CH 6

Early morning.

My body wakes up as if being pulled by something.

I throw off the blanket and jump out of bed.

I have to hurry up and get ready, or I’ll be late.

There’s a lot to do today.

Maintaining and managing the magic tool facility, adjusting for the production of magic tools, and developing new magic tools.

There’s also a pile of paperwork to do.

If I don’t start as soon as possible, I won’t be able to finish it all today.

I’ll be living on the edge tomorrow and the day after that.

To prevent that, I have to leave my room at sunrise…

“Huh, this is…”

This isn’t my usual room.

I realize too late that this isn’t the Roster family’s mansion.

My entire body, which was moving around restlessly, suddenly stops, and I look outside the window.

The clear blue sky has not a single cloud.

Even though it’s the same morning, things can look so different depending on where you are.

“Oh, I see… I’m in the royal castle.”

My sleepy head wakes up sharply.

The things that were mixed up between dreams and reality are now clear.

Yesterday, I was promoted to be the second prince’s personal court magic tool maker.

With that, the research lab was moved to the royal castle, and I was given a dedicated room to sleep in.

Now, I don’t have to force myself to go back to the mansion anymore.

I received a new place to stay, a home to return to.

“I woke up as usual… What should I do?”

I didn’t have any particular plans.

Last night, His Highness Julius just told me to rest well.

What should I do now?

Without knowing what I could do, I changed my clothes without thinking.

The room was equipped with a kitchen where I could cook, and ingredients were also provided. So I made breakfast casually and waited for time to pass while daydreaming.

“Phew… It feels like it’s been a while.”

A peaceful morning like this.

For me, mornings were similar to the emotions of soldiers before going to the battlefield.

Once I left the room and entered the research lab, I couldn’t leave until my work was done.

If I were even a little late, I didn’t know what the director would say.

In any case, I was always in a hurry.

Sometimes I even skipped breakfast.

Lunch too…sometimes I couldn’t even eat.

Now, I am in the midst of leisurely flowing time.

Drinking warm tea, I can enjoy the time after a meal.

How happy I am.

“…”

I sip my tea in silence.

The Secret Power of Morning Routines

I’m not really thinking about anything in particular.

It’s a void of time.

The sound of the clock ticking seems louder than necessary.

“…Okay.”

I stand up energetically and tidy up the dishes.

After finishing the tidying up, I leave the room.

I step out into the hallway and come to a halt.

Even though I worked as a court magic tool maker, I don’t often have the opportunity to go to the castle.

If the court is where we work, then the castle is where we live.

Of course, the royal family lives there.

So, ordinarily, one would not enter the castle unless invited.

“I wonder which way to go…”

Naturally, I don’t know the way.

I decide to go in the direction that seems right for now.

It’s early in the morning.

There aren’t many people around.

So far, there are no other figures in front of or behind me.

“I wonder if anyone’s here.”

Even though I look around aimlessly, I can’t find anyone.

I was hoping to find someone and ask for directions.

I walk down the hallway, looking around nervously.

Then, at the corner, I suddenly encountered the person I was looking for.

“Your Highness Julius!”

“Freya, what are you doing here?”

“I was looking for you, Your Highness. There’s something I’d like to ask you.”

“Is that so? Then let’s go somewhere else.”

Luckily, I was able to meet His Highness and he led me to walk around the castle.

The destination was the office where His Highness usually works.

When I entered, there was a grand desk and chair in the back, and a table with two sofas in the center for face-to-face conversation.

“Please sit wherever you like.”

“Oh, okay.”

As instructed, I sat on the sofa.

His Highness sat down on the sofa opposite me.

“So, what do you want to ask?”

“Yes. I’m glad I was able to come to the royal castle with Your Highness’s arrangement, but I don’t know what to do now.”

Having nothing to do and not having to work makes me anxious.

Perhaps it’s a side effect of being busy working every day.

I can’t sit still.

If I don’t do anything, I feel restless.

When I honestly conveyed these thoughts to His Highness…

“Hahaha, so that’s why you woke up so early and were looking for me.”

“Yes.”

His Highness laughed in exasperation.

He then looked at me with a gentle gaze and said:

“You’re very diligent.”

“Oh, no, it’s nothing… I think it’s normal.”

“That might be normal for you, but it’s not something everyone can do. You’ve gone through tough times and still managed to face your work earnestly because you’re more serious than anyone else. You should be proud of that.”

“Th,thank you.”

What is this?

Was I really this embarrassed when I was praised before?

Not only embarrassed but also… very happy.

It made my heart feel a warm feeling.

I felt like he really saw me.

“To be honest, I was planning on giving you some day off starting today.”

“Eh…? Day off?”

“Yes. Because that’s what you wanted, right? You said you wanted some time off.”

“Oh… right, I did.”

When His Highness asked me if there was anything I wanted, that was the answer I came up with after thinking about it.

However, looking back now, I feel like it might have been the wrong choice.

“What? Don’t you need a day off?”

“No, I do want a day off. It’s just… I don’t want to take too much time off, I just want a reasonable amount.”

“Heh, so basically, you want to work normally and get proper time off, right?”

“Yes. If I’m going to work here in the court, I want to be of real use.”

Feeling sorry for how I was treated at the court, His Highness invited me here.

Even though he said it was a way to repay me, if I was going to be taken care of, I wanted to work hard.

As the special magic tool maker for the second prince, I want to show that I’m worthy of the name.

“You’re serious, aren’t you?”

As he said this and laughed, His Highness stood up and took a pile of papers from the grand desk and put it in front of me.

“This is the work of a magic tool maker that has come to you.”

“Th,This…much?”

I saw a name on the paper that seemed familiar.

I immediately realized that all of this work was what I had done until now.