For some reason, the news was late, and it was only after a while that my father came to look for me.
"Not a pervert, but a person. Not an attack, but a witness."
Since I had already calmed Oscar down once, it was easier to deal with my father. My father, whose words were repeatedly interrupted, sighed and finally examined my body all over.
Only after confirming that there wasn't a single scratch did he relax. My father asked me,
"So, what happened to our baby at the library?"
It felt like he was saying, 'You can't even read a word,' with his eyes. Though I had learned to read through self-study, I felt wronged but couldn't reveal that fact.
"Um. I was looking at picture books."
"Picture books? You said picture books?"
"Picture books. Picture books... I see."
A foreboding feeling crept up on me. Whenever my father started muttering to himself and pondering something during a conversation, something troublesome inevitably happened.
My father nodded as if he had made a decision and declared solemnly,
"I will give you all the picture books in the world."
Without listening to my opinion, my father called out loudly to someone and left the bedroom.
I called out desperately, but he didn't look back and quickly disappeared. I stared at his retreating figure in disbelief. I finally came to my senses.
Today, I had one more sin to add to my list.
"Hey. If I do this, will I go to hell…?"
Thinking about the innocent trees that would be sacrificed, I felt distressed, but I realized there was nothing I could do. No one could stop my father, who insisted on giving me the throne even though I didn't want it. How could he have such an absurd imagination? Even though he was my father, I really couldn't understand him.
I would have to donate the picture books later. Taking advantage of the absence of people in the bedroom, I pulled out the royal family's genealogy that I had stolen from the library, grunting. I had to return it before anyone noticed it was missing. I didn't need to look at the ancestors' part at the beginning. I opened the last page of the royal family's genealogy.
Mabel Gadenia Ermano. And above that, Oscar's name. I moved up one space from my name and examined the collateral line of the Ermano family.
Honestly, I was half-doubting, but I didn't expect to find it so easily. I thought it might not be there. [Dylan Levi Langard. Renee Shu Langard.] They were the children of my father's sister, making them my distant cousins. I had never heard of them, but it seemed that my aunt had married the emperor of the Langard Empire and had children.
"Great. I just need one of them…."
That's right. What I was trying to do was to pass on the throne. Oscar didn't want to be the emperor, and I didn't think I was suited for it either, so I had to find a suitable successor! I couldn't pass the throne to a complete stranger, so I had to find someone who shared the blood of the Ermano royal family. They were my cousins. I didn't know which of the two was the heir, so I needed to investigate. At least one of them wouldn't be the heir, right? Just then, Eidan knocked on the balcony window.
"What are you looking at?"
"The royal family's genealogy. I need to look at it a bit. That's why…."
I clasped my hands and looked up at Eidan pleadingly. He flinched and took a step back.
'Why is he doing that? Is my gaze so burdensome?'
I subtly let go of my hands and grabbed Eidan's sleeve tightly. I was afraid he might run away if I kept letting go. Eidan looked at the sleeve I was holding and then at my face.
"Eidan, please do me a favor."
"Um, it's really important. If you do, I'll give you tangerine jam cookies later."
"No, I have to repay you for a personal favor!"
For some reason, Eidan's expression darkened. Was he reluctant to help me?
"Even if it's troublesome, I can do it…."
It's hard to find birdseed these days, but maybe I could get some and coax the birds for information. I subtly let go of Eidan's sleeve, but he urgently grabbed my hand. Eidan's hand was cold, making me jump in surprise. Eidan looked down at me.
　 I was a bit disappointed, but I was relieved that it wasn't troublesome. Even though Eidan was my knight, our real relationship wasn't just a simple master-servant relationship. He didn't have to do everything I asked.
"Thank you for saying that."
"That's it. Can you investigate the Langard Empire? Especially Dylan Levi Langard and Renee Shu Langard."
"Do you mean the empire in the west?"
Eidan accepted my request without asking more. I no longer needed to beg the birds.
'Birds are scary these days…'
They often pecked at me with their beaks because I didn't visit often. The birds had become rascals. In contrast, look at Eidan. He never took advantage of me or treated me like a fool. I felt a renewed sense of gratitude towards Eidan. I shook his hand, which I was still holding, and laughed.
"If you do a good job, I'll give you lots of cake!"
Eidan's expression darkened again.
'Is he actually bothered by my request…?'
I had to seriously consider whether I had made an unnecessary request. *** After the founding banquet, letters addressed to the emperor flooded in. Gustav, who was checking them on his behalf, was almost dying.
'If I don't want to die, I should stop!'
It would have been nice if they were just trivial letters asking about his well-being. Unfortunately, most of the letters were marriage proposals. What had possessed these people to push their sons into the royal family, risking their lives?
"I can understand their feelings, but…."
His Majesty the Emperor must be so adorable. Especially during the founding banquet, Mabel was almost legendary. She was so lovable that everyone fell for her, making her the center of attention. Gustav smiled fondly, recalling Mabel's beaming face. After a moment, he regained his composure and looked at the letters. Having already experienced the same situation when Mabel turned one, Gustav had learned a lesson.
Gustav threw the letters into the fireplace one after another. If Esteban found out about the pile of marriage proposals, it would mean death. Gustav wanted to live a long life. The fireplace in the office was blazing in the spring. After carefully opening the letters and burning the marriage proposals, only two pieces of paper remained in Gustav's hand. One was an invitation to a tea party from Emily Havier, and the other was a letter from the Holy Kingdom of Abellard. The tea party invitation only contained a greeting and an invitation, so it was easily approved. The problem was the letter from Abellard. Gustav opened it with a slight tension. However, the content was nothing special.
"What? It's just a report that a new educational priest has been dispatched."
It was about the educational matters of the emperor, one of the agreements made three years ago. The letter stated that a new priest had set out on the recommendation of the new king, Michael Abellard. Since the Holy Kingdom wasn't too far away, the educational priest would arrive soon.
"The priests who came before were not satisfactory."
They all left with their spirits drained, having been absorbed in their ambition to teach the emperor well and take him to Abellard. In contrast, the baby emperor smiled innocently after each lesson. What kind of lessons were taking place in the reception room?
"This time, since the new king recommended the priest, it should be different…."
Gustav muttered to himself and threw the remaining marriage proposals into the fireplace. ***
"Um. This is troublesome…."
I held my chin with both hands and stared at the unfolded tea party invitation. Despite her cute appearance, Emily's handwriting was very elegant. Gustav, who had been pacing behind me, added casually,
"It's an invitation to a tea party for His Majesty."
Pretending not to know how to read was quite exhausting. I strongly felt the need to hire a teacher and learn to read as soon as possible. Not knowing how to read made me feel self-conscious in the library, and I had to pretend I couldn't read letters, which was very annoying.
"Gustav, I really don't like the Duke of Havier."
Gustav's eyes widened, and he suddenly looked around.
"I'm worried Enrique might die."
"There's a reason. You don't need to know."
I glared at Gustav, but he didn't tell me the reason. I sighed and looked at the invitation again. I had a bond with Enrique through our correspondence,