Chapter 15

Chapter 15

"Of course! How would the Imperial Princess know enough to deliberately give you that desk? And younger brother? Since when are the Imperial Princess and the prince supposed to be siblings?"

Trinia's eyes went blank.

Wait.

This wasn't how this was supposed to go.

She slowly tried to untangle her thoughts.

"B-but Her Highness was the one who first called him her younger brother...."

"Then you should have explained it to her and told her not to call him that! You just stood there and listened?"

"But...!"

"And after the baby blanket incident, the Imperial Princess has been watching your reaction so carefully that she can't even give gifts freely anymore. At least tell the story properly!"

"Th-that's not what I meant...!"

"Enough!"

The Emperor snapped at her and stormed out of the room, his cloak fluttering behind him.

Everything had happened so quickly that Trinia remained frozen in place like a statue.

The peaceful greenhouse was filled with the young Imperial Princess's humming.

She sipped warm cocoa while reading a book that was most certainly not meant for children.

On Ancient Languages - Intermediate Level.

It was quite a sight.

"So they say people could hear shouting from outside Lady Trinia's room."

"Father isn't someone who loses his temper easily, Romi."

"But even the attendants nearby heard it. One of them was so startled he dropped the tray he was holding!"

Riena barely managed to suppress the laugh threatening to escape.

Ever since the Harvest Festival, the relationship between the Emperor and his mistress had become extremely strained, with little sign of recovery.

He still visited Trinia around twice a week, but somehow his expression always seemed filled with obligation.

She must have been getting desperate. Once you've lost someone's favor, it's not easy to win it back.

That was why Riena had assumed Trinia would take advantage of any opening she saw.

So I threw out some bait, and she swallowed it whole.

Riena lowered her gaze back to the book.

"At this rate, isn't Lady Trinia really going to get kicked out?"

"Surely not. She's still the woman who gave birth to my little brother."

Little brother, my foot.

Just thinking about what Trinia had done in her previous life still made the back of Riena's neck ache.

She turned the page rather roughly.

I need to get rid of Trinia before my Crown Princess investiture. After that comes that slippery old snake, Count Shilton.

Without realizing it, Riena was reading with her eyes narrowed fiercely.

Romi watched her with concern.

Riena kept frowning at the enormous book, then occasionally smiling to herself, making Romi tilt her head.

"Is that book really that interesting...? Your Highness, what kind of book are you reading so seriously?"

"Hm? Oh, this? It's just a book for learning Ancient Language."

"Ancient Language? Sir Hank! What's 'ancient'?"

Romi tilted her head.

Hank, the aide who had been watering flowers some distance away, cleared his throat.

"Ahem. Ancient Language is the language used by the ancestors of this continent."

"Is it difficult?"

Romi looked at him with sparkling eyes.

Hank adjusted his glasses.

"Scholars who research Ancient Language are very few in number. At the Academy, it is considered one of the most difficult required subjects. Students even call it the graveyard of undergraduates."

"Wow.... And our Imperial Princess is reading something like that right now?!"

Riena flinched and hurriedly lowered the book.

Right.

A seven-year-old princess reading an Ancient Language textbook was completely absurd.

"Who is reading what...?"

"That book Her Highness is reading right now!"

Romi's finger pointed directly at it.

"H-Her Highness the Imperial Princess...?"

Hank hurried over and peeked at the book Riena was trying to hide.

His eyes widened in shock.

"I-is this true?! Were you really reading this book just now?!"

Ancient Language hadn't been easy even for Riena at eighteen.

For a seven-year-old, it should have been far beyond reach.

"Mm? Yes! I was reading it. Why?"

Riena answered proudly with the innocent face of a child.

Hank's breath caught.

When Riena had turned fifteen in her previous life, people who could manipulate mana through acquired ability had begun appearing.

Because Ancient Language formed the basis of magic circles, interest in it had exploded.

Knowing that future, Riena was simply preparing in advance.

"You were truly, genuinely reading this book?!"

Riena opened it, pointed at the page, and cleared her throat.

"Mm-hm. These patterns are really cute."

"Ah.... Yes. The patterns certainly are cute. Hahaha."

Hank, who had been getting excited, looked at the book.

It was upside down.

He smiled, finding the whole thing adorable.

Seriously. I even have to be careful about studying now.

Riena let out a quiet breath of relief and watched Hank return to the plants.

Wait. Why does he know so much about this? Can he use magic?

She narrowed her eyes at him.

"Hank, why do you know so much about this? You sound like a mage."

Hank laughed heartily as though he'd been waiting for the question.

"Of course! I graduated from the Academy, after all. Though I specialized in Ancient Magic Circle Research, so I'm afraid it isn't particularly useful now. Still, I know the basics."

Riena's golden eyes immediately curved into crescents.

The thought of putting him to work made her smile naturally.

"S-so you're asking me to draw a magic circle?"

Hank stared at Riena in bewilderment.

Of all the things she could suddenly ask for, she wanted him to draw a magic circle.

Of course he was surprised.

Still, drawing a magic circle by itself wasn't dangerous.

It wasn't an unreasonable request.

"Why not? I just think magic circles are really cute, so I want one."

"C-cute?"

They weren't cute at all.

But that was the excuse she was going with.

"Come on. Strange patterns like these are so cute...."

She decided to insist shamelessly.

That was probably more believable behavior for a seven-year-old.

"F-first, I'll put up a barrier that prevents mana from passing through, then draw the magic circle and bring it to you."

"Huh? You don't need to do that. Just draw it in my room!"

"In Your Highness's r-room?! You mean right now?!"

He repeated the question as though he'd misheard her.

But Riena's answer remained the same.

"Yes."

"But...."

For some reason, he kept trying to avoid it.

Riena narrowed her eyes and raised an eyebrow.

"Don't tell me... you forgot how to draw magic circles?"

It was a perfectly reasonable suspicion.

Hank's eyelid twitched.

Then his face crumpled into a pleading expression.

"P-please kill me instead! It has been twenty-five years since I graduated from the Academy. And so... the truth is...."

"You forgot?"

Hank gave a timid nod.

This liar!

"Th-then perhaps you could ask His Majesty for permission to hire a private tutor?"

It was certainly a reliable solution.

But if she hired a private tutor, she would have to reveal her actual level.

A seven-year-old who could already read Ancient Language?

Absolutely impossible.

In the end, Riena shook her head and glared fiercely at Hank.

"Hank lied, so Hank has to take responsibility!"

"R-responsibility...."

"Bring me some noble who knows Ancient Language and magic circles really well. Figure it out yourself!"

He knew better than anyone how heavy the word responsibility could be.

That was probably why he remained frozen in place, repeating the word to himself.

"I'll give you exactly one week! If you can't take responsibility, I'll tell on you!"

The Imperial Princess's ultimate weapon.

Telling on him.

Hank left with his shoulders slumped.

The people in the room burst into quiet laughter.

"Your Highness, are you really going to tell His Majesty?"

"Depends on how well he does~"

"You have quite a mischievous side, don't you?"

Riena barely listened.

She simply rested her chin on one hand and smiled faintly.

The snowstorm that had seemed endless had finally stopped.

Flowers that looked as though they would never bloom again had begun blooming.

"Romi, is Lora growing well?"

"Of course! It's all thanks to how well Your Highness has looked after us."

"Why is everything somehow thanks to me?"

Riena grumbled for no reason.

Then her eyes stopped.

Hair that looked almost white beneath the sunlight, as though it had been covered in snow.

Kanter?

Riena slowly approached the glass and looked outside the greenhouse.

Kanter was crouched beside the flower bed with his chin resting in both hands.

His nanny was beside him.

He must have recovered quite a lot.

Riena hadn't visited him even once since that day.

She still didn't have the courage to speak with an awake Kanter alone.

But seeing him healthy again brought such relief that she smiled without meaning to.

"What are you looking at?"

"Nothing."

"Oh my, isn't that Young Lord Kanter? My goodness!"

"What's with the 'my goodness'?"

Riena narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

Romi looked at her with a mischievous expression.

"Her Majesty the Empress has been worried about you lately, you know. She says that because you only talk to adults every day, you're turning into a little old lady...."

"What are you talking about? I'm not like that at all."

"Honestly, even that thick book isn't something a seven-year-old normally reads."

Romi had chosen only facts, so there was no point trying to make excuses.

Instead of replying, Riena picked up her book and marched confidently toward the greenhouse exit.

"Your Highness, are you... angry?"

Romi followed her with a flustered expression.

Click.

Riena boldly pulled open the greenhouse door.

As though he'd been waiting for that very moment, Kanter hurried over and bowed his head deeply.

His sudden appearance made Riena's entire body flinch.