone starved of proper care.
Then it hit me—a flood of memories, not my own, crashing into my mind. The life of the body I now inhabited: Beatrice Louise de Vanidestine, the hundredth concubine in the emperor's harem. Well technically she's not a concubine yet, still in the lower rank of an Attendant, in other words The emperor's royal whore, there to warm his bed.
I was Kora, Legacy of Time and Mind, trapped within this frail human form.
Beatrice was the youngest in the emperor's harem, only eighteen, daughter of a minor baron, yet ranked lowest among a hundred concubines. She had never felt the emperor's favor, never glimpsed his face. While other concubines resided in grand mansions within the palace, hers was old, crumbling, barely standing. Only three maids attended her, and of them, only Lily showed her any respect. The others… took every opportunity to belittle and torment her.
Now, I had inherited this life. I was Beatrice.
The maid's face turned a faint shade of blue as she struggled for air. I could end her life with ease, yet I released her, letting her collapse to the floor in a fit of coughs.
I crouched to her level, my gaze icy, my voice low and measured, yet laced with a danger she could feel in her bones. "You have five minutes. Get yourself and your fellow maids who have tormented me out of this mansion. Stay past that, and I will not hold back next time."
Fear shattered the smirk on her face. She scrambled to her feet and bolted without another word.
I leaned back in the rusty, tattered chair, letting the silence of the empty room wrap around me. The mansion mirrored my internal state: dilapidated, neglected, on the verge of collapse. Every creaking floorboard, every cracked wall, reflected the chaos I now carried within.
I pondered my situation. How does a concubine, the lowest of the low, rise to become an empress? Could I seduce the emperor, bend him to my will? Beatrice had briefly considered it, but she lacked the cunning and ambition to act. I would not make the same mistake. I would not rely on weakness or chance. I would take power, seize it with both hands, and remove anyone who dared stand in my way.
Footsteps approached, soft yet hesitant. Lily, the only maid with a shred of loyalty, entered, her eyes filled with concern. "Miss Beatrice… all the other maids have packed up and left," she said, bowing lightly.
I let my lips curl into a small, calculated smile. This was the beginning. The beginning of a concubine's rise. And no one—neither Emperor nor harem—would stand in my way.