Who Made Me a Princess?

Chapter 7

I had snuck out of the Ruby Palace twice more since my first mission. I had to make those trips once every few days because I was afraid Lily might catch me, and it was just difficult for me to go out every day.

But after getting used to the work, I was able to move more discreetly. Although as far as running went, it still felt like I had heavy weights tied around my legs. That I couldn’t do much about.

It wasn’t like I never had doubts during the process. To be honest, my life in the Ruby Palace was so nice that I’d have loved to continue living that way. But there was a huge time bomb named Claude living in the imperial palace. No matter how good my life was, I couldn’t risk it as collateral, now could I?

So my pretties were, in other words, my insurance. Insurance that I could escape the palace at any time.

D-day could happen at any moment!

So for the fifth time, I walked through flower fields, a route that was quite familiar to me now.

And after a while, just like every other time, I stepped into the dead-quiet palace—but I didn’t head straight for the back garden. I had spotted a place previously and had been meaning to investigate it, so I turned my feet in that direction.

Ho! Here they are!

Until that moment, I had only seen the first floor’s array of statues from afar, so I wasn’t quite sure what they were. But seeing them up close confirmed that they were indeed cherubs. They came in various sizes, some bigger than me, some the size of my forearm. But most importantly, they were all made of gold.

Heavens me! The statues in my palace are all made of marble, but these are gold!

I was absolutely thrilled. There were so many cherub statues that it felt like no one would notice if one disappeared. It would be too difficult in my current body, but I would definitely be able to snatch one when I got a little older.

These should be real gold, right?

I examined the nearest statue, then bit down on the plump buttocks that were staring back at my eye-level. My baby teeth were pretty strong at that point.

Suddenly, I felt the presence of a person behind me. I froze in place with the cherub’s buttocks between my teeth.

“When did such a pest take up residence in my palace?”

A chilling voice pierced my frozen ears. The moment I heard it, a strange chill spread across my body.

When I turned around, I found myself taking a step back from the shadow cast over my head. My back hit the statue behind me.

How long have we been standing this close?

There were two people who had approached me so quietly.

One of the two was standing farther back, so I was able to see his face. Judging from his attire, he was probably a knight. The other was standing right in front of me…

The moment I saw his face, my limbs went weak. The pouch I was holding fell to the ground, and its contents spilled out.

The jewels, which I had collected one by one over the past three years, shined brilliantly against the white floor.

The knight glanced down at them and made a curious face. The other man, however, only looked down at me. His gaze never faltered or shifted.

“That face.”

His eyes, as chilling and bright as his voice was deep, felt piercing. Even against the light, those mysterious eyes didn’t lose their shine. They glimmered with various subtle undertones.

His eyes were the same as mine. It was like looking in the mirror! However, there wasn’t a sliver of emotion in his. They really did look like jewels.

“I feel as though I’ve seen it somewhere.”

I had never seen this man’s face before in my life, but I recognized him instantly. His golden-blond hair that fluttered in the wind. Jewel-like eyes that were unique to the imperial family. That expressionless face with a tired gaze that looked down upon me. A savage aura that radiated from his entire body.

Claude de Alger Obelia. Athanasia’s father and the emperor of this land looked down at me as if he were seeing stones scattered on the side of the road.

“Ah, yes. It was that dancer from Siodonna. You resemble that wench.”

This unexpected confrontation put me at a loss for words. I couldn’t utter a single one.

My mind is as blank as a canvas.

Is this what it feels like to have a meltdown?

This... this is him, right? The emperor that kills Athanasia when she’s eighteen? Why the heck is this guy here right now, in front of me?!

Hello? I’m five?! This isn’t even the rear garden of the emperor’s palace!

The man, who looked to be about in his mid-twenties, watched as I had this internal meltdown.

“Then again, it matters not who you are,” he uttered.

I didn’t have the mental capacity to even wonder what that meant. I stared up at him in a daze as the man very slowly raised his hand.

“Your Majesty,” the knight standing behind him called out in a restless voice.

I continued to stare at the raised hand, dumbfounded and stupefied. Suddenly, his hand stopped, and his emotionless eyes scanned my face once again.

It was hard to believe, but a smile appeared on his lifeless face.

“Come to think of it, there is something I recall.”

His jewel eyes turned a deep blue shade, almost black.

“I remember the name that wench gave you. Athanasia, wasn’t it?”

The moment his mouth whispered my name, I couldn’t hold my breath any longer. It sounded like a death sentence to my ears. I let out a desperate exhale, and my sunken heart began to race as if it had finally grasped the unfolding situation.

The knight looked surprised, as if he had not known of my existence all this time.

“You were but a newborn at the time, barely able to steady your neck,” Claude continued.

This confirmed that he had seen Athanasia four years ago.

“That thing was named Athanasia?” the knight asked.

Though it was stated in the novel that Athanasia met Claude when she was nine years old, their first real meeting was actually right after Athanasia was born. That was the day the Ruby Palace massacre occurred, and the day Emperor Claude first heard Athanasia’s name, which meant “immortality.”

In the novel Lovely Princess, only the official heir to the throne was allowed to have a name related to immortality.

Furthermore, the emperor was the only one allowed to bestow that moniker on their successor. Therefore, Jennette’s name only meant “the grace of god” and had nothing to do with “immortality” or “eternity.”

That was also why Jennette’s aunt, the countess, had always considered Athanasia a hindrance. And yet, Diana, who had been nothing but a lowly dancer, had given her daughter the name of a ruler: Athanasia.

Who knew what was going on in her mind at the time?

A fearless woman indeed.

“Quite amusing. I wonder if you’ll actually live up to your namesake and manage to survive.”

So Claude had actually meant to kill Athanasia along with all the rest of those in the Ruby Palace.

If Diana hadn’t given me the name Athanasia, that day, I might have...

Wow. So am I really standing in front of a man who wanted to kill me? What a monster.

Of course, knowing how the story went, I was fully aware that he was someone to be wary of. But now that I was actually standing in front of him, I felt completely lost and flustered.

“You’ve grown quite a bit since then,” he said.

“You’ve grown quite a bit since then. You’ve lived long enough. Time for you to die!”

N-no way. He wouldn’t, would he?

In the novel, you ignored a nine-year-old Athanasia and passed her by! What happened to my grand plan to just live quietly until I turn eighteen and then flee?

*Plop! Clang!*

While my head was inundated with all kinds of thoughts, something slipped down my leg and fell to the floor. The three of us, me included, shifted our gazes to the sound’s source.

One of my pouches had vomited all its sparkling insides and glimmering contents. The carrot-eating-bunny pattern that Hannah had personally embroidered on it was exceptionally adorable.

All three of us stood in silence.

Oh... my god. I’m done for. I thought the strings tied around my legs were feeling a little loose! This is awful! My seventh and eighth batch of pretties! I was carrying one on each leg, and now they’ve both been exposed!

I broke out in a cold sweat as I tried to gauge the emperor’s next move. I couldn’t read the look on Claude’s face for the life of me.

His head tilted to one side as he looked back and forth at me, then at the pouches on the floor. After a moment, he began to walk toward me.

*Gasp!*

Then he put his hands under my armpits and hoisted me up!

Can you believe it?!

Even when at eye-level with those jewel eyes, I couldn’t tell what he was thinking. Curses tried to creep their way up my throat, but I was so stunned that they got stuck there, as if blocked by a big rock.

W-what is he doing?!

Whether he was aware of my bewilderment or not, he examined my face for a moment before starting to speak.

“You’re heavy.”

I was dumbfounded by his indifferent tone of voice.

“No wonder your cheeks look like they’re about to burst. But I still didn’t think you’d be this hefty.”

You bastard! I’m not heavy at all! And my cheek fat is absolutely standard!

Okay, but never mind that for a second. Why are you even talking to me in the first place?

You’re a bastard who loves Jennette and Jennette only. You don’t even consider Athanasia your daughter!

“What are you doing in my palace?” he asked.

But the moment I heard those words, I felt my insides shriveling up.

“My palace?” “My palace?”

Sure, all the castles were part of the imperial palace, so I supposed that the emperor technically owned them all.

But, judging by what he was saying and by how comfortably he was dressed, it made me think that he actually used the palace on the regular.

God. I can’t believe it. I’ve stepped on a total land mine.

Is this the emperor’s palace? But it looks even simpler than the Ruby Palace! I can’t believe this.

This is actually unbelievable. Does that mean Athanasia was able to stumble over to the emperor’s palace in the novel not by chance, but because it was this close in proximity?

The gaze on that expressionless face shifted to something behind me. My back broke into a cold sweat yet again, for I knew exactly what was behind me.

Both men’s gazes landed on the embarrassing tooth marks I had left on the cherub’s buttocks.

“She must’ve thought it was a toy, Your Majesty.”

Aaahh! Are you going to kill me? Are you?!

Are you going to kill me because I stepped into your castle without permission? Because I left teeth marks on your statue? Because I’ve been alive all this time?

“She must’ve lost her way while playing at the Ruby Palace,” said Claude.

I’d been so stupefied that I hadn’t even noticed Claude turning around while holding me.

“Felix.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Carry her.”

My airborne body was passed into another pair of hands against my will. Up close, I saw that the knight was quite handsome.

There was a mixture of confusion and embarrassment on his face. This was understandable after Claude suddenly forced him to carry me.

We looked at each other, both feeling very uncomfortable, and both with shaking eyes.

“Perhaps the guest and I can enjoy some refreshments together.”

Claude’s words felt like a bolt from the blue.