One Day, I Found the Emperor's Niece

Carlix, ignoring Yukar’s intense gaze, picked up the purple colored paper.

 

‘Huh-.’

 

In case Rubelin happened to lose her frog colored paper, she gave it to him as if it were a gift. Where on earth did she get the idea that she would want that trivial thing? When I think about it again, she was absolutely absurd, but what made her even more absurd was Lucy. She hides Rubelin behind her back and puts herself on guard. No matter how I looked at it, the scene of a weak human being protecting the feared royal family was unfamiliar. Carlix put down the colored paper and stared at the heart-polka dot blanket placed organically next to it. He thought of Lucina shivering with a blanket wrapped around her body, and closed his eyes. The night it rained. From the time the moon rose during the day, magical power flowed through my veins like a wave. Because of this, he guessed that the once-a-year period when a vast amount of magical energy explodes from the ring had arrived. All I could do was change into a strange form for about a day and seething with fever, but I couldn’t tell the exact time, so I was always anxious when I felt the omen. As I was walking through the garden, unable to sit still, her climbing roses covering the wall caught my eye. The rain had dampened not only my body but also my mind, so I behaved unusually. After confirming that there were no in-laws nearby, he carefully removed the ring. The thorns extending from his knuckles slowly shrunk, and magical energy swirled fiercely within his body.

 

‘Ugh…’

 

He groaned, suppressed the surging magical power, and urgently plucked the rose with trembling hands. Eventually, the petals he held in his hands turned dark and lost their original form. Tap, tap. Dry flower petals fell through the cracks of his hands.

 

‘Still nothing has changed.’

 

Carlix stared at the dried rose at his feet with a bitter smile. It was wrong to try even though you knew it was impossible. [Only the strong can control this ability.] Contrary to what is written in ancient books, Ogi wants to prove that he is not weak. Carlix clenched his fists and twisted his face.

 

“Shit.”

 

But he was still weak. Carlix swallowed his curse and turned around without hesitation and went under the tree. As he stared at the shaking leaves for a while, he heard the sound of fluttering and stepping on a puddle from somewhere. Lucy I Langport, she was her. The moment Carlix saw her running through the rain, time seemed to slow down for her. He stared at her in bewilderment, but only when Lucy came under the tree did he take his gaze off her. Soon she handed him her blanket. A blanket. It had nothing to do with me, so as I was staring at it, I saw that she had suggested it a few times, then trembled and took the blanket from her.

 

‘If that’s what you’re asking me to do, I can’t do it.’

 

I was truly taken aback by her shameless remarks. If that’s the case, why did you come to give me a blanket in the rain? She was by my side for a long time. Even though he was not wearing a ring and could have felt the intimidation of his magic power, he just flinched like a cow startled by a loud noise and even put a blanket over his shoulders. As she approached, she desperately tried to suppress her magical power, which surged like a spring, and he bit the flesh inside her cheek, scarring her. Are you scared or not?

 

‘Originally, flowers are living things that bloom and fall. therefore… So don’t worry!’

 

Grado, who is insensitive to the feelings of others, notices that Lucina is comforting her clumsily. Carlix was dumbfounded. Who cares about being such a weak creature that sneezes after only being hit by rain once. But strangely enough, that one word was as warm as a blanket covering my shoulders. Carlix deliberately did not visit the training room after renewing his contract with Lucina. This was because if he did not encounter each other, there was no need to worry about ‘harmonious families’ or ‘couple production’. Moreover, he said that in order to completely deceive the princess, he wanted to keep her confidential except for the princess’s dedicated servants, so it was convenient for him. From the beginning, didn’t he tell me to attend class only when I felt like it? She didn’t seem to have any intention of urging Lucina, so every afternoon at twelve she came to his office, reported, and then disappeared. She was so enthusiastic that she officially declared her intention to become an education officer. According to Mebern’s report, she was annoyingly assertive in everything she did, and according to Linell’s report, she was a safe person with no suspicious behavior. ‘Today we played with clay!’, ‘Today we touched flower petals!’, ‘Today in the world, our Rubelin-.’ She came every day without fail and started her report with today- today-. But why today? Carlix looked up and stared at the grandfather clock, a model of the golden World Tree. The clock had just passed 12:05. His eyes, following the movement of the pendulum, turned to the door.

 

“Why aren’t you coming?”

 

Carlix crossed his arms and leaned his upper body against the back of his chair. I thought it was annoying, but when it didn’t arrive on time, I got nervous.

 

‘Etch!’

 

The sound of her sneezing could be heard vividly in her mind. Maybe I caught a cold? Tsk, why do you do such a useless thing?

 

“Your majesty?”

 

Yukar, holding in his arms the documents that needed to be resolved today, glanced sideways at his lord and wondered when to report. On the other hand, a devil resembling him floated above his head, whispering that he wouldn’t even know if he stole a piece of colored paper. Yukar was in anguish, but eventually gave up the temptation and stared at the first page of the document.

 

“Greatness! Your Majesty, please listen.”

 

There was no reply, but Yukar cried out, thinking he had agreed.

 

“Your Majesty, the Kingdom of Lionel has requested trade. In the Kingdom of Lionel, which is currently experiencing a mineral shortage, minerals and their special product, silk-.”

 

“I need to check.”

 

Bang-. 

 

Suddenly, Carlix stood up, slamming both hands on the desk, and headed for the door.

 

“Your majesty?”

 

Yukar blinked fiercely.

 

“Your Majesty, where do you go on government business?”

 

Before Yukar could respond, a huge golden door swallowed Carlix.

 

“Lung… ha…?”

 

Yukar was left alone in his office without any understanding.

 

* * *

 

“Cough.”

 

Rubelin looked at me closely as I coughed and looked like I was crying. She patted my back with her fern-like hand.

 

“Damn, gangchana?”

 

“Yes, it’s okay – Cough!”

 

No, actually, it’s not okay at all. They said you can’t fake her love and cough, and that was exactly right. I turned my head and coughed until I couldn’t cough anymore. Oh, I wasn’t going out yesterday after all. The emperor seemed pitiful that day… At least if they hadn’t given me a blanket, I wouldn’t have caught a cold.

 

“Cough!”

 

I put my regrets aside and started coughing. It took some time before it calmed down.

 

“Okay, let’s do origami again…”

 

Wait, how far did it go? I looked down at the paper in my hand. No, what were we doing in the first place? I was so dazed that I couldn’t remember the previous situation. As I blinked in confusion, Rubelin grabbed my collar and shook me.

 

“Hey, come to your senses! If you tell me, you’ll get away with it!”

 

“Ugh.”

 

Guided by her strong hands, I was swayed back and forth like a balloon at an event. As my vision swung from side to side, a hand suddenly popped out between Rubelin and me. I was surprised and opened my eyes as wide as a flower lantern.

 

“Maevern?”

 

Maebern wheezed and glared at me with double wicks in her eyes.

 

“Get away from the princess! What are you doing while I’m a little late? As an education officer, my mental state was poor!”

 

Is it because I caught a cold? Today, Maebern’s sharp words sounded even more harsh. Maevern became more attached to me than before after her formal engagement. This was because I had declared to Ken, Linell, and Maevern that I would become a window couple with Carlix for the sake of Rubelin’s sentiments. Unlike Ken and Linell, who understood it right away, which was strange to me, Maevern got angry and said it was a ridiculous contract clause. After a while, he seemed to realize that he had no right to object since Carlix had accepted it, and that there was some truth to what I said, but he seemed to not understand my teaching method.

 

“Wake up! It’s a nuisance to the princess!”

 

I was scolded for not being able to refute Maebern’s correct opinion. Actually, to make a little excuse, there was no problem until morning, but after finishing the meal, the temperature started to rise. I thought it would get better over time, but as soon as I entered class, my fever rose and I couldn’t stop coughing. She should have taken a break from class when she suspected she had a cold, but she couldn’t because she thought Rubelin would be disappointed. She blinked, and her feverish vision filled her eyes with the sight of Mevern’s face, red with excitement.

 

“I’m sorry, Maevern. Are you very angry?”

 

A very cracked voice came out.

 

“You should apologize to the princess, not me! Okay, today’s class is over, it’s over! end!”

 

Maevern grabbed my arm and pulled me. They seemed ready to drag me away like a dog. I twisted her arm as it was held by Maevern.

 

“Ugh. “Mevern’s arms are going to fall off.”

 

“Damn it!”

 

When I groaned, Rubelin jumped up in surprise. She raised her eyes fiercely and raised her hands as if to push Mevern away.

 

“Damn, don’t pull it!”

 

“No, Rubelin!”

 

I hurriedly hugged her with my remaining arm.

 

“Hi!”

 

Mae Vern, who was almost pushed by her Rubelin, was so startled that she let go of her hand and hit her buttocks. He backed up to the wall. There is no problem with me being pushed or grabbed by Rubelin, but Mevern will probably have at least a fracture. Rubelin was held in my arms and she let out a loud noise.

 

“You’re cold! My butt hurts, so don’t be in pain!”

 

Maevern waved her hands in disapproval and explained.

 

“I’m not harassing you, princess… I just-”

 

“Use it!”

 

Rubelin bit her lip softly and opened her eyes wide. Mae Vern cried, her face mortified.

 

“Well, I’m afraid I might be giving the princess her cold…”

 

Rubelin placed her hands on her waist and held out her bulging tadpole belly. She opened her mouth with a stern look on her face.

 

“Maevern! Don’t cry! I heard adults don’t cry over things like this!”

 

“Yes…”

 

“If you come between me and your ass from now on, you’ll be screwed!”

 

“Huh, yeah…”

 

Maebern starts crying right now. It looked like it was going to explode and run away. Rubelin looked back at me with a proud expression.

 

“Damn, I’m going to sleep!”

 

“Okay, good job.”

 

I felt good and smiled softly. I might hate Maebern even more because of what happened today, but I wondered how many people in life would take my side so passionately.

 

“Then shall we stop class today?”

 

I organized the colored paper scattered on my desk. Rubelin looked at the colored paper with a regretful expression on her face and shook her head.

 

“Huh! Damn, it hurts!”

 

“Be good.”

 

Rubelin helped organize the colored paper with her little hands. She smiled softly, thinking she was cute, and took her children’s book away, but her beautiful hand came out from behind her and blocked her view. I blinked furiously for a moment before her ice-cold hand touched my forehead. Hey, who is it?

 

“Are you Linel?”

 

I blinked blankly and asked in a dying voice.

 

“…”

 

The owner of the hand remained silent. In the silence that followed, I placed my hand over my forehead. My hand, which was bigger than expected, trembled. When I gently rubbed my hand, I realized that it was a man’s hand with thick bones and bulging veins. Hey, is it Ken? Whoever it was, the cold hand taking away the heat made me feel better. I grabbed his hand and pulled him down and turned around.

 

“Do not worry. I’m just about to finish class…”

 

I swallowed my words and stared blankly at the other person. Did the heat boil like water in a kettle and overflow into my head? The person in front of me appears to be Carlix. I poked his cheek with my finger as if to check his existence. The soft and gentle cheeks became hollow. The texture is vivid. The touch… Wait, is it really Carlix?

 

“It’s mom!”

 

I woke up and put my upper body back. Before I fell back, Carlix lightly supported my waist. He scrunched up his face.

 

“Are you crazy because you want to break your head?”

 

“yes yes?”

 

I glanced down and stared at Carlix’s hand supporting my waist. The area where his touch touched me felt hot as if I had been burned, so I slightly twisted my waist.

 

“If you could let go of this… … .”

 

“It would be worth seeing if you let it go.”

 

“yes?”

 

“It would be quite a sight to see your head hit on a marble.”

 

“… … .”

 

I gently squeezed his arm. You won’t miss it. Carlix glanced at my hand and laughed sarcastically. As he pulled hard, his upper body straightened up. At the same time, his face became so close that our breaths began to mingle.

 

I met red eyes and lowered my eyes in shock.

 

“Your Majesty. How… here…?”

 

Carlix looked at me with a disapproving expression.

 

“Cancel.”

 

“Yes?”

 

Cancel?

 

“I’m taking back what I said about taking care of my body.”

 

With those words, Carlix’s hands came under my waist and knees. In an instant, my vision blurred and my body floated up.

 

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Translator Note: