Everyone praised Prince Raven who was incredibly strong but never abused and used his strength for his selfish needs. His strong resolve resonated with everyone. Except for a certain woman…
Without responding, I laughed bitterly. The Deputy Commander then looked at me strangely.
"Oh. That's right. I have something to ask of you." I asked him if he had any spare uniforms left.
He just stared at me and it seems like he hasn't fully trusted me yet and was wary of my sudden transformation.
"Why?"
"I have to correct my attire. His Highness has commanded me to wear the proper uniform, after all."
The Deputy Commander, who heard that it was an order from the Prince, nodded his head.
After a swift knock on the door, Prince Raven answered, "Come in."
The Deputy Commander Damian came in and set down some tools. Raven shook his head as if he was annoyed.
"The men in the North seemed to be clueless and kept on advancing without knowing the terrain. The competence in that area is lacking. I also need someone to experiment with the new weapon. I've decided to leave in 7 days. Be prepared to get ready before I do. I think I'll need about two-tenths of my troops."
"Yes, sir."
It was an admirable sight to watch him. The Prince, whose young appearance looked out of place while explaining his strategies, seemed hesitant. Damian was interested in what the Prince had to say for him to pause like that.
"…Was the meal okay?"
"Yes, wow. I felt like I ate real food for the first time in a long time."
"…Really?" The Prince's eyebrows rose. Apparently, it was his facial expression whenever he was in a bad mood.
"Yes, I pretended not to in front of the other soldiers, but I was satisfied with it. I even pushed hard in the afternoon training, but everybody took it extremely well. They performed even better after eating."
"…"
The more Damian teased the Prince, the more he frowned. Damian went in front of the Prince while smiling in a secretive way. "Don't be so angry and try some of this. You haven't eaten anything since breakfast right? People become more sensitive if they don't eat."
He then forced a cookie into the Prince's mouth, an act that could be seen as insubordination but that didn't stop Damian. It was because he knew that Raven doesn't get upset with him for being playful. Raven let out a small sigh and ate the cookie like he had no choice. He was rather sweet and kind to everyone.
Well, except for one person.
Damian stared at the Prince, smiled and asked, "Tastes okay?"
"…Yes. It's good without being too sweet. Where did you buy it?" It must have been from a good bakery as Raven was planning to offer some of the cookies for his men to try later on.
The Deputy Commander suddenly grinned. "Oh, I didn't buy it. Let's see… it was made by that girl. What was her name again? Oh, I think you know her."
His answer made Raven want to curse Damian's direct descendants.
"What?!" Suddenly, the taste of the cookies that remained in his mouth tasted sour. He felt desperate enough to puke right then and there, but he held it in. "So annoying."
"Why do you hate her so much?" Damian was originally a commoner working in the Imperial Palace, but he was recognized by the Prince and was promoted as the Deputy Commander of Distin. In other words, he recently joined the army. The rumor about Celebi reached his ears, but to Damian she was a stranger who he couldn't remember the name of. When he finally met her, she was different from the rumors. Rumors are usually exaggerated with only half of them being true. But Celebi was completely different than what other people said about her. He once again realized how meaningless rumors were.
Raven seemed to be irritated by Damian's question. "She keeps sticking to me."
Damian thought, 'Uh, isn't he just super self-conscious? I didn't think he was this type of person. His self-esteem is so high, but all the women around him seem to like that kind of type.'
Well, he stopped thinking that was true now, because he met someone who didn't seem to be interested in the Prince.
"I don't think she's interested in you."
"What?"
'Oh, god. Don't make me spell it out for you,' Damian thought.
The Prince, who was full of high self-esteem, never even considered that. At that moment, he widened his eyes as if he had heard the most ridiculous thing in the world. Balling his hands into fists, he angrily retorted, "You haven't seen it with your own eyes. She's obsessed with me. If I give her an inch and eat this cookie, I'm sure she'll try to hit on me again."
"…"
Damian could only laugh at the Prince. It seems more credible for him to say that she likes him. He doesn't even have to be so self-conscious and exaggerate like that though. When the Prince said 'that lady is obsessed with me' it was all bullshit.
"That damn stalker. What a creepy woman."
Well, sometimes a man would want to brag.
That noble woman wasn't to his taste, but her face was smooth. Damien knew he shouldn't poke at the Prince's pride anymore. It started to get annoying for him. That's what Damian thought at least.
"Yeah, I agree."
Five days have already passed since the Prince decided not to eat. The reason, of course, is thanks to me. The Prince didn't seem to eat anywhere else because he never left his office. But since that day, I've been in the kitchen working. Of course, that's because no one wants to do this troublesome job. It was tiring, but I laughed and never complained.
For the first few days, the soldiers were worried that I would poison the food, but they also knew that I had no reason to. Their trust in me was unbearable. Moreover, I felt my skin prickling from their curses, so I needed some way to end this. After I took the first bite in front of them during mealtime, they reluctantly started to eat. Compared to them, I ate without hesitation as usual.
Well this is good in it's own way. Maybe I should try and increase their trust in me. Still, saying 'I didn't poison the food' can only get so far. Their trust in me was as thin and transparent as glass that could be destroyed with a simple touch.
Anyway, I never saw the Prince since that day since he was always attached to his office. Sometimes he would go back to the Imperial Palace, but that was it. For the Prince, the divided royal family was not a real family to him. The Palace was a place that you couldn't relax in, as politics reigned 24/7. Because the Prince was also constantly threatened by assassination attempts, it was easier for him to stay here. Distin's military base was one of the safest places in the world.
Well, if you exclude the old Celebi that is. Because of what happened the other day, his image of me has worsened now.
'These days, it's strange to see the Commander leave his room' and 'Everyday you can hear a man's voice cursing Celebi from outside' were rumors that were widespread among the soldiers. As how things are going right now, it seems like he'd never stop wanting to kill me before he grows up.
Even if he was kind to the people of this world, he wasn't like that to me. Well his treatment can be considered as generous when you think about what Celebi did to him but…
Aside from that, I need to deal with this problematic child. A child who doesn't eat his meals is not cute after all.
Translator: Cenetta
Proofreader: Arie Bee
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The Lady is a Stalker
Chapter 5 – 6/14 Chapter 6 – 6/21
Your Majesty is so Handsome
Chapter 4 – 6/15 Chapter 5 – 6/22 Freshly brewed June 14, 2019 June 12, 2019 June 7, 2019 June 7, 2019 June 7, 2019 Calendar June 2019 S M T W T F S 1 234568 910111315 16171819202122 23242526272829 30