Chapter 12
12
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"...Icarus?"
If my mother was Ruelle's sky, Icarus was her thunder.
Her lightning.
'And just as Icarus is, Mother doesn't entirely trust Icarus either.'
Beatrice, who had been frozen, finally stammered a reply.
"Yes, Your Highness. It was only possible with the help of Sir Chenelli. Otherwise, he would never have approached the cat."
"...I see."
Fortunately, Mother's voice calmed down a little.
Perhaps Beatrice would now be free from questioning.
'Mother will want to hear more details from Icarus.'
Looking past Mother, I saw Father's worried gaze fixed on me.
'Is it now?'
As Beatrice and I had practiced so intensely, I slightly closed and opened one eye.
I had practiced so hard that my head nodded along with the winking eye.
Then, I spread all ten fingers wide.
"Dadda, fox, ten got it?"
Father's steps stopped abruptly, just like Mother's had a moment ago.
'Oh, no, is this wrong?'
Just as I was about to turn my gaze to Beatrice in embarrassment, Father's lips quirked handsomely, and he strode up the stairs again.
Then, twitching at the corners of his mouth, he let out a strange whistling sound and answered.
"Hmph, um... Ten, got them. Got them indeed..."
Then he started walking in step with us, but his twitching mouth remained the same.
'The High Priest Baha unable to suppress his laughter.'
I was pleased with myself, thinking that the effect of the winking practice was more significant than I had expected.
The hunting trip was successful, so the evening banquet was longer and more boisterous than usual.
'If there were no prying eyes, I would ask Mother to look at Peep-peep's wound, but...'
There was no opportunity, and the banquet was boring.
I sat next to Mother and yawned repeatedly.
"Ha-yawn."
Eventually, Beatrice seized an opportunity and took me out of the banquet hall.
Peep-peep had been sleeping on my palm since the middle of the banquet, and when I started moving, it groggily woke up.
Then, it chirped once and dozed off again.
"Now, let's go back, wash up, apply Peep-peep's medicine, and then you can sleep, Your Highness."
"Uwoong."
I entered the room, talking to Beatrice like that.
During the warm bath, there was a knock.
- Knock knock.
Beatrice wiped the water from her wet hands with a towel and got up.
'I thought I glimpsed Father's attendant through the crack in the door...'
Beatrice was blocking the crack in the opened door, so I couldn't see well.
I gave up, as I could barely hear the conversation, when she returned.
Then, hiding something around her waist, she grinned at me.
"What's that?"
"Ta-da!"
What Beatrice presented was a flower basket filled with fresh flowers.
"Wow!"
"Guess who sent them?"
"Um... Mommy?"
Presents always came from Mother, so I guessed, but Beatrice shook her head.
"His Majesty the King sent them."
"...Huh?"
"He apparently picked and gathered them himself on the way. See? I told you! His Majesty loves our Your Highness so much."
I reached out to hug the basket, but one of the flower buds that touched my fingertips fell off.
Beatrice quickly picked up the bud so I wouldn't be disappointed.
"Oh dear, the flower must be tired from the long journey."
Instead of the large basket I couldn't even hold, I took the bud with the short stem and placed it on my palm.
Then Beatrice picked it up again and tucked it behind my ear.
She suddenly clapped her hands and rejoiced.
"The color of the flower bud is the same as Your Highness's eye color! It suits you so well!"
Beatrice brought a mirror, and my face was reflected in it.
The flower suited me well, just as Beatrice had said.
'Have I ever received a gift from Father before?'
Certainly not since I was fifteen, and not even such a small gift in my childhood.
What Father gave us were mainly legacies that had to be passed down to the princesses...
'Anyway, getting Daddy on my side is imminent.'
As I was filled with fluttering anticipation, Beatrice added.
"And there's more."
Come to think of it, Beatrice was hiding her hands behind her back again.
"More what?"
"Ta-da!"
This time, several large chocolates tied with pretty ribbons were piled up in the basket.
"Did Dadda give this too?"
When I asked with a wide grin, Beatrice shook her head.
"No, the young master of the Marquis Hestia family sent these."
"Really?"
"Yes, Your Highness's new friend. He was supposed to come see Your Highness, but he couldn't because of his parents' hunting trip. He asked me to tell you that he'll be back in two nights, okay?"
Haha, I burst out laughing.
'I was so distracted by Peep-peep that I forgot, the Hestia siblings were supposed to come...'
I was happy that the kids remembered and that the Marquis had sent a gift, but what I liked most was the word 'friend.'
'Friend.'
I had made a friend.
I had almost made something similar to a friend in my past life, but it didn't work out as I wanted.
'If you include Peep-peep... that makes three already this time.'
While I was grinning, Beatrice arranged the flowers Father had given me in a vase.
"Shouldn't you stop now and go to sleep?"
It was when Beatrice took me out of the tub and wrapped me in a large towel.
She suddenly burst out laughing as if she had discovered something.
"You're still wearing the flower?"
Her neat white hand picked out the red flower bud that was tucked behind my ear.
"Oh? It looks fresher than before? Should we just put this in the vase too?"
Come to think of it, the flower bud was more open than before.
'Did it absorb moisture while I was bathing?'
After the somehow refreshed flower bud returned to the vase, only the last task remained for us.
Applying Peep-peep's medicine...
- Peep! Peep-peep!
The little guy didn't fail to live up to expectations, crying out rebelliously.
Beatrice didn't give up either, reaching out several times, but Peep-peep was agile despite not being able to fly properly.
"Squeaky, please listen..."
I sided with Beatrice, but Peep-peep kept pretending not to hear and scurrying away.
It was almost bedtime.
I yawned sleepily and muttered.
"Aaa-yawn, let's apply it quickly and sleep..."
Then Peep-peep finally looked at me.
- Peep?
"I'm sleepy..."
I bet it doesn't know because it slept a lot at the banquet hall!
I sighed and approached Peep-peep, grabbing it firmly with both hands.
"Oh! Stay still, Your Highness!"
Beatrice, looking delighted, approached and opened the ointment container.
- Peep! Peep-peep-peep-peep!
As the hand with the ointment approached, Peep-peep fluttered its wings and cried out loudly.
"Oh dear."
I shook my head and reached out, putting my hand into the ointment container.
When I smeared the ointment on my finger and rubbed it on instead of Beatrice, Peep-peep flinched.
- Peep...
"If you put this on, you'll get better faster. You can fly when you get better."
After applying all the medicine, it was pathetically limp.
'Did it hate applying the medicine that much?'
I gently stroked Peep-peep and took it to the bed.
When I put Peep-peep right next to the pillow, Beatrice greeted me with a smile.
"Good night, Your Highness."
"Good night, Tritz."
The door closed, but the noisy laughter from the banquet hall could still be heard in the distance.
I placed my palm on Peep-peep's belly and prayed.
'Ea, please heal my little friend.'
My palm felt warm today.
'The little guy is quite warm.'
Before falling asleep, cradling the warmth of the little bird, I thought that for the last time.
- Peep-peep!
I drowsily opened my eyes at the faint bird sound, then tilted my head in bewilderment.
'It's the Sei Palace...?'
The sunlight outside the window was bright.
I must have fallen asleep again without waking up when I was moved to the Separate Palace.
'What am I going to do with this lacking body!'
Today was the day I was going to pull out Rosa's hair, or kick her in the back!
'I should be suffering from insomnia, burning with revenge, but I fell asleep so soundly that I wouldn't have noticed if I was carried away!'
As I got up, feeling pathetic, I heard Gabriella's soft laughter.
"Were you very tired, Your Highness?"
"Uwoong... Was I?"
As I yawned repeatedly and turned to look for Peep-peep, Gabriella sighed.
"Your Highness was asleep, but Peep-peep was struggling so much to follow that I ended up bringing it along. I hope you'll stay in the detached palace for good this time."
- Peep! Peep-peep-peep!
The little guy was chirping without having done anything good, and the chirping sounded as if it was mocking, "No way!"
I turned my head towards the sound and widened my eyes in surprise.
"Peep-peep, you... can fly?"
