[Episode 9] - I Hope We Get Along (2)
“How was that? It isn’t scary anymore, is it?”
When I smiled brightly and stroked the princess’s head, only then did she seem to realize she had come out from behind the tree. The broad smile on her face crumpled in an instant.
Scrunch.
‘Oops.’
At the sight of the princess’s crumpled expression, I hurriedly took my hand off her head without thinking. For some reason, that crumpled look of hers had the power to feel like a warning more frightening than any threat.
Was it because of how varied children’s expressions were?
Looking at the princess as she scrunched up her face and glared at me as if she wanted to kill me, I lightly raised both hands as though declaring surrender, showing her I had no intention of touching her anymore.
“I’m sorry for petting you without permission. If you disliked it, I won’t ever do it again, so won’t you forgive me?”
She did not run away like before, but perhaps she still disliked me, because she remained rooted in place, busy glaring at me. Her lips were thrust out in a pout, and her eyebrows were sharply raised.
It was the very picture of a typical child when angry.
As expected, one magic trick wasn’t enough.
I took the flower tucked behind the princess’s ear back out and placed it on my hand. Sure enough, perhaps because a child could not overcome curiosity, the princess’s sharply raised eyebrows gently settled back down.
“Watch carefully. I’ll show you a different trick from before.”
Before I knew it, Ellie had come to the princess’s side as well and crouched down to settle in. The two of them looked at the flower lying on my palm, their eyes shining with curiosity.
There weren’t many magic tricks I had learned back in my school days, but they seemed like they would be enough to satisfy the princess and Ellie. I clenched the hand holding the flower into a fist, pretending to strain with all my might as I made my hand tremble.
“All right, here we go. One—two—”
*
Step—step—
Baengsyo was walking down the wide corridor of the royal castle with listless steps. The place he was headed was a secluded room in a corner of the castle where the king had shut himself away. Without fail, Baengsyo went there once a day to check on His Majesty’s condition.
And one of Baengsyo’s daily duties was to replenish “that” once a day as well, so that His Majesty could use it inside the room during his seclusion. Baengsyo let out a sigh, then dismissed the knights guarding the front of His Majesty’s room.
Knock—knock—
“Your Majesty, it is Baengsyo. The weather is exceptionally fine today. The roses in the garden were in full bloom today; the garden is filled with their fragrance.”
Baengsyo knew this conversation was meaningless, and yet he did not stop speaking to him. In a calm voice, Baengsyo began to tell him how the outside was changing day by day.
“Her Highness the Princess seems to be having a great deal of difficulty with her lessons. They say the marchioness once taught Her Majesty the Queen, but... it appears to be a little too much for the young princess.”
The door did not open.
Baengsyo knew that.
“Perhaps because she has been using her head so much, she has been looking for sweets these days. The fact that she asks for candy first whenever she wants something sweet is exactly like you, Your Majesty. Ha ha.”
From inside the door, not a single sound could be heard.
Baengsyo bit hard on his lower lip.
With the dissatisfaction toward His Majesty that piled up day after day, and the pitying thought that His Majesty must have suffered too, today as well Baengsyo cooled his emotions by biting his lip.
“Your Majesty, I will leave it before the door. Then, I pray you remain in good health today as well.”
Baengsyo placed “that” in front of the door and headed toward the end of the corridor as usual. Once he had put enough distance between himself and the room that his footsteps could not be heard from “inside,” Baengsyo stared blankly at the room where the king had secluded himself.
As he stared blankly at that door, creak, the door opened ever so slightly, and only a slender, thin arm slipped out of the room.
Who would think that arm belonged to an adult man?
At that sight, Baengsyo was relieved His Majesty was still alive, while at the same time feeling as though something inside his chest were burning away in a scorching fire.
The thin arm that had slipped out of the room snatched up “that” from in front of the door and vanished back inside. At the sound of the door closing, the knights returned to their positions as if accustomed to it.
It had already been two years.
In the two years that had passed, His Majesty had not taken a single step out of that room. Baengsyo, who had served and cared for His Majesty since his days as a prince, now found this situation unbearably sad.
“Phew...”
However, he had no leisure to drown himself in such sorrow. Since His Majesty had taken his hands off state affairs, the one who had to govern the kingdom in his stead was none other than himself, the chancellor.
There was the Council of Elders, and there was also Her Majesty the Second Queen, but...
The Council of Elders was no different from a pack of hyenas constantly watching for a chance to seize His Majesty’s authority, and as for Her Majesty the Second Queen... she did seem to have changed lately, but he could not completely trust her.
Exhausted by the endless tug-of-war for power with the Council of Elders, Baengsyo wished His Majesty would return even now. Because he was growing too old and ill to keep fighting here.
Baengsyo brushed back his already thinning hair and looked down at his palm. The countless strands of hair that had fallen out from stress seemed to speak for his sorrow.
‘At this rate, I truly might go bald...’
After shaking off the strands of hair scattered over his palm, Baengsyo began walking down the corridor again. As he calmly recalled what tasks he had to do today, he headed toward his office.
Just then, while he was on his way to his office, Baengsyo noticed someone at the far end of the corridor looking down below the window. An elderly lady with white hair was gazing out the window with sharp eyes.
“Marchioness Lorenso?”
At Baengsyo’s call, the person called Marchioness Lorenso turned her head and looked at him. The elderly lady looked at Baengsyo, bent one knee slightly, and bowed her head. It was a greeting that still carried dignity.
“I greet Your Excellency the Chancellor.”
“Ah, I always say this, but you need not greet me so formally, Marchioness.”
“No. Such etiquette is something that must naturally be observed anytime, anywhere, even if no one is watching. Your Excellency the Chancellor.”
“Ahem.”
Baengsyo let out a dry cough at Marchioness Lorenso’s firm words.
Though many years had passed and they had known each other for a long time, she was still a difficult person to deal with. When they were younger, Marchioness Lorenso had served as the guardian and educator of Her Majesty the First Queen, while he had served at His Majesty’s side.
‘She is now in charge of the princess’s education, but...’
Because of that, they had naturally interacted often as fellow “educators,” but due to the way she observed noble etiquette like an iron wall, she had been hard to approach since long ago.
When the conversation did not continue, Baengsyo was just about to offer his farewell, thinking he might end it there. At that moment, a lively commotion rose from below the window, and Baengsyo naturally looked that way as well.
“Huh.”
It was a sight that left him speechless.
It was pleasant enough to see Her Highness the Princess laughing and chatting in the garden, but when he saw the person playing with her, Baengsyo had no choice but to doubt his own eyes.
“Well now, what an unlikely combination.”
To think that Her Majesty the Second Queen was laughing and chatting happily with the princess? The princess beside her did not look afraid of Her Majesty the Second Queen at all either.
Seeing the princess smiling brightly as if she were truly having fun, Baengsyo felt an inexplicable surge of emotion. How long had it been since he had seen the princess look like that?
And along with that surge of emotion, he also felt something bitter.
‘That is the sort of face His Majesty should have been showing her. Not Her Majesty the Second Queen, her stepmother, but His Majesty, her own father, should have been the one to show her that.’
After letting out a small sigh, Baengsyo spoke to Marchioness Lorenso, who had been watching the same scene beside him. Surely Marchioness Lorenso, as the one in charge of the princess’s education, would also find that sight heartwarming.
“Isn’t it truly a heartwarming sight? I do not know how long it has been since I last saw Her Highness the Princess smile like that.”
However, contrary to Baengsyo’s expectations, Marchioness Lorenso clicked her tongue softly as she looked at that heartwarming scene. That marchioness, who valued etiquette so highly, clicked her tongue in front of someone else?
“...No matter how well a parrot speaks, it is still a bird, and no matter how well a monkey imitates, it is still nothing more than a beast. No matter how admirable a person’s actions may be, if they do not possess the manners a person ought to have, how are they any different from a parrot or a monkey?”
“...Marchioness?”
“...I shall take my leave now. Her Highness the Princess’s lesson time is nearly upon us.”
With those words as her last, Marchioness Lorenso turned her back and disappeared down the corridor. Baengsyo stared blankly at the figure of the marchioness vanishing at the end of the hallway, his eyes round.
Just now, whom were those words directed at?
Baengsyo soon realized who the marchioness’s words had been directed at. No, there was only one person down there who those words could have been aimed at. Baengsyo stroked down his beard and clicked his tongue with a tsk.
‘To think the marchioness would call Her Majesty the Second Queen “beastlike.”’
No matter how he thought about it, those words were severe enough to qualify as an insult to the royal family. It would not have been strange for Baengsyo to immediately hold the marchioness accountable for her offense here.
However, Baengsyo did not do so. Because he had sympathized with the marchioness’s words to some extent. Baengsyo was someone who believed people did not change easily.
Lately, Her Majesty the Second Queen had been treating the maids well, and the maids had come to follow her too, but Her Majesty the Second Queen had committed countless evil deeds in the past.
Did people change after dying and coming back to life?
In the first place, he had never seen anyone die and come back to life besides Her Majesty the Second Queen, so he could not know. Listening to the princess’s laughter from beyond the window, Baengsyo let out a long sigh.
“The marchioness and Her Majesty the Queen will clash soon.”
When it came to etiquette and education, she was strict to an almost excessive degree. And now the princess taught by such a marchioness had been seen playing with Her Majesty the Queen, who had never once shown courtesy to others.
Perhaps it was the feeling of a parent watching their own child play with alleyway thugs.
‘From the marchioness’s point of view, it must be something that absolutely cannot be allowed. Especially if she, who had been the “godmother” and guardian of Her Majesty the First Queen... inevitably becomes fixated on the princess.’
Baengsyo let out a deep sigh at the headache-inducing situation. If the marchioness and Her Majesty the Second Queen clashed, what should he do? Just whose side was he supposed to take?
Looking at the princess below the window, delighted as she wore a flower crown woven from blossoms on her head, Baengsyo smiled bitterly.
Because this whole situation was something that could be resolved if only His Majesty came out of his room.
*
There was exactly one thing I had overlooked while playing with the princess.
“Is there nothing else now? Is that the end?”
“Hah, ha... Princess... won’t you rest for just a little bit...?”
Stamina.
Between the stamina of a child and the stamina of an adult, there existed something impossible to bridge. I had shown her all the magic tricks I had learned in my school days, and when there was nothing left to show her, I even showed her finger tricks.
The princess began running toward Ellie as if she found me boring. I was the one who had played with her until I was exhausted and about to collapse, so seeing her go to Ellie’s side as if she had grown tired of me felt a little bitter.
In the end, completely worn out, I leaned my back against a tree, slumped there, and stared blankly up at the sky. As I sat there staring blankly at the sky, Ainsel shouted from beneath the tree as if cheering me on.
I naturally turned my gaze toward the base of the tree, where the voice had come from.
-Her Highness the Princess says she wants to play! Put in a little more effort!
“Just... let me rest... a little...”
There, the small mirror earring stood with its back against a pebble. On top of the mirror earring’s head was an extremely tiny flower crown, just big enough for a finger to fit through.
Around the time I had made flower crowns for the princess and Ellie, Ainsel had grumbled a little as if asking why there wasn’t one for her, so I had made an extremely small flower crown and placed it on Ainsel’s head.
Visually, it was just flowers placed on top of a very small mirror, but Ainsel seemed to like it quite a bit. Leaving Ainsel’s nagging aside for a moment, I sat there blankly and watched the princess playing with Ellie.
Whether they liked the flower crowns I had made for them, it was a lovely sight to see them wearing the crowns on their heads, braiding each other’s hair, and making rings out of the remaining flowers. At this rate, they probably wouldn’t be afraid of me or anything.
From now on, all I had to do was avoid talking about funerals or anything of that sort, so that the princess wouldn’t be made to feel her trauma. Listening to Ellie and the princess chatter merrily, I closed my eyes against the drowsiness that came over me.
Just as I was thinking that it might be all right to take a short nap—
Rustle—rustle—
I heard the sound of someone stepping across the garden lawn and walking this way. At the sound, I opened just one eye and glanced over to see who was approaching.
An elderly woman with pale, grayish-white hair was striding toward us, her footsteps clear. For some reason, her brow was deeply furrowed, as though she were terribly angry.
‘That person is...’
“Princess. So this is where you were.”
The elderly woman looked down with a cold gaze at the princess playing in the garden and let out a terribly long sigh. As if she were telling me to hear it, that drawn-out sigh somehow made irritation surge up inside me.
Perhaps startled by the sight of the elderly woman, the princess let out a hic— and swallowed a hiccup. At a single word from the elderly woman, the princess’s face, which had brightened so much, began to darken again.
“Let us return. It is time to begin your lesson.”
“B-but there’s still time until the evening lesson...”
“Princess—”
The elderly woman cut off the princess and called to her, then let out another long sigh. As if there were no need to listen any further, she spoke firmly.
“Have I not always told you? That in order to become as admirable a person as Her Majesty the Queen, you must possess the discernment to judge people.”
As she said that, the elderly woman was looking directly at me. It sounded less like something she said to the princess, and more like something she was saying while staring at me. Realizing what she meant by it, I frowned.
‘So right now, she’s warning me not to get close to the princess? Right now?’
I knew who that woman was.
Because she was an NPC who appeared as an “educator” in the game, too. I also knew that she had been the First Queen’s guardian, and that she had been the First Queen’s “godmother.”
“Marchioness Lorenzo.”
I slowly got up and approached the marchioness. We drew close enough that our noses were almost touching, but neither the marchioness nor I widened the distance between us. This was a battle of pride.
‘Pale white hair, orange eyes. And eyes no less vicious than Vivian’s.’
As expected, she was the Marchioness Lorenzo I knew.
I crossed my arms and tilted my head down, looking down at the marchioness. As though she did not like the sight, the marchioness’s eyes sharpened.
Whether she liked it or not, I looked down at her and gave a faint laugh. I hadn’t looked in a mirror, so I couldn’t know for sure, but it was undoubtedly the same “villainess” smile as the original Vivian’s.
As if displeased, the marchioness inclined her head slightly and greeted me.
“...I greet Your Majesty, the Second Queen.”
...After raising the princess more than three hundred times, I had never once had the princess educated by the marchioness, save for a single time.
The reason was simple.
“What is an old lady of the Council of Elders doing showing up before me? No, perhaps it would be better to put it this way.”
Because any princess who received the marchioness’s education for long was guaranteed to head straight toward a bad ending.
And all because of the marchioness’s twisted greed.
“What business does the First Queen’s dog have here?”