Chapter 73

“Still, there is no need for you to do it, Princess Tiararose!”

“…!”

However, she could not order Tarmo to plunge into waters that could be poisonous either.

And she did not want to watch this animal die. There was no long stick close by that they could use for the animal to cling to.

Tiararose bit her lip and wondered if she couldn’t use the protection of the Fairy Queen of the Sea…then it came to her.

Once she knew it, she was quick to act.

She saw that Tarmo was about to jump into the spring.

“Tarmo!”

“Yes.”

“Stand back. I will not allow you to go in.”“!?”

Tiararose removed the stole from around her shoulders and handed it to Philliane. Then she ran and jumped into the spring.

“Princess Tiararose!?”

She heard Philliane scream, but she didn’t care as she swam down to the drowning animal. She hugged it and then turned back to where Tarmo and Philliane was.

“What…! Tarmo, please help Princess Tiararose!!”

She said with tearful eyes. However, Tiararose stopped them herself.

‘I’m fine,’ she said as she swam back to where they were.

“Oh, what do you think you are doing, Princess Tiararose!”

“Don’t touch me, Philiane.”

“!”

She stopped Phillane and Tarmo as they tried to pull her out of the spring.

She pulled her wet hair back and then scowled at how heavy her dress felt after soaking up the water.

“You shouldn’t touch this water.”

“But you are touching it yourself, Princess Tiararose…!”

“I should be fine, since I am protected by the Fairy Queen of the Sea. Any poison that is liquid will have no effect on me.”

The pinky ring that Tiararose had on her left hand was from the Fairy Queen of the Sea. And as she had just said, it had the power to nullify any poison as long as it was liquid.

For instance, if someone poisoned her food, it would have no effect on her.

That was why she stopped Tarmo and jumped in herself.

Because she was the only one here who would be unharmed by jumping into the mysterious water. She explained this to them, however, Phillaine still looked upset.

“It is not a matter of the poison working…! Please do not do such a thing again!”

“Yes. Poison or not, it is not your job to be jumping around into springs.”

“…I…I’m sorry.”

She had thought it was fine as it was just herself, but it was not so simple for these two who were charged with protecting her.

“In any case, let us clean your dress…”

“…Uh, thank you. Philliane.”

Philliane used water magic to clean the dirt off of Tiararose. As she had been blessed by the fairies of the sea, Philliane was good with water magic. She usually used it while cleaning the rooms.

However, they could not dry her, so it was necessary to return to the castle as soon as possible.

She cleaned the rescued animal with water as well. This revealed a black-furred and round animal with horns. It was about the size of a cat, which meant it was perfect for cuddling.

It was very fluffy and soft to the touch. It was like a very furry Pomeranian.

“…Have you ever seen such an animal before?”

“No…”

Tiararose wiped it with her stole and looked at it closely. It’s unfamiliar appearance made her wonder for a moment if it wasn’t some kind of fairy.

“Princess Tiararose, you should return to your room for now. I will take that animal.”

“Yes. Thank you, Tarmo…ahh!”

When she tried to hand the animal over to him, it started to squirm and go wild. It managed to escape Tiararose’s grasp and while it looked back at her once, it then ran into a rose bush.

Tarmo ran after it and searched through the bushes, but it was nowhere to be found.

“…I will search for it with the other knights. But let us return for now.”

Tiararose’s health was more important.

The mysterious color of the water. The unknown animal. There was clearly something strange happening here.

“Alright. I’m sorry. It was because I wasn’t holding it firmly.”

“It is not your fault, Princess Tiararose. Do not worry about it. We must get you warm now.”

Tarmo was her guard, so he could not leave her and chase the animal. The important thing to do now was to take Tiararose back to her room where she would be safe.

◇　◇　◇

“Tiara!”

“Prince Aqua…”

A worried Aquasteed was waiting in her room after she finished taking a bath. ‘I’m so glad you’re alright,’ he said instantly as he hugged her.

“I’m sorry for making you worry. But I had Pearl’s ring, so nothing could happen to me.”

“Really… You shouldn’t do such things even if you have that ring. I thought I was going to get a heart attack when Tarmo told me what happened.”

Aquasteed sighed.

He made Tiararose sit down on the sofa and gave her some tea. While she had soaked in the tub, he would not feel comfortable until she had rested for a while.

He had some cookies served as well and then sat down beside her.

“Speaking of which, has the animal been found…?”

“No, not yet. Tarmo is leading a team that is searching the grounds. But it may already be far away from the castle.”

“There are mountains nearby, after all.”

That was probably where it had come from.

They would continue to search for a few days, but if they still did not find it, people would conclude that it was not in the castle grounds anymore. However, the spring was the real problem.

“Nothing like that has happened here at the castle before. There are many knights, and it would not be easy for strangers to enter the castle.”

An investigation was underway, and Aquasteed said that they would find out the reason for this soon enough.

He told Tiararose that she must wait quietly until the matter was settled.

“I will be sure to stay out of everyone’s way…huh?”

“What?”

Tiararose felt someone looking at her, and so she turned to the window.

The animal she had rescued from the spring was there–staring at her.

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