"Good night, Your Majesty."
"Good night, too, Nanny."
I closed my eyes tightly, and as I did, Nanny kissed my cheek and then covered me with the blanket before leaving the room. Thump, thump. In the darkness, I could only hear the beating of my heart. I spent some time gazing at the blurry ceiling.
I still hadn't decided what to do with the note Aiden sent. I thought about showing it to Lysandro for 0.1 seconds but quickly folded it back.
'I can't let them know I can read. Even if I pretend to have just received the note, explaining how I got it would be impossible.'
It seems that the more secrets one has, the more troubles come with them.
It was a night filled with deep sighs. As I lay awake, dawn soon arrived. After much deliberation, I decided to go out for a moment.
'If he wanted to kill me, he would have done it already.'
I quietly pulled back the blanket and, in case Lysandro or Nanny came in, I fluffed the blanket with a pillow to make it look like someone was lying there.
"Good night, Your Majesty."
As the door closed, silence returned. A little while later, I got out of bed again and retrieved the bag I had pushed inside the door earlier.
Jingle, jingle. The precious gold and jewels inside the bag made a clear and cheerful sound. Just listening to it was soothing.
Sure enough, it was probably a gift for me. If so, there was no reason for me to refuse. I giggled and carefully put the bag in the drawer of the least noticeable corner of the bedroom. Since this place isn't cleaned often, it should be safe. Suddenly becoming rich, I felt I would sleep well tonight.
'I'll take it and keep it. I won't let it go.'
*** The vast bathroom, which was too large for me to use, had a huge bathtub. But it was too deep for me, so I used a small baby bathtub. The sweet fragrance wafted gently, and I sighed lazily without realizing it. It was warm and cozy.
"Oh, our Majesty. You're so well-behaved."
Nanny's soft touch as she washed my hair was incredibly gentle. The maids praised me, looking at me.
"Never crying and taking baths so well, this is the first time I've seen such a Majesty."
"That's right. My youngest, Elise, is so noisy. Her cries can be heard in my room every bath time."
"Usually, children at this age are all like that. Majesty is truly remarkable."
'Oh, how embarrassing...'
I was just happy to be able to soak in a warm bathtub without worrying about water and gas bills, but I ended up being treated like a remarkable person.
'Having a bathtub at home is a big deal.'
In the semi-basement or attic where I used to live, a bathtub was a dream. I had always wished that the new house we were moving to wouldn't have any condensation in the bathroom. Before I could feel melancholic, Nanny spoke to me.
"Okay, close your eyes. Good, you're being so good~."
"Your face is all clean. Well done, hah."
Just for washing my face, the maids praised me again.
"You wash your face so well, and Majesty is so mature."
"Adorable, lovely, smart, and even cool!"
"Look, your cheeks are blushing!"
My inner 20-year-old soul screamed. I tried to be as well-behaved as possible to end this embarrassing bath quickly, but it only made things worse.
"You're so well-behaved and so proud!"
"Well-behaved Majesty is so cute...!"
Finally, I couldn't take it anymore and stopped them, and I was able to finish the bath safely. After changing into new clothes and drying my damp hair, I lay down on the bed, feeling clean, fresh, and confident.
The laziness of not having to worry about waking up early tomorrow was truly blissful.
"Majesty, I'll be back in a moment. Play with this."
While fidgeting with the doll Nanny gave me and rolling around on the bed, it happened.
Suddenly, something hard poked my back painfully. Startled, I jumped up.
A rock about the size of my fist was lying on the bed. I hugged the doll tightly and examined the rock carefully. It was just a plain white rock with no marks.
"Who put this rock here?"
None of the servants would do such a thing. Annoyed, I reached out to the rock. As my fingertips touched it—
A voice suddenly echoed in my head. What is this? Before I could be confused, something even more unbelievable happened. Whoosh! A blinding white light exploded from the rock and instantly seeped into my fingertips.
I looked at where the rock had been, but it was gone.
I searched the blanket, but the rock was nowhere to be found.
'The rock was absorbed into me.'
Was it just a rock? I checked my body, but nothing seemed different. I didn't feel dizzy, hurt, or strange. But there was one thing that bothered me: the voice I heard when I touched the rock.
*** As soon as he saw me, Yang stopped in his tracks.
[Your divine power has increased. Quite a lot.]
I frowned and plopped down next to Yang. The animal friends who usually liked to be around me were even more clingy today. I stroked Toto, who was rubbing his head against my hand, and looked at Yang.
'I came here because of this.'
[Did you receive a divine revelation? Why did it increase so much?]
'There was a rock on my bed. I touched it, and it was absorbed into me.'
Yang's tail thumped the ground. The atmosphere suddenly became serious.
'I don't know why it was there. But isn't it good that my divine power increased?'
[It's not bad. It just means the latent divine power inside you has been unlocked.]
So it wasn't dangerous. I felt relieved.
'And there's something else I'm curious about. I heard a voice.'
'Yeah. When I touched the rock.'
'It sounded like it was asking for something... but the voice was too muffled to understand. It was like a radio with a lot of static.']
Yang shook his head. I suddenly felt lost.
'The only one I could ask was Yang.'
So the identity of the voice remained a mystery. *** Dinner time with Oscar and the Emperor. I sat down with a pounding heart, of course, with a baby bib on.
'I'm going to eat something delicious.'
I was eagerly waiting for the food to arrive when Oscar, sitting opposite me, tilted his head.
"Mable, why are you so happy?"
"Because of the delicious food?"
The food was always delicious, but it was a bit bland. In contrast, the food served at banquets was more flavorful. As I enjoyed the anticipation of the meal, the Emperor, who had been resting his chin on his hand, suddenly started radiating a cold aura.
The reason was soon revealed.
"How dare you make my Mable wait like this. I cannot tolerate it."
The sudden change in atmosphere was due to me, so I couldn't lift my head. Naturally, the kitchen staff were in an uproar because of the Emperor's unexpected anger. They were innocent, but it was all my fault.
I slammed my hand on the table. Clunk!
"Waiting is also part of the meal. You need to know how to wait!"
The Emperor looked at me with a shocked expression.
"Say you're sorry. Father, you're wrong."
The Emperor looked at me with a pitiful expression, like a dog caught in the rain, but I tried to look stern. After a moment,
The kitchen staff were taken aback by the Emperor's apology. Regardless, the Emperor's gaze was fixed on me.
"Yep. Father, you did well."
I pretended to stroke the Emperor, who was far away, and his expression brightened immediately. I looked back and forth between the Emperor and Oscar, who looked so much alike. Their gazes, directed only at me, seemed to be full of hope.
'A big dog on the side, a small dog in front.'
The father and son were a perfect pair of dogs.