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Chapter 23
When Mei finished preparing the bathwater, the stove happened to be roaring with flames.
Elbadin handed Lucilea over to Mei and said,
“Ask Irevan for some medicine. He’ll give you something good for preventing colds.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
After glancing at Lucilea for a moment, Mei turned and left the room.
Once the door closed, Mei hurriedly placed Lucilea into the warm bathtub.
“You must have been very cold.”
“No, thanks to Your Highness, I wasn’t that cold.”
Lucilea realized that human body heat could unexpectedly be a source of comfort. She also realized that even the cold and reserved Elbadin was, in the end, a person with warm blood flowing just like anyone else.
After soaking in the hot water that Mei had prepared, the chill that had settled in her body eased away.
Meanwhile, the small luggage and the birdcage that Cookie had hidden in had been moved as well.
Lucilea changed into pajamas that smelled of sunlight, dried her hair, and stared blankly at the flames roaring in the stove.
“Did I judge him too harshly?”
She still thought Elbadin had a bad personality—cold, harsh, and irritating in his tone—but she reconsidered slightly.
“Well, the fact that he brought a mysterious stranger like me to the Duke’s residence probably means he’s not a bad person.”
Perhaps her prejudice came from the original story, where she assumed the villainess’s biological father must be bad.
At that moment, Mei approached and guided Lucilea to the bed. It was well past midnight.
“Are you not feeling chilly?”
“No, it’s warm.”
After lying Lucilea down, Mei covered her with the blanket up to her chin and said,
“I’m relieved. The room had been empty for quite some time, so I was worried.”
Lucilea looked around and asked,
“There are more books than in the previous room.”
Mei smiled and replied,
“Oh, that’s because this was the room the Duke used when he was heir.”
“Huh? This one?”
“Yes.”
Back when there were no Guardians or elite forces, this had been the room of young Elbadin, heir to the Duke family.
“It was mainly used for quiet reading. After the elite forces were established, it became a room for select individuals.”
“I see…”
Lucilea scanned the room again. It wasn’t comparable to a library, but the shelves were packed with books that clearly bore the traces of being handled.
“Did he really read all of these?”
“No.”
“Of course not, right? There’s no way he—”
“I’ve heard he memorized them all.”
“…What?”
All of those books… memorized?
Lucilea parted her lips in surprise.
“Even for minor characters in the original story, what are these stats?”
And that wasn’t all. He was an Aura Master, tall, strikingly handsome, and possessed power and wealth that even the royal family couldn’t treat lightly.
Suddenly, she thought: At this rate, who’s the main character?
In any other story, these abilities would have easily made him the protagonist.
“…Impressive.”
As Lucilea reevaluated her judgment of her biological father, Mei spoke to her again.
“This time, you’re really going to dreamland.”
“Yeah! Really! This time I’ll sleep properly!”
Mei, walking toward the door, looked back at Lucilea and smiled gently.
“Have sweet dreams.”
“You too, Mei!”
After Mei left and the door closed, Lucilea let out a small sigh and noticed the birdcage along one wall—the one Cookie had hidden in.
“Cookie.”
[…]
“Cooookie?”
[…]
By now, Cookie might have really fallen asleep; there was no response.
“You must have been really tired.”
Indeed, just like Lucilea, Cookie had been busy shouting and moving water, working up a sweat.
Lucilea watched Cookie doze off, chuckled softly, and turned toward the window. Naturally, the curtains in the new room were intact.
Seeing the curtains reminded her of what had happened earlier in the bedroom.
“Something feels off…”
She had successfully drawn out her magic, but a part of her still felt unsettled—though she couldn’t figure out why.
“Still, I think I finally have a sense of how to move and draw out my magic.”
Having promised Mei that she would sleep properly this time, she didn’t intend to use magic again. Yet, she could feel that she had taken a step forward.
And…
“Next time, I’ll practice somewhere safe.”
The moonlight, peeking from behind the clouds, fell gently on her face through the window. Lucilea’s eyelids slowly closed as she gazed at the soft moonlight.
Thus ended another hectic day.
The next morning:
“Breakfast today is tender filet steak! Great, right? Growing teenagers need lots of protein.”
Hehe, Lucilea smiled with her eyes closed.
“What are you trying to do now?”
The blunt voice of Serdian reached Lucilea’s face. He had just returned from dawn training and was questioning why she was already at the dining hall.
Lucilea smiled even brighter at Serdian, who was giving her a cold look.
“Well, what else? I’m inviting you to breakfast. You’ve been training since dawn, right? You must be hungry. Come on, don’t be shy, eat quickly. Out of all the dishes at the Duke residence, this stew is my favorite. The lamb is really tender, and lamb is great protein too!”
Lucilea lifted herself slightly from her chair and pushed the plate of stew toward Serdian.
Frowning, Serdian looked at his aide, Jed, who only shook his head in disbelief.
Lucilea, cheerful as ever, spread strawberry jam over her halved bread.
“Have you tried this jam made by the chef? Spread on bread with milk, it’s really delicious. Adding butter makes it even better. Mei taught me how to eat it.”
Lucilea took a big bite of bread, chewed a few times, and swallowed. She didn’t forget Cookie.
She pushed a plate of fresh fruit toward Cookie.
“Come on, Cookie, eat a lot too.”
Reverse survival of the fittest? All that matters is eating well and sleeping somewhere warm!
Squawk! Cookie nodded and picked up fruit with one foot.
Lucilea, who ate as if she hadn’t eaten in days, and the parrot, smearing juice and pulp over its yellow beak, were a ridiculous sight.
Serdian, looking exasperated, said bluntly,
“What’s your goal?”
“Huh? Goal?” Lucilea looked at him with wide, bright eyes, unaware that strawberry jam smeared her mouth.
“Goal? If you mean why I’m here in the dining hall, other than filling my stomach, what else is there?”
She gestured for him to eat, but Serdian, arms crossed, replied,
“Why the east annex dining hall? There are dining halls in the west annex and main building too.”
“Yes, I know.”
Lucilea nodded a couple of times and filled her spoon with stew, continuing,
“But you’re not there, are you?”
“……”
Serdian’s frown deepened rapidly.
