“You truly have no mana.”
Eventually, Delight directly confirmed my mana.
“Then as a mage, she’s utterly useless…”
The assistant, who had casually stated my uselessness, seemed to realize his mistake and hastily closed his mouth.
“So, I can’t do anything at all.”
Delight’s emotionless murmuring voice also sounded chilling.
In fact, the atmosphere changing as easily as flipping one’s hand due to mana wasn’t surprising.
In mage families as well, if a child showed no talent as a mage, they were treated as useless beings, not just in royal courts.
In knightly families, talent as a warrior was important, and in scholarly families, academic achievements were valued just the same.
So, in reality, mana was a measure of my abilities and worth.
A princess without mana couldn’t become an heir.
So, what would happen to the princess who was now deemed useless?
Will she be neglected again until the emperor returns?
Is mana the only thing that grants recognition?
‘Well, then, it can’t be helped.’
In reality, my mana was perfectly intact.
Overflowing.
Even though I had become a baby, the mana of the Grand Mage Sherina remained unchanged.
Right now, there are many constraints on using magic due to being too young, but that’s just physical limitations.
It would be a problem resolved as my body grows.
However, Delight’s judgment of me lacking mana was due to my unique constitution.
I had been able to conceal mana since long ago.
More precisely, unless I willingly revealed my mana, no one could know that I was a Grand Mage with tremendous mana.
And in this lifetime, I had no intention of living as a mage.
‘Now everything is boring. No matter how talented I am, I would eventually just be exploited.’
Even if Delight were to turn away from me and neglect me, I would never reveal the fact that my mana was overflowing.
It was a moment of readiness to face whatever may come.
Delight, who had been silently watching me, slowly spoke up.
“That’s good.”
“Huh?”
“Yes?”
“Anyway, no matter what happens, I’ll be there to protect you. So, whether you have mana or not, what does it matter?”
Delight casually murmured.
Huh?
Where have I heard this before… No, it was something I said in the past.
One day, Delight had asked me out of the blue.
“Master, what if I didn’t have any mana at all? Would you still have taken me in and taught me?”
“You’re thinking about pointless things again.”
“But Master, you acknowledged me as a genius. Even if I had no mana and was completely useless, would you still have rescued and taken me in?”
Ugh, I’ve always has trouble answering whenever he’s asked something.
“Know your place. No matter how talented you think you are, you’re nothing special to me.”
Lately, I’ve praised him a few times as his skills have improved, and now his ego is through the roof.
So, I decided to give him a reality check.
“Anyway, no matter what happens, I’ll be there to protect you. Your talents are impressive, but they’re useless to me.”
“Hmph. Someday, I’ll become strong enough to protect you too!”
My words did boost Delight’s self-esteem to some extent.
Honestly, I was also caught off guard by Delight’s question.
How would I know?
Rescuing him was a whim even I can’t explain, and I only found out about Delight’s talent as a mage after rescuing him.
So, looking back, Delight’s talent was just a convenient excuse to take him in.
“Anyway, you wouldn’t have left anyway. Have I ever once broken your stubbornness?”
If Delight had stubbornly insisted, I would have eventually relented.
“Heh, well, that’s true.”
In the end, the disciple grinned smugly, understanding the implied meaning that he would have been kept even without any talent.
… We had such a conversation before.
Delight quickly lifted me up and examined me closely.
“Is that all? No other issues with her health?”
“Oh, yes. She’s perfectly healthy, without a single scratch.”
“Well, then, that’s a relief.”
Delight seemed satisfied, as if my health was all that mattered.
Could it be that he remembered and repeated what I said before?
Then, I was about to…
“Don’t worry. Dad is the strongest. Our daughter can live on as long as she eats and plays to her heart’s content.”
…cancel what I was about to say.
Suddenly, a shiver ran down my spine as I saw Delight’s smug smile.
If that shameless and overly confident face he’s making is something he learned from me…
It felt like I needed to reflect on my life.
I need some serious introspection.
***
The Emperor’s closest aide, Zaire, was lurking around the Emperor, stealing glances.
He walked with an exaggerated swagger, seeming carefree. His curly hair was completely unkempt.
Not to mention the thick glasses that seemed permanently attached to his face.
Around the Emperor, there were plenty of knights and wizards with remarkable abilities, but Zaire Delroc was utterly devoid of any talent for wielding a sword, often injuring himself in the process, and he had barely a trace of mana.
Furthermore, he matched his frail appearance with genuine timidity, easily startled at the slightest provocation.
It seemed impossible for him to withstand being by the Emperor’s side.
Nevertheless, despite all this, he was one of the Emperor’s longest-serving confidants, accompanying him wherever he went.
It was today, after all these years, that he witnessed the Emperor’s radiant smile for the first time.
“I never knew Your Majesty would adore the baby so much.”
Thus, he simply couldn’t bear it anymore. He even began to suspect if there was an ulterior motive behind it.
“Why drag out the obvious?”
“…What?”
Yet, the Emperor’s response to Zaire’s curiosity was more perplexed than expected.
“Is it really curious for a father to fulfill his duties and responsibilities?”
“If that’s the case, wouldn’t it suffice for you to simply command? Shouldn’t we provide everything the baby needs at the highest level?”
While it was surprising for the Emperor to embrace the child as his own daughter, Zaire, as the aide, needed to minimize any inconvenience for the Emperor. Thus, I suggested the most common and optimal solution.
“How could you even entertain such dreadful thoughts?”
Upon hearing this, the Emperor stared at Zaire with a gaze full of disgust, as if he were looking at a bug.
“What did I say…”
“What did you say…?”
Zaire rolled his eyes in confusion, wondering if he had made some kind of mistake.
“I apologize. I spoke out of turn before Your Majesty had the chance to speak.”
So that was the problem.
Zaire immediately acknowledged his mistake. However, the Emperor’s expression only grew more grim.
“How could money or material possessions be considered a parent’s duty?”
“…What?”
“The duty of a father is to cherish and love his child above all else.”
The Emperor scolded Zaire firmly.
Zaire, who had been listening intently, blinked stupidly.
What did I just hear? Is the person who spoke those words really the Emperor I knew?
Perhaps someone else has taken over the Emperor’s body.
Countless thoughts and suspicions flashed through his mind in a short period of time.
The pressure was palpable, just by meeting that gaze. It was clear that this was indeed the Emperor of the Promian Empire.
Realizing this fact, Zaire’s mouth fell open involuntarily.
“I did not realize Your Majesty possessed such profoundly domestic and healthy thinking…”
His sincerity slipped out inadvertently.
He belatedly held his breath, trying to contain it, but the Emperor’s stern gaze was already fixed on him.
“Haha… That’s right! I was reckless! How could I have such garbage-like thoughts…”
Zaire chastised himself, feeling like he had become trash.
Despite feeling unjust, he couldn’t bring himself to voice it.
‘Well, it’s not so bad.’
With the victory achieved in this recent war, there wouldn’t be any wars for a while.
During that time, there might be an opportunity for the Emperor to spend time differently than before.
Zaire, forgetting his grievances, smiled faintly and scanned his surroundings.
The surroundings were dimly lit, and there was a stench of blood in the dungeon.
Dela and Sonia, the maids he had detained earlier, were here.
“Where are they?”
Delight asked directly, intending to interrogate them.
“Th-they…”
However, the guard who was supposed to guard the underground prison hesitated, unable to answer properly.
“What are you hiding?”
“I’m not hiding anything, th-they’re dead!”
“Dead? How long have they been imprisoned?”
Zaire pushed the guard aside and went directly to where Dela and Sonia were supposed to be.
There, instead of frightened prisoners, there were only two corpses covered in white cloth.
“They were already dead when I arrived.”
The trembling guard, who followed behind, explained, fearing the consequences of not properly supervising the prisoners.
“What should we do?”
Zaire asked. They hadn’t yet learned anything from the maids.
“Seems like they knew a secret that mustn’t be revealed.”
Yet, Delight’s face seemed even more intrigued.
The palace begins its day early in the morning.
Among them, the maids managing the sponsorship have been out since dawn, receiving the morning dew.
Those maids who share stories at the boundary between day and night were the ones managing the sponsorship.
“It seems His Majesty really treasures the princess.”
“So, what’s going to happen now?”
“What’s going to happen? We all need to treat the princess well.”
Hearing this, one of the maids listening to the conversation turned serious and spoke up.
“Last time, when Monia asked me for some flowers to show the princess, I didn’t give her any. Could something be wrong?”
“This is not the time for that! Quickly, get the prettiest flowers. People are panicking about fixing things.”
“Really? Why didn’t you tell me earlier! What kind of flowers should I get? I need to find them quickly.”
“Go quickly. I’ll help too.”
The maids in charge of the sponsorship flowers hurriedly set off.
Swoosh.
The maids departed, leaving the woods silent.
From behind, a child with a single leaf in their hair emerged, watching the maids as they left.
୭ Click this ‘louyve’ bellow to see other project by me˚. ᵎᵎ
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