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The White Queen Reigns – Part 04

There were girls more beautiful than her. There were meek young ladies around. But back then, you were so…

When she noticed the absentminded inspector, the mischievous smile vanished from Jacqueline’s face like a fog lifting, and she let out a yelp.

“G-Grevil?!”

“Good morning, Jacqueline.” Inspector Blois greeted with a wry expression. “What is a grown woman like you doing this early in the morning?”

“Well… um…”

Jacqueline glanced to the right, then to the left, up and down.

Wherever she looked, she saw her loyal followers, the students of St. Marguerite Academy, donned in their various costumes as knights, bishops, and soldiers, gazing up at their Queen with sparkling eyes that said they would follow her to the ends of the earth.

Jacqueline awkwardly stammered, “O-Observation?”

Inspector Blois exhaled sharply. “A very unique style of observation indeed. Typical Jacqueline.”

“Well, um, how did I end up like this? So strange… Very strange.”

Shrinking with embarrassment, Jacqueline fidgeted with the crown on her head. But the momentary unease quickly faded, replaced by a bright expression, as if she had come up with a brilliant idea.

“I know. You should try it too!” she said. “We never played human chess when we were kids, did we? We’re adults now, but it seems like a lot of fun. Come on!”

“Well, um…”

Inspector Blois let out a hesitant groan.

Then, sensing a discomforting gaze, he cast a downward glance. The students were staring intently at the pointed, golden drill atop his head.

Inspector Blois’s face gradually turned red. “Well, if you’re the white queen, then I suppose I would be um… the wh-wh-white king,” he sputtered. “Since there are two adults, it’s only natural that they take the roles of king and queen for consistency. Yes, it’s all for consistency. Definitely not because I want to stand next to you wearing a crown. So um, what I’m saying is… I’ll be the white king…”

“A rook!”

“What?”

“It really is! A pointy rook!”

“It has a cannon. This person is like a human rook! Hey, everyone, there’s a living rook right here!”

“Hey, stop it, all of you! Why are you grabbing me and calling me a rook? Wh-Where are you taking me?! No, you’ve got it wrong! I’m a king. Give me the king’s role! Hey, watch it! Something’s wrong with all of you today… You’re all in a frenzy…”

“Um, Grevil?”

Unable to stop them, Inspector Blois ran down the hallway, pushed by the students, and quickly disappeared somewhere.

The last thing that Jacqueline heard was a furious “I’m not a rook!” And so, she was left alone, watching them go dumbfoundedly, holding a branch.

Whooosh…

A cold wind, carrying bits of snow, blew in, causing Jacqueline to shrink.

“Come to think of it…” Jacqueline, now transformed into the white queen, strolled down the hallway, wearing a puzzled look. “The kids called it pointy like a cannon. When did he start sporting that hairstyle? I can’t really remember. Hmm…”

Realizing that she shouldn’t keep the principal and Marion waiting any longer, she looked around the hallway.

“I think it was before I got married. No, right before that… Yes…”

It should be this one. She stopped in front of a magnificent door and grasped the large doorknob shaped like a snake’s head.

“It was right after I got involved in that case!”

As Jacqueline stepped into the room, lost in thought, she became confused.

The room resembled the principal’s office, with its antique table and leather couch. Oriental vases and fine Persian carpets. However, there were subtle differences as well.

The walls were entirely lined with bookshelves, filled with peculiar-looking books from distant lands, densely packed together.

A similar globe was also here, but this one was twice as large, towering at a height that could rival a child. Peeking from behind the round globe, a fluffy red satin caught Jacqueline’s eye.

She cocked her head. “What could it be?” She approached the globe and checked behind it. “Oh, my. How adorable!” she exclaimed, reaching for the porcelain doll crouched behind the globe. “So lovely!”

In the arms of the white queen was a life-size doll about 140 centimeters tall, wearing a ruffled, bright-red satin dress. On its head sat a luxurious crown adorned with crimson roses, and wrapped around her feet were exquisite, blood-red shoes made of layers of delicate laces. Beneath the frills and laces was a slender and dainty physique.

Silky golden hair cascaded down its back like the mysterious tail of some ancient creature, swaying gently from side to side despite the absence of a breeze.

Her almond-shaped, captivating emerald eyes betrayed fierce intellect, weariness, and melancholy far removed from that of an inanimate doll, yet buried within, like an eternal beacon, was a gleam reminiscent of passion. It was staring back at Jacqueline as if it were alive.

“Oh, what a marvelous doll!”

As if it were alive…

Its green eyes suddenly glinted sharply, and its small, sagacious brows creased, conveying a strong sense of displeasure.

“Wow. It really looks alive.”

“Unfortunately, I am alive!”

A terrifying voice, hoarse like that of an elderly woman, resounded. It seemed to originate from the bowels of the earth, sorrowful and aged, yet still possessing a vibrancy capable of inflicting pain upon the hearts of those who heard it.

Jacqueline shrieked and dropped the doll.

She scanned the room anxiously. “Was that ventriloquism? Is someone there?”

Raising the holly branch she held in her right hand, she surveyed the room, tiptoeing with caution.

Her magnificent golden hair billowing in rage, the porcelain doll—Victorique de Blois, Europe’s smartest, a descendant of the proud Gray Wolves imprisoned within the academy; petite, helpless, and possessing lovely doll-like features—approached slowly from behind.

Sensing a presence, or something akin to animosity, Jacqueline whirled around. There stood the doll, clutching a heavy book with a determined look, poised to throw it at her.

“What?!” Jacqueline yelped, lightly tapping Victorique’s head with the holly branch.

There was a brief, peculiar sound, like a gasp.

Dropping the book, Victorique shielded the top of her head with her pudgy hands. Tears of sorrow welled up in her deep, green eyes—eyes reminiscent of a centenarian burdened with a lifetime of experiences.

She darted away and hid behind the huge globe.

“…”

Silence fell.

Looking closer, the tips of her resplendent golden hair and the tiny heels of her laced shoes were peeking out.

Jacqueline stood there momentarily dumbfounded, but soon became flustered. “Oh, I’m sorry. I thought you were just a doll. But then you spoke and moved, which caught me off guard. Where are you from? You’re very pretty. What exactly are you doing here?”

“…”

“What a lovely dress and crown. Way better than my makeshift attire. And they look great on you.”

“…”

“So what are you doing here? Taking a nap?”

“I’m reading!” she grunted.

Peering from the top of the globe, Jacqueline saw several large books spread out in a semi-circle, bearing squiggly characters that she had never seen before.

In the center, a lovely girl, petite and luxurious as a porcelain doll, crouched alone, deeply engrossed in her reading.

The girl—Victorique—read the characters at an astounding pace, rapidly flipping through the pages.

“There are rare books in this library that can’t be found anywhere else,” the girl said. “Fortunately, both staff and students are out today because of some silly event. So, I took the opportunity to sneak in this morning.” Her brows knitted in displeasure. “Until you disturbed me, that is, strange white queen.” She shot the woman a glance.

Undeterred, the lady offered a sweet smile. “My name is Jacqueline. Jacqueline de Signore.”

“What?” Victorique jumped in genuine surprise. Still crouched, she turned her head slightly, fixing her gaze on the woman. “Hmm. So you’re…”

“Yup.”

“Hmm…”

“Why don’t you introduce yourself? What’s your name?”

“I am not telling you.”

Victorique shook her head vigorously, then returned her focus to the book.

Jacqueline observed the vibrant red mass of ruffles. A moment later, an idea sprang in her mind, and her face lit up.

“I’ve got it. Would you like a strawberry lollipop, young lady?”

“…Of course.”

While engrossed in her book, Victorique stretched out a hand and received a lollipop, a red, strawberry-shaped candy attached to the end of a white stick. Parting her chubby lips wide, she stuffed her face with it.

Jacqueline studied the petite and fluffy, yet somewhat terrifying figure.

“I had a pet squirrel once,” Jacqueline shared out of nowhere. “His name was Q. He passed away.”

“Where in the world did this come from?”

“Well, seeing you crouched there licking candy reminded me of him.”

“How rude!”

“Come on, now. It wouldn’t hurt to listen. It was around the time I bid farewell to my unfettered yet meaningless single life and decided to marry. It was a chaotic period with so much happening. It was also around that time that Grevil’s hair became pointy… Was it just a coincidence?”

“I-It was!”

“How would you know that? Well, never mind. Anyway, Q suddenly died, and because of that, I got involved in a strange case.”

Jacqueline let out a wistful sigh. Leaning against the huge globe, she began speaking to the mysterious beautiful girl who continued reading a book while seemingly ignoring her. Gradually her voice grew softer.

Laughter and the cheerful voices of students rolled in from the corridor.

A winter breeze blew in, rocking the heavy door a little.