"I hate waking up so early in the morning but I had to do it today because after doing nothing for 2 months, I finally got a job. And guess what? I'll be working at the castle! Yes, you read it right; the castle. Well it all began when I was... Okay, no need to tell that long story. To make it short, my mom used to work at the castle when she was alive and she was the person the queen trusted the most. Because of that simple fact, here I am, being summoned by the queen to work for her even though I'm not really so good at anything. Am I happy? Am I excited? Am I nervous? Well, yes, yes, and YES! I'm not that nervous about the queen since I've met her once and she is REALLY nice! What makes me nervous are her two daughters. The princesses might be brats and mean and make me eat some poop or something. Ugh! Why am I even thinking of this? Well, my mom said they are nice but I'm doubtful since my mom says that all the time. I can still remember how she described my cousins as loving and sweet children but when I met them, they pulled my hair just because I didn't want to let them have my precious toy. Bad memory, really."

"Joohyun, are you up? The royal guards are here to pick you up!" Bae Joohyun's dad shouted.

"Yes, dad! I'm coming!" Joohyun closed her diary and put it in her bag before leaving. 

The royal guards were sent by the queen to accompany Joohyun to the castle. That's just how special she treats her mom's whole family. Non of them needed to work because the queen sent them food and allowance every week since the day her mom died, but her dad never accepted it. He wanted them to work for what they have and growing up seeing that, Joohyun became that kind of person too. Still wanting to help them, the queen summoned Joohyun to the castle after hearing the news that she stopped going to school and is currently unemployed.

----------------------------------------

"Your majesty, Ms. Bae has arrived", the royal guard bowed.
"Please let her in", said the queen.

Joohyun goes in and bows down.

"Thank you for this opportunity, your majesty. I'll never break your trust and work as hard as my mom did" said Joohyun, with her head still down.
"Lift your head up, please. I want to see your face."

"She still uses the word 'please' even though she can command me informally. She's really nice! But just like the time when I saw her, her face is still covered" Joohyun told herself.

Joohyun lifts her head and smiles at the queen.
Seeing her face, the queen teared up.

"Y-Your majesty! Did I do anything wr--"
"No, no, calm down. You just look exactly as your mother. I miss her."

"I thought my head would be cut off" Joohyun's thought made her gulp.

"I'm sure she's still around, watching over all of us, your majesty", Joohyun told the queen.
"I agree", the queen nods.

"You may proceed to your training now. Mrs. Gazel will be your personal trainer. See you again in one week" the queen smiles at Joohyun.

Mrs. Gazel nods and gives her a sign to follow her. She's an aged yet fine looking woman. When you look at her, you'll quickly know that she spent her entire life, working in the palace, just like Joohyun's mother.

"Thank you, your majesty. I'll be going now." Joohyun bows before following Mrs. Gazel.

While walking with Mrs. Gazel, Joohyun looked around, feeling really amazed about everything; knights training, maids lining up to make way for them and all.

"I didn't know castle maids need to be trained", said Joohyun.
"Of course, they do. This isn't just a normal house", said Mrs. Gazel.

Mrs. Gazel suddenly stopped walking, making Joohyun bump into her.

"I'm sorry. I was looking around with so much amusement, that's why I failed to see you", explained Joohyun.

Mrs. Gazel turned around to face her.

"By any chance, are you thinking that you'll be working as a maid?" Mrs. Gazel asked.
"Uhm... Won't I?" Joohyun awkwardly asked.
"You are here to take your mother's position."
"Yes, I am aware of that. That's why I know that I'll be working as a maid."
"Did your mother never tell you she was working here as the princesses' personal assistant?"
"She did?! I mean, no, never. But aren't assistants and maids the same?"

"She really is trustworthy." Mrs. Gazel whispered to herself.

"Well, maids only work here to wash the dishes, clean the palace, prepare the table and all. They aren't even allowed to touch the queen or the princesses but the personaly assistant gets to do that and there's another thing you must know before we start this training, I believe" she pauses.
"You must never tell anyone about this. The queen hired you, thinking you'll be like your mother. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Mrs. Gazel, I understand." Joohyun starts shaking, feeling really nervous because she knows she's about to hear a top secret.

"You'll be working in the castle the whole day. But at night, you'll be working at the queen's place."
"Isn't this the queen's place?" Joohyun gets confused.
"Until 6pm, yes, but after that, no. The queen wants a normal life, still. That's why at night, she lives in the city. And her daughters, Princess Seulgi and Princess Seungwan do the same. Why must you never tell anyone about this? The fact that they are royalties put their lives in danger. But with no one knowing about that fact, they'll be safe."
"Now I understand why they say nobody knows how the queen and princesses look."
"Always remember that once this fact comes out, each and everyone of you who works here in the palace and knows about that fact would be punished and killed."
"Okay, that's scary but I don't need to be scared as long as nobody would spread the news. Anyway, how many people here know about this?"
"Two, you and I."

Joohyun's eyes got big and she got stunned, imagining Mrs. Gazel might betray them but she would be blamed, instead, because the queen trusts Mrs. Gazel much more than her.

Mrs. Gazel snaps.

"Stop imagining the scenario of me betraying the queen and having you killed because I won't do that. Let's go now."
"Wait, how did you--"
"You are exactly like your mother." Mrs. Gazel laughed inside her, remembering the same way her mom reacted, about 30 years ago.

‐----------------------------------------------

"Who would have thought training could be this cruel and tiring? Ahh, I don't even know if I'll be able to wake up tomorrow on time." Joohyun sat on her bed. She took her diary to write her whole day's story on it.

"I've met the queen and Mrs. Gazel. Just like the first time I saw her, the queen's face is still covered. I wonder if I'll be able to see it once I start with my work. Oh! My work! I thought I'd be working as a maid but it turns out my mom wasn't a maid but a 'personal assistant' who lived with the queen and princesses! Isn't that amazing?! The not-so-amazing part here is, I only have a week to train so Mrs. Gazel asks me to learn everything in a blink of an eye. It's not like I'm no human, right? But what else can I do? I'm already here and here's my chance to make a living and help my family again. I won't let them down. I can't let them down, so I'll do this." Joohyun keeps her diary and goes to sleep.

[THE NEXT DAY]

"Hey..."

Joohyun hears someone calling her.

"Who is--" She looked around and found a beautiful lady hiding in a corner, calling her. Joohyun walked towards her and asked, "Who are you and why are you calling me?"
"Can you help me? You see, uhm.." She chuckles awkwardly.
"I got my hands a bit dirty while trying to get an apple from a tree." She shows her hands to Joohyun.

"That's not a bit dirty. It's VERY DIRTY!" Joohyun thought.

"Can you bring me some water and soap? Or maybe just water, that will do, as long as i don't look dirty."
"Why don't you do it yourself?"

Not knowing what to say, the lady stayed silent.

"I also want to help but I'm here right now for a training. My trainer, Mrs. Gazel, I don't know if you know her but she just went somewhere for a while and if she doesn't see me here when she comes back, she might kill me. So, I'm sorry." Joohyun explained.
"I'll also be dead with these dirty hands. Please help me too. I'll give you anything you want, I promise. Just help me, please?" 

Joohyun looked around and didn't see Mrs. Gazel anywhere.

"Alright, alright, I'll do it. Just wait."

Joohyun filled that glasses she has for her training in carrying trays with water and carefully took it to the lady.

"Thank you. These are more than enough" she smiles brightly at Joohyun.

"Ms. Bae..." Mrs. Gazel calls her.

Joohyun quickly turned around, feeling really nervous.

"What are you doing there?" Mrs. Gazel asked her.
"Uh.. I'm-- I'm training!" She lied.
"Make her look somewhere else." The lady half-whispered.
"Make her look at the west?" Joohyun asked.
"Are you saying anything?" Mrs. Gazel frowns.
"Make her look away, dummy!"
"Dummy?!" Joohyun wasn't able to help heself from saying it out loud out of shock.
"Did you just mock me?!" Mrs. Gazel raises her voice.
"No, Mrs. Gazel! I was talking about--" Joohyun looked around.
"--that bird!" She points behind Mrs. Gazel.

Mrs. Gazel looked that way, giving the lady a chance to run. 

"I see no bird," said Mrs. Gazel. 
"It was finally able to get away. It kept on bumping here and there earlier." Joohyun tried to laugh as natural as she could.

Mrs. Gazel completely forgot about everything after noticing someone running away.

"Princess Seungwan?" Mrs. Gazel sighs.
"She must have done something again..." She covers her face with her palm.

"Am I stressing you up? I'm sorry if I am. I'll work harder." Joohyun bows.
"You better do."

[AFTER A WEEK]

"Your majesty, she's ready. I only thing left is the 'enlightment'", said Mrs. Gazel.
"That's good. I'll let you handle everything before she start her work tonight."
"Yes, your highness."

Mrs. Gazel goes to Joohyun's room to talk with her privately.

"You'll be using a fake name, for you'll need to have a fake identity while living in the city for no one to find out. Your mom used to play as your mom's sister. Since you're still young, you'll be acting as her niece, her late sister's daughter she needed to take in because she lose her mom."
"That would somehow not be a lie since I'm really my mom's daughter but what name would I use?" 
"It would be Irene. The princess and the queen also use english names to hide their identity. Read this book for you to know the story of your 'family'. Finish it before 6pm because you'll start working tonight."
"Are you serious?! This is kind of thick!"
"Read it or say something wrong, expose the truth about their identity and die?"

Joohyun nods aggressively. 

"I will read it. I'm sorry for complaining." Joohyun apologized.

She spent the whole day, reading. She didn't even get to have a meal because of it. After reading, she took her diary to write on it again.

"Starting from today, I'll be Irene outside the palace. But that doesn't mean I'll not be Joohyun anymore. Only my name would change. I have to get used to introducing myself as Irene or else I might die. This is cruel but exciting at the same time. I wonder what the princesses and queens name are, outside the palace. Thinking of it, Mrs. Gazel said the queen and princess use fake names. I think one princess isn't using one, or maybe she just said it wrong. Whatever. I need to go now."

She fixes up to meet Mrs. Gazel behind the palace as planned.

Irene rode the vehicle and found the lady who almost got her into trouble a week ago inside as the driver.

"Dirty hands?!" Irene got shocked.
"Uh, hello..." She awkwardly greets her.
"Dirty hands? Why do you call her that?" A middle-aged woman riding the same vehicle asked.
"You see--" the lady wanted to explain herself, but Irene talked too loud and quick, she wasnt able to.
"Ma'am, she almost had me killed a week ago when she asked me to bring her some water to wash her hands that got "a bit" dirty while I was training", said Irene.
"Did you play with mud again?!"
"No, mom!"
"Climbed a tree?!"
"No, but it's..almost like th--ouch!" She got her head hit by the woman's hand fan.