[Episode 34] - A Promise with the Princess (2)
The late hours of dawn when even the maids had fallen asleep.
It was a time too awkward to wake the maids and order them to bring snacks, so the Princess and I tiptoed down the corridor toward the royal palace kitchen. We had originally planned to eat the mountain of snacks piled outside the room, but...
Once we stepped outside, the mountain of snacks had long since been cleared away. It was already quite late, and we had considered just going to sleep and eating in the morning, but—
Thanks to the thunderous growl echoing from the Princess's stomach, she and I decided to attempt an infiltration of the kitchen. It was the royal palace kitchen, after all—surely there would be something to eat even at dawn? Thus began our mission with that thought in mind—
"Princess, going to the kitchen in the middle of the night is something we mustn't get caught doing. How should we get to the kitchen without being discovered?"
"Quietly... stealthily...!"
And so, our 'Late-Night Kitchen Infiltration Operation' began.
The Princess and I walked on tiptoes, making not a sound, as we stealthily made our way to the royal palace kitchen.
We even encountered knights standing guard along the way, but when I signaled them by pressing a finger to my lips, the palace knights—sharp as they were—pretended not to see us heading off to raid the kitchen.
They even played along, heightening the Princess's tension. Hidden behind a wall, a knight would stomp his feet loudly before stopping dead right in front of us.
To avoid being caught by the knight, the Princess stifled even the sound of her breathing, covering her nose and mouth with both hands until her face turned red. Only when the knight's footsteps faded did she exhale with a gasp—"Phew!"
Enjoying such a thrilling game, we soon reached the royal palace kitchen with its lights turned off. Stealthily stepping inside, we finally discovered our target.
It seemed the cakes and snacks that had been left in front of the Princess's room had been brought here; seeing the mountain of cake and egg tarts, the Princess's eyes sparkled, and she gulped, swallowing her drool.
I pressed a finger to my lips and whispered, "Shh," to the Princess.
"Eating too much at night isn't good for you... So, between cake and egg tart, which one do you want?"
The Princess also covered her mouth with both hands and whispered back.
"Can't I have both...?"
"No. You must choose just one. If you eat two snacks at night, you'll get fat like the cat you drew last time."
Groaning softly, the Princess pondered between the cake and the egg tart. In the end, she grabbed both treats, holding the egg tart to herself and offering the cake to me.
"Can't Your Majesty and I take bites of each? Then we can have both...!"
"Pfft."
Was it cunning, or was it cleverness? The Princess offered me the cake with sparkling eyes, urging me to hurry up and take it.
When I didn't take the cake and simply gazed steadily at her as if to say no, the Princess looked back and forth between the cake and egg tart in her hands with a sulky expression. And then—
"Th-then, I'll eat the cake... Would Your Majesty have the egg tart...? That way, Your Majesty can eat more of the egg tart... And it tastes better when we share..."
She offered me the egg tart—the one she had wanted—while lifting the plate with the cake with a sulky expression. Did she think I had refused because I wanted the egg tart all to myself?
The sight of the Princess offering me the egg tart with such a sulky face made a laugh burst out of me. When I accepted the egg tart she offered, the Princess heaved a deep sigh, as if truly heartbroken.
Patting the Princess's head, I accepted her proposal.
"Hehe, very well. Just as the Princess said, if we take bites of each, we can have both cake and egg tart. Shall we hurry back to the room and share them?"
At the words that we would share the snacks together, the Princess broke into a beaming smile.
"Yes!"
Having stealthily returned to the room, we sat on the bed and began sharing our snacks. Normally, if we were seen eating snacks atop the bed, people would say it was a bad habit or what have you, but...
It was the dead of night, when everyone was asleep.
And inside the room, there were only the Princess and me. Wasn't a small indulgence like this permissible at such an hour? I stabbed the egg tart with a fork and popped it straight into the Princess's open mouth.
One bite for the Princess sitting between my legs, one bite for me. We shared each other's snacks like this, using only a single fork. It was the result of having been so focused on grabbing the snacks that we forgot the spoons.
"Is it that delicious?"
"Yes!"
To the point that it was hard to believe she had been wailing just moments ago, the Princess smiled brightly and ate the snack I offered her in one bite.
Just as we were finishing the egg tart, the Princess snatched the fork from my hand and scooped up a bite-sized piece of the cake on her lap, offering it to me.
"Your Majesty should have a taste, too."
The Princess pushed the fork toward my mouth as if telling me to open wide, and I had no choice but to open my mouth wide and accept the cake she offered.
A scene was created, much like a baby bird feeding its mother bird. Feeling an inexplicable embarrassment, I told the Princess she could eat it all herself, but she firmly insisted on one bite for you, one bite for me.
Having quickly polished off the cake and egg tart, the Princess placed a hand on her now-round belly, wondering if she was full and sleepy, and blinked her drowsy eyes.
It was very late, and she had been crying for so long; she must be sleepy.
"If you want to wake up early, you must get to sleep quickly."
"Mmm... I don't want to..."
I tried to lay the sleepy, blinking Princess down on the bed to sleep, but she clutched my hand tightly and whined that she didn't want to sleep yet.
Having no choice, I lay down beside her and gently patted her belly. The Princess turned her head and looked up at me. Still seeming uneasy, she mumbled in a sleepy voice.
"Don't go... Sleep here... Okay?"
A child clutching my hand, begging me not to leave. Though I had told her I would always stay by her side, those words alone seemed insufficient to ease her anxiety. The Princess clutched my hand and pleaded for me to sleep here.
"Don't you worry."
I smoothed the Princess's disheveled bangs and smiled bitterly. Though I had promised with words, she must still be very anxious. Surely, she must be afraid of what would happen if she woke up and I was gone.
The wounds from not receiving a parent's love would be difficult to heal, but I wanted to help this child heal, at least until she became an adult—no, at least until she graduated from the academy.
"I will always stay by your side."
Looking at the Princess, I uttered yet another 'lie.'
So that the Princess could feel at ease, so that she could fall asleep even a little more comfortably.
Perhaps pleased by my 'lie,' the Princess grinned and burrowed into my embrace. I, too, gently stroked the head of the Princess nestled in my arms and slowly closed my eyes to sleep.
...And that day, I dreamed.
A dream where the Princess, now an adult, looked at me with eyes full of hatred.
In the dream, for some reason, I couldn't move. As if my hands and feet were bound by guilt, unable to flee. In the dream, the Princess shouted something at me, but I couldn't hear it.
The Princess simply looked at me, making many expressions.
Smiling, angry, shouting.
And she made an expression that looked as if she might truly cry.
It was just a dream, yet for some reason, my heart trembled greatly. Feeling that heartbeat—both frightening and sorrowful—I jolted awake as if from a nightmare.
"A dream...?"
Upon waking, I saw the Princess, who had burrowed into my arms and fallen asleep. Unlike the adult Princess I had seen in my dream, she wore a truly happy, beaming smile as she slept soundly.
It was just a nightmare born of guilt, surely, it must be—
Thinking so, I slowly shook the Princess's shoulder to wake her.
"Princess, wake up. It's already morning."
*
That day, in the afternoon.
It was after the Princess's dance practice had ended, and we were heading to my room together. Since making a promise with me last night, the Princess had refused to leave my side, sticking to me like a shadow.
Because she kept reaching out to hold my hand at every opportunity, it felt like I had spent more than half the day holding hands with the Princess. Naturally, this drew attention from those around us.
Passing maids, nobles working in the royal palace, and even Bansho—who had come to observe her lessons—looked at the sight of the Princess and me with surprised expressions, then smiled in satisfaction.
Bansho, who had been truly worried about the Princess's seclusion incident, was moved to tears with genuine relief. Honestly, when I heard the Princess had secluded herself, I had felt my heart drop as well.
'Where did she learn such bad things...'
I turned my head and glanced down at the Princess holding my hand. Sensing my gaze, she looked up and met my eyes. Immediately, she smiled brightly. It was a markedly different sight from yesterday.
She probably wouldn't do something like seclude herself anymore, but...
I worried about what I'd do if she hit puberty later and declared, "I'm going to seclude myself!" Should the King make a law forbidding seclusion? But what would be the point when the royal family is above the law?
Lost in such trivial thoughts, we soon arrived at my room. Absently turning the door handle and stepping inside—
"My dear!"
"Silpi?!"
Silpi flew in like the wind and crashed into my chest, burying herself there. Having disappeared for nearly a month, Silpi flew to me and shed glistening tears of joy.
"Why are you so late...? Did something happen?"
At my worried question, Silpi shook her head vigorously. Then she fluttered up and flew toward the window, which was wide open for some reason, though I was certain I had closed it.
Hidden by the curtains and backlight, it was hard to see, but someone was standing where Silpi had flown. It wasn't the uniform of the royal palace maids, but a young girl of small stature wearing something similar.
My first impression of the girl was 'doll.'
She had silver hair that looked like it had been finely spun and crafted from silver, and clear, transparent blue eyes like the autumn sky.
Her skin was as white as snow, and since her hair was silver, even her eyebrows were white. Only her lips held a slight reddish tint, making her seem truly like a finely made 'doll.'
Silpi, perched lightly on the shoulder of the small girl, tapped the doll-like girl's cheek and began the introduction.
"I was delayed because something came up. Still, this 'Witch' read my dear's letter and came to help, didn't she? This 'Witch' is—"
Just as Silpi was about to introduce the 'Witch,' the girl raised her hand and covered Silpi's mouth. As if to say she would introduce herself, the girl stepped forward and bowed politely.
"It is a pleasure to meet you. Vivian."
As she bowed, her neatly straight bangs swayed gently. When she raised her head again, the girl simply gazed at me with an endlessly expressionless face before slowly opening her mouth.
"I have read your letter thoroughly. As written in the letter, I have come to help your friend, Ainsel. Furthermore, I wish to hear more specific details about the 'incident' you experienced."
"Then, you are..."
"Yes, that is correct."
The doll-like girl puffed out her chest proudly and placed her hands on her hips. Then, she raised her voice as if proud to introduce herself, though her expression remained blank.
"My name is Frankenstein. I am one of the 'Witches of the Coven,' the biological daughter of the genius scientist 'Victor Frankenstein,' and the only 'fairy doctor' in this world."
That... is that 'Witch,' Frankenstein?
As I was quite surprised by the appearance of Frankenstein, so different from what I had imagined, the suddenly sullen Frankenstein continued in a sulky voice.
"However, I am a third-rate 'artificial human' as far as humanity is concerned..."