CH 2.03

“Ma…gic?”

“Yes, magic. You know what magic is, right?”

Oscar nodded his head. “The thing that people do in circuses?” Having never left the palace, he hadn’t witnessed magic firsthand, but he’d heard of it from books.

“Yes, I know a few magic tricks.”

“You?” The little prince said in disbelief. “You’re lying. You’re a maid, how can you know magic?”

It was a perfectly reasonable doubt. It was highly unlikely for any maid to know how to perform magic—well, except for Marie.

Marie gracefully rose from her seat as if she’d become the magician in her dream. “Well then, would you like to see it for yourself, the kind of magic tricks I can do?”

With her captivating hand gestures, Oscar’s eyes widened. “Y-Yes! But if you lied, there will be serious consequences!”

“Yes, in that case, let me show you the first coin trick.” Marie held up a coin with her right thumb and index finger, showing it to the prince. And just before starting the trick, she added, “Ah, Your Highness. Watching this alone wouldn’t be much fun. How about this?”

“……?”

“Let’s make a bet.”

“What kind of bet?”

“It’s about whether Your Highness can figure out the trick behind my magic. If you can figure it out, you win, but if you can’t, I win. The loser will grant one wish to the winner.”

Upon hearing this, the little prince’s determination flared up. “Alright! Let’s do it! I’ll definitely win! If I win, I’ll make you write your name with your bum*, so be prepared!”

*it literally means what it says. this is a common punishment in games for children—or just games in general. you’d even see celebs doing it on variety shows. as to why it’s a punishment, well it’s pretty embarrassing to wiggle your ass in the air in front of everyone, so yeah.

“Alright, let’s begin.” Marie held the coin with her left hand and covered it with her right hand. With deliberate grace, she began to shift her left hand, drawing Oscar’s attention.

“Now, you have to watch carefully.”

The little prince swallowed nervously and focused on her hand.

Marie, like the magician in her dream, opened her palms and swiftly lowered her left hand. At the same time, her right hand—the one holding the coin—appeared empty!

“……!”

The little prince was stunned. The coin in Marie’s right hand had disappeared!

“What? Where did it go?”

“It was The Vanishing Coin, the first magic trick.”

“Tell me! Where did the coin go?!” Oscar asked, clinging onto Marie. Of course, Marie didn’t reveal it. ‘It’s such an easy trick that the intrigue would disappear if he knew.’

The true allure of magic lies in the mystery it preserves. In reality, the magic behind the vanishing coin trick was simple. The intricate motions of the left hand in the initial stages were cleverly designed to divert attention. Once all eyes were fixated on the left hand’s elaborate movements, its swift descent would coincide with the discreet release of the coin from the right hand.

As a result, the audience, who’d been focused on the left hand, would think that the coin had vanished into thin air.

‘If I used props, more elaborate magic tricks would be possible, but for now, I can only do simple everyday magic.’ As it wasn’t a magic show intended to showcase advanced magical tricks, it didn’t matter. It was enough that she was able to provide joy to the despondent little prince.

“Now, for the next trick, it’s called ‘Coin Dissolving in Water.’”

“Coin dissolving in water? What’s that? Can you perform alchemy too?” The little prince once again asked in amazement.

The only person in the world that could dissolve a coin in water is an alchemist. But of course, what Marie was about to do was not alchemy. “Well, pay close attention. There’s a coin inside the glass. Do you see it?”

“Yes I do! Keep going!”

Marie covered the glass with a black cloth she got from the banquet hall. Then, as if performing a truly mysterious magic, she moved both of her hands at the sides of the glass. “Suri-suri masuri~”

Of course, the hand gestures and incantation had no real meaning, but the little prince’s eyes grew wider and wider.

Then, swiftly removing the cloth, Marie began pouring water into the glass from a prepared pitcher. “Now, I will dissolve the coin into the water.”

Drip, drip.

The water started to fill the glass! Once again, Oscar was astounded, as if on the verge of fainting. The coin had truly dissolved and disappeared in the water!

“Y-You! Can you really perform alchemy?!”

“It’s not alchemy; it’s magic.” Once again, it was a simple trick. It was an optical illusion that relied on the refraction of light. Naturally, those who are unaware of the trick would be easily deceived.

“Now, for the next magic trick…!” After that, Marie proceeded to show several more tricks in succession: magic tricks with handkerchiefs; magic tricks with playing cards; and lastly, the Flame Vanishing trick, where the flame on the candle disappears mysteriously.

“Wow, wow!” Oscar watched her magic tricks in a frenzy. As the magic became more elaborate, he became more enraptured.

But when he saw the final advanced magic trick—the Flame Vanishing trick—he seemed to faint in shock. “H-How is that possible? Tell me! Teach me! I want to try it too!” Oscar clung to her, begging to learn the secret with the enthusiasm of an eager child.

‘Luckily, it seems like he forgot what happened earlier.’

Marie inwardly heaved a sigh of relief. The impromptu magic show seemed to have been successful.

“So Your Highness, that means I won the bet, right?”

“Bet?” The little prince flinched. It suddenly occurred to him that they’d made a bet before the magic show began.

“Yes, you agreed to grant the wish of the winner.”

“Well, um…” Oscar averted his gaze in mortification. His expression showed that he was contemplating how to overcome that predicament. Marie chuckled inwardly at his cuteness.

Of course, she didn’t have any difficult wish for the adorable little prince. She simply wanted to cheer up the little boy who reminded her of her past self.

‘This is the least I can do to help,’ she thought bitterly. In her heart, she wanted to offer as much help as possible. However, she knew all too well that she couldn’t realistically do that. ‘Still, I hope I can be of any help…’

With that thought in mind, she said, “The wish I would like to ask is—”

But suddenly, Prince Oscar interjected unexpectedly.

“I didn’t lose!”

“What?”

“It’s unfair! You know magic well, but this is my first time seeing it. The bet is unfair!”

Technically, he wasn’t wrong. Indeed, it was somewhat unfair.

Marie said in a flustered manner, “W-Well, that’s true, but… the wish I wanted to ask won’t be difficult…”

“I don’t care! I’ll study the magic you showed me today and then we’ll make a bet again!” After shouting that, the prince hastily dashed off to his palace, seemingly fleeing from the scene.

Marie gazed at his fleeing figure in dismay.

‘Uh, well, it seems like he has regained his spirits, so it’s okay?’ Although it didn’t unfold as she’d intended, it didn’t appear to be entirely bad in some respects.

‘My Lord, please bless the prince,’ prayed she while looking at the distant crucifix in the cathedral.

‘Now, let’s go back to the banquet hall.’ Just as Marie was about to turn around, she ran into someone unexpectedly.

“Sir Kiel?”

Silky silver hair.

A chiseled face that can make one’s heart flutter just by looking at it.

It was Kiel, a member of the Imperial Guard.

“Hello.” Marie bowed her head in greeting.

After exchanging greetings, Kiel said. “So His Highness Prince Oscar was here.”

“Ah, yes. He just left a while ago.”

Kiel turned his head, looking at the little prince who was running off into the distance. A mixture of warmth and pity filled his eyes as he gazed at Oscar. Once Oscar’s figure disappeared completely from his view, Kiel suddenly made an unexpected gesture towards Marie.

“S-Sir Kiel?”

He—a member of the Imperial Guard—bowed slightly to Marie—a mere maid—to express his gratitude. “Thank you. Thank you for caring about His Highness Prince Oscar.”

“I-It’s… it’s nothing. I haven’t done anything special…” Marie waved her hand in panic.

Even though it was merely a gesture of gratitude, she found it difficult to believe that a squire like him would lower his head and show respect to a mere maid like herself.

Ever since he’d helped her in the Swan Garden, she’d sensed that he was not an ordinary noble. He was too nice and too courteous! ‘Well, of course, it’s not a bad thing, that… he has a good personality, but… he’s still a noble…’

Meanwhile, as Marie grew flustered and nonplussed, Kiel’s smile softened. It was a gentle smile that had a dangerous effect on a girl’s heart.

“I’ve felt this way for a while, but Marie, you truly are kindhearted and adorable.”

Hearing the word “adorable,” Marie’s face turned involuntarily crimson.

‘Don’t say things like that with an earnest expression!’ It wasn’t just empty words; it felt genuinely heartfelt. Given Kiel’s personality, it was likely a casual remark devoid of any underlying meaning, yet Marie’s heart raced uncontrollably.

Kiel smiled for a moment and changed the subject. “As you may know, Your Highness Oscar is lonely.”

“Ah… yes.”

“That’s why I’m even more grateful. Apart from me, no one else treats him with genuine sincerity.”

Marie became speechless when she heard that. Suddenly, she began to question Kiel’s true identity. ‘How is Sir Kiel so close to His Highness Oscar?’

It didn’t seem like their closeness happened by chance. Rather, Oscar genuinely relied on Kiel, as if he were family. ‘Could it be?’

Various lingering questions about Kiel in her mind started to combine and form as a single conjecture. ‘Could it be that he’s not a squire…?’

Marie swallowed hard and looked at Kiel. With his sculpted face, he gazed at her with eyes so clear that they conveyed a sense of purity.

“Miss Marie?”

“…If it’s not too intrusive, may I ask you one thing, Sir Kiel?”

“Please go ahead and ask anything.”

“Um, could I possibly… know your full name, Sir Kiel?”

“…….”

Kiel hesitated for a moment as Marie waited with bated breath.

“My full name is.…..”

Kiel paused and continued, “Kierhan de Seyton.”

“……!”

Marie’s face turned pale.

—Marquis Kierhan de Seyton!

There wasn’t a single person in the Empire who didn’t know that name.

Not only was he the Commander of the Imperial Guard, but he’s also the strongest swordsman in the Empire. He’s the Marquis who possessed the largest military might, second only to the imperial family—Marquis Kierhan de Seyton!

‘Oh my goodness! What did he just say? Kiel is Marquis Kierhan?’ Marie was so shocked that she found herself speechless and lost in a daze.

t/n: in case you haven’t noticed, kierhan is not a typo. in my defense, it can be both interpreted as l or r, it depends on the translator’s prerogative. kieran (kee-ruhn) with an h makes more sense to me, so whatevs.

anyway this makes me fall harder with him more asfhfhkl. and if i were him, i wouldn’t even need the family duty as an excuse… i’d be pro-oscar right off the bat. that child is so precious i would die for him