Chapter 7
The royal family of Podia had red eyes for generations, but Thierry was the only one with gray eyes, which made him even more despised by the royal family.
‘Ah! Speaking of which, you used fire magic earlier, did your pupils change when you awaken your powers?’
Even though it had been a long time since I had read the original story, it was such an important part that I should have remembered it, but no matter how hard I tried to recall it, I couldn’t remember anything about male lead eyes.
So I read it with sincere compassion for him, and I think I stuck with it until the end because I wanted to see him, who grew up as emotionless as a doll, meet the female lead and be happy…
The more I thought about it, the more I realized that the original story was very weak.
‘I should have grown up with the same personality as a child…’
The deeper I got into my thoughts, the longer my gaze lingered on his red eyes.
I forgot how hard I was avoiding his gaze and stared mesmerized at his piercing eyes that were getting closer and closer.
What? Closer?
“Princess.”
His cold voice snapped me out of my reverie. His upper body leaned toward me, closing the distance, his mouth twisting into a smile.
“You came back from the dead, and you lost all your fear?”
“Huh, sorry!”
I gasped, averting my eyes.
“Is it because you think the place you’re being dragged to now is as ominous as my eyes?”
“… What?”
I looked at him, wondering if I’d heard him right.
Is he warning me of an ominous future? But more than that, he was puzzled by her description of his red eyes as ominous.
‘Aren’t red eyes an inherent feature of the Awakened Imperials? Why do you think they’re ominous? Because they weren’t originally red, but changed color as you grew up, or is that just your idea?’
I squeezed my brows together in confusion.
“Why. Did I hit the nail on the head?”
Thierry said, noticing my expression. He seemed to think I was offended by his words.
“Oh, no, I didn’t think of that.”
“Then.”
“…”
“Don’t make me ask you twice. Answer.”
“Uh- that’s… I was a little surprised that you seemed to think my red eyes were ominous, but it’s just a difference in melanin pigment.”
Come to think of it, even when Thierry was younger, I had explained the melanin pigment thing to him to explain why he had different eye colors than the other royalty.
Hmm, not so satisfied with the different eye color.
“… Melanin?”
He was silent for a moment, then asked with a frown.
“How would you know that?”
But Thierry’s reaction was a little weird.
Like I was talking about some great expertise…
Hmph- people in this world don’t know this kind of science?
I rolled my eyes in bewilderment.
I shrank back even further, wondering why he was staring at me so murderously, and at the same time, instinctively sensing that I shouldn’t say more.
“It’s…, I don’t know how I found out about it, I can’t remember exactly if my family told me or if I saw it in a book… Uh-oh, the carriage has stopped.”
I trailed off, avoiding his gaze.
“You,”
Snapped.
It was truly perfect timing. Appropriately, his words were interrupted by a knock on the door.
“Your Majesty, we’ve arrived at the magic circle.”
Oh well, I survived…
I barely swallowed the sigh of relief that threatened to escape.
This was enough of a change to make it hard to adjust to from afar, but being in this small space together, trying to make conversation felt like I was getting bogged down the more I spoke.
‘For now, I need time.’
Time to pick myself up from the waves of seven years’ worth of gaps…
I kept feeling his hot gaze on the side of my face. But I stubbornly kept my eyes on the outside of the carriage and didn’t look at him until the end.
“…”
Finally, breaking the silence that had been tightening around my throat as he opened the door.
“… Activate immediately.”
The cold breeze brushing my cheeks finally cleared my stifled breath.
***
I came to the Podia Empire in a single day using a magic circle, and I didn’t even have time to take in my surroundings.
I don’t know if it was the long distance we traveled, even with the magic circle, or if my strained body finally gave out, but I was sick for nearly four days straight.
‘My health has recovered a lot, but it’s the first time I’ve traveled this far in seven years, so maybe it’s no wonder…’
I stayed in the East Palace, which is close to the main Palace where the Emperor stays.
It was a much nicer place than I expected, even though I was worried about being persecuted. When I was working at the Palace as a ‘Lari’, I spent most of my time in the cottage, so this was a new place I had never been to before.
It was close to the main Palace, but I was in my room, so we never saw each other. Word of my illness must have reached Thierry, but he never sought me out.
I thought, ‘Mm-hmm, of course he wouldn’t want to visit me, I was brought here for political reasons anyway.
Unlike the chilly Ashtad, May in Podia was mild. I stood in front of the wide-open window, feeling a little better, and took in the view, feeling the weather as a belated treat.
The open garden was peaceful, the warm morning sunlight caressing the tall trees. I could see tiny rays of light breaking through the shadows of the foliage by the window.
“Princess.”
I turned at the sound of a muffled voice behind me. I turned to see an elegant woman with green hair, her hands clasped respectfully in front of her stomach.
“Are you feeling well?”
“Yes. Thanks to you.”
“I’m glad to hear it.”
She was Countess Anthe, the chambermaid of the Imperial Palace of Podia, and she had been a constant courtier since the day we first met, no more, no less, with an expressionless face.
‘Very businesslike, which is just as well.’
I felt that being too friendly or too harsh would make me uncomfortable, so Countess Anthe was just the right person for the job.
“I’m here to introduce you to the maid who will be in charge of the Princess’s attendance from now on. Please say hello.”
“I am Marie Diana. It is an honor to serve you, Princess!”
The woman who had been standing in the distance glanced up and gave me a curtsy.
‘Wow- it’s like Ann with the red hair.’
Marie looked like something out of a childhood novel, with her scarlet ginger hair and the freckles that dotted her pure white face.
By the way, if they’re giving me a full-time maid, are they really treating me with respect to the agreement?
“Marie, please take care.”
I smiled down at her with a bright smile.
Or was she just a lookout to keep me in line?
“Princess, please keep your voice down.”
She bowed her head so low I could feel the back of her head twitch in confusion.
“The weather is nice, if you don’t mind, shall we arrange a walk?”
Countess Anthe asked, taking Marie by the shoulders.
Marie stared at me and Countess Anthe for a moment, then carefully straightened her back.
Hmph – I think she’s being coy now, is she trying to keep us from getting too close? A strange sensation tickled the back of my throat.
“Can I go out?”
So I smiled broadly as if nothing happened.
As if to emphasize that I’m just a harmless, sunny Princess who you need never be wary of.
‘Then, when I go around here and there later, there will be less restraint.’
One of Countess Anthe’s eyebrows twitched slightly.
‘But…, do you really think she’s changing the subject on purpose, or does she just not like the idea of a captured foreign Princess talking down to her people?’
The Countess Anthe’s expression was fleeting; she quickly wiped it away and responded dutifully.
“As long as you keep Marie with you, and you don’t leave the Palace, you’ll be fine. But don’t go to the cottage, for though its surroundings are mysterious, the paths are complicated, and it’s easy to get lost if you’re a stranger.”
The word ‘cottage’ stuck in my ears.
It’s a place I’d wanted to visit again, but I’d have to refrain from doing anything conspicuous for a while, so I nodded sheepishly.
“Ahhh- I see, I’ll remember that, I’ll have to get some air after a long time.”
“Very well, Marie, take care of the Princess.”
“Yes!”
“Then I’ll leave you to it.”
I nodded with a look of indulgence and turned my attention back to the window.
‘By the way, this is a bit odd. I thought we were told not to go near the cottage, not the main palace… It’s not like anyone goes there anyway.’
The area around the cottage wasn’t just complicated for a stranger, it was a tangle of paths that was called the ‘Maze Forest’.
And the only way to get to the cottage was through the maze, so no outsider would know it existed unless they were told. It meant that if you wanted to keep people away from the cottage, the best way to do that was to not mention it at all.
And if you wanted to warn them of the danger, you could just tell them to stay away from the Maze Forest, so why add that the area around there was mysterious? I didn’t understand at all.
‘Could it be that the young Princess is secretly hoping that she will go there out of curiosity and cause an accident?’
… Hey, really? This seems like a bit of a leap.
I rolled my eyes and thought briefly of the cottage I’d stayed with Thierry in the past.
It was a little better than that cottage. It’s not like he’d bothered to keep it up with the maze forest, so I doubt it’s any better now.
“Princess.”
While I was lost in thought, Marie quickly brought me a light blue dress.
“The amount of dresses you brought wasn’t adequate, so I’ve been ordered to prepare more for you. The designer will be visiting tomorrow to check your measurements, so please wait a few days.”
“Oh, I’m glad to hear that.”
“Yes…”
Marie moved quickly and dressed me up. It was a neat display, although I was a little puzzled by the awkward way she looked at me.
After a while, not long after I left the room, Marie shook her head in confusion.
