CH 8

The small growling I heard yesterday leaked between the lips of the Fourth Prince, whose fangs were threateningly exposed.

‘Does he hate me because I’m human?’

It must feel like a stone that suddenly rolled over one day, but it’s understandable that he didn’t like it. Moreover, since he was still young, it wouldn’t be easy to control his emotions.

On the other hand, Noha, the Third Prince, showed an ambiguous attitude, neither favorable nor hostile to me.

To be honest, it seemed to be close to the curiosity of a human being he had seen for the first time in his life.

The Third Prince, who had an unpredictable corner, had been staring intently at only one part of the table, whether serious conversations were coming or not.

‘Is that what he wants?’

Looking at the gold star-shaped pendant, I suddenly felt a cool body temperature touching my cheek and turned my head.

“Choose, Yernian.”

“I hathe gambwing.” (I hate gambling.)

At my firm answer, one of Licht’s eyebrows went up at an angle.

Mir, who had been watching the situation from the side, quickly stepped forward.

“Your Highness the Princess. This is not a real gamble. It’s a kind of game that has been handed down in the kingdom of Your Highness the Princess.”

To be precise, it was a game played to foretell the future for fun at the baby’s first birthday banquet in Merni Kingdom.

“Pway?” (Play?)

The table, which I thought was bizarre until just now, looked slightly different to the sound of a game in my home country that had already been destroyed.

“Yes. You can choose the one you like the most among them. It’s not a gamble, it’s a game His Majesty prepared specially for today. His Majesty said he would give a big prize to the nobles who guessed what the Princess would choose.”

…Ah.

I blinked blankly and glanced back at Licht,  who had already returned to his place. He was staring intently at me with his chin on his armrest.

‘Although I don’t know how to predict the future with this.’

I thought that I should match the flow even after seeing Licht’s sincerity, so I looked around the items on the table.

The attention of the beastmen dancing to the music or chatting together began to focus on me. Having already made up my mind on what to choose, I crawled towards the end of the table without hesitation.

“Ah… .”

“Oh…!”

The responses of the beastmen, who concentrated all their attention on my movements, were mixed.

I grabbed the golden star pendant with both hands and shook it.

“I wiwe thhish one!” (I like this one!)

Noha’s big eyes followed my movements.

It was time to smile inwardly at the expected reaction.

“Congratulations, Yernian. It seems that you’re going to become a saintess.”

“Shainthessh?” (Saintess?)

What kind of nonsense is this all of a sudden?

A mysterious smile spread across Licht’s lips, leaning on the throne in a more relaxed posture than before.

“A saintess who deals with mana. I’ll look forward to it, Yernian.”

No, so what does this pendant have to do with a saintess!

Yet in the end, Licht didn’t tell me the true meaning of the pendant I chose.

***

It was well past midnight when the birthday banquet ended.

At the end of the banquet, I fell asleep and returned to the bedroom in the arms of the nanny.

“Your Highness. You worked so hard today.”

The nanny who dropped me into the cradle unwrapped the gift box with the maids. My half-closed eyes lit up.

“Wow…! Sho cuthe!” (Wow…! So cute!)

Inside the box was a cute teddy bear.

Alice, who was looking at me with a happy smile while rubbing my face on the soft fur, made the bed.

“It’s time for the good child to sleep, Princess.”

“Once again, happy birthday.”

With the last greetings from the lively Alice and the blunt Loen, darkness fell in the bedroom. The nanny, who pulled the chair next to the cradle, began to pat me on the back as I embraced the teddy bear.

I closed my eyes as I checked the golden pendant placed by my bedside.

The desire to sleep like this was like a chimney, but there was still work to be done.

At that moment, I could feel the nanny leaving the bedroom.

Pretending to sleep hard, I remembered Noha, who couldn’t take his eyes off the pendant from start to finish.

‘Will he come right away?’

The star-shaped pendant boasted a beautiful and sophisticated shape on its own, but it was nothing more than a meaningless decoration for me as long as the escape had crossed the water.

‘Because Licht also told me to throw it away when I got tired of playing with it.’

It would be okay to give it to Noha.

Holding back the rush of sleepiness, I watched the tightly closed door.

After a while, there was a click, the sound of the door opening, and the sound of suffocating footsteps.

“Nowa.” (Noha.)

Noha, who found me not sleeping, stopped in front of the door and blinked.

“…Hello.”

“Um. Hewwo.” (Um. Hello.)

Noha, who had been hesitating, slowly approached my cradle.

“You haven’t slept yet.”

“I’m waithing fow yew.” (I’m waiting for you.)

“…Me?”

“Yesh. Hewe.” (Yes. Here.)

I held out the pendant at the bedside in front of Noha. A faint moonlight fell on the pendant in the shape of a star with golden strings intertwined.

“This…”

“Yew wanthed ith.” (You wanted it.)

Recognizing the pendant, Noha’s eyes widened. I waved the pendant in front of my eyes as if I was rushing Noha, who didn’t reach out.

“I’ww give ith tho yew.” (I’ll give it to you.)

“Why? It’s a present that Brother prepared for you.”

“I have a woth othher thhan thhish.” (I have a lot other than this.)

It was true. Licht bribed me with everything that was laid out on the table.

The things that I would have thought of as escape funds in the past felt a little burdensome now.

“Do yew hathe ith?” (Do you hate it?)

As soon as the pendant was pushed back, Noha, who seemed hesitant, immediately responded.

“No. I like it.”

Fortunately, Noha, who did not refuse this time, took the pendant with a careful hand.

A faint vitality appeared in the eyes, which had always been out of focus.

Noha came to me and quietly made eye contact with a reminded expression.

“…Thank you, Yernian.”

That was the first time he called my name properly.

Sometimes, even when he came to my bedroom, he looked at me with silent observing eyes and then turned around.

‘I think he’s about five years old now.’

The calm and precocious atmosphere that is not like a child strangely attracted attention.

“Nowa. How owd awe yew?” (Noha. How old are you?)

Noha, who was fiddling with the pendant, raised his head. Eyes resembling the night sky just before dawn looked at me.

“Three years old this year.”

What is this. He really was only two years older than me?

‘Then the youngest, the Fourth Prince, must be the same age as me or about a year older than me.’

I quickly finished the calculation, looked at Noha and smiled broadly.

“Pweashe thawe good cawe of me fwom now on.” (Please take good care of me from now on.)

Noha, who had been looking at me for a moment with a lost expression, nodded his head slightly.

“…Me too.”

I smiled quietly, not missing the small voice that was close to talking to himself.

‘I paid a bribe, so if I’m in trouble, I will give it to you.’

Unlike the Fourth Prince, Noha seemed to have no particular objection or prejudice towards humans, so I felt more at ease.

‘At least until I grow up, the more by my side, the better.’

I applied what I had learned from Licht and laid myself in the cradle feeling proud.

Noha, who had stopped there for a while and looked at the pendant and me, turned around.

“Shweep weww, Nowa!” (Sleep well, Noha!)

The small hand holding the doorknob stopped, yet he left the room without looking back at me until the end.

Clack. The sound of the door closing echoed through the silent room.

With my body relaxed, I turned my head to the side and let out a small sigh. It felt difficult to maintain the short tone characteristic of a child.

‘Is this how I’m supposed to do it?’

In the future, in order not to cause Licht unnecessary doubts, it seemed that I had to pay more attention to his words and actions.

‘It looks like he brought me here to close the rift in the Myo World.’

It wasn’t a request I could grant right away, as I had never properly dealt with magic.

‘But when the time is right.’

Wouldn’t it be okay if I tried to negotiate in the direction of mutual coexistence?

I will gain freedom, and the Myo World will find peace.

As I was about to close my eyes, another customer came to visit me.

Cool energy resembling a summer mist hovered around me with my half-closed eyes closed.

“Yernian. Are you sleeping?”

I was seriously thinking about whether I would pretend to sleep like this, and I opened my eyes.

“…Wichth!” (…Licht!)

He burst into laughter at my dissatisfaction-filled whining of ‘why are you disturbing my sleep’.

Licht sighed, holding me lightly with my cheeks inflated.

“I forgot to say something important”

“Whath ish ith.” (What is it.)

“I won’t be in the Myo World for a while from tomorrow on.”

“How wong?” (How long?)

“About three years.”

…What? Three years?

I felt like I was running out of sleep, and I opened my eyes.

You are telling such a huge thing in a tone as if you are just going for a short walk.

Licht poked my hardened cheek with his hand.

“I told Noha to help you take a bath, so don’t worry. If you need anything, deliver it to Mir or the nanny. You don’t have to hold it in if Ashkari bothers you.”

It was the first time Licht had talked so long.

I asked, fidgeting my fingers for no reason.

“…Ish ith fow thwee yeaws?” (Is it for three years?)

“Probably. Something very important happened.”

How important is it that the head of the Myo Clan had to go absent for three years?

‘Is it related to the rift in the Myo World?’

As I couldn’t easily keep up with words, the corners of his lips curled up.

“Your reaction is interesting. Are you afraid of being apart from me?”

“Hmph. I don’th wnow.” (Hmph. I don’t know.)

I was just a little anxious. Because I couldn’t predict how Licht’s absence would affect me.

What if they came to me while he was away?

Richie stroked my cheek with a soft hand, as if seeing through my anxiety.

“I will try to be back as soon as possible. Don’t worry, I’ve also attached an escort.”

“Uh? Eshcowt?” (Huh? Escort?)

“Don’t worry, they won’t show up unless it’s an emergency.”

Fortunately, Licht also seemed to be conscious of those who attacked the sanctuary.

Feeling my body tightened by my anxiety loosen more and more, I rested my cheek on Licht’s shoulder.

“Wichth.” (Licht.)

“Why.”

I was very nervous about having an escort to watch me from somewhere while Licht was away, but it was better than getting caught up in a dangerous conspiracy.

Breathing a sigh of relief inside, I looked up at the expressionless Licht and smiled broadly.

“Goodbye.” (Goodbye.)

I caught a glimpse of myself smiling in the clean wall. He looked at me without saying a word and smiled with dry eyes.

“…Okay.”

It was exactly three years later that I saw Licht again, who had gone away so easily.