Chapter 3
3
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"Ah! My favorite bread! Nom nom nom!"
My mother said that as she pretended to bite two chunks of my hair, one after the other.
The Royal physicians standing guard burst into laughter.
The King, bold enough to deceive the entire nation for over a decade, was always this affectionate only in front of her daughters.
'If she knew I died with false accusations, she would have been sad...'
My mother didn't miss the fleeting sadness in my eyes and widened her eyes.
"Gabi, is something upsetting you?"
Hearing that question, a surge of sorrow welled up.
'Because, actually... didn't I just die a little while ago?'
The joy of seeing my mother mixed with the unfairness of having died once, and finally, I burst into tears.
"Mommy, hwaaa..."
As my mother's sharp gaze turned towards her, Beatrice flinched and shook her head.
'Aish, I shouldn't be doing this.'
I didn't intend to go this far, but I had no other excuse to offer...
I whispered, tears streaming down my face.
"Gabi, hurt. Very hurt..."
My mother's eyes widened even more, and she asked in a small voice.
"Gabi is sick? Very?"
Actually, I'm not that sick yet, but I will be soon.
I nodded, crying, and my mother's expression darkened.
'It must be because my mother's Divinity is Healing Power.'
Unlike her bold personality, my mother's Divinity was one of the weakest among the past Kings.
It was only enough to heal minor injuries, so it was of little use to a King of a nation.
'Of course, my mother successfully compensated for her weakness by marrying Father.'
She quickly composed herself and shouted.
"Icarus!"
Then, a knight in jet-black armor strode into the audience chamber.
'The King's First Knight, Icarus Chenelli.'
This man, called Ruelle's loyal dog, was a madman who would give up his heart if my mother asked.
'Icarus was also the one who risked his life to protect our twins' secret for 15 years.'
Anyway, he often received secret royal orders, so the Royal physicians kept their distance at the mere sight of Icarus's face.
'Just like now.'
In the space where the Royal physicians had retreated, my mother quietly ordered.
"Send the Royal physician to Sei Palace. Her health is as important as my own."
"As you command."
No further explanation was needed.
Icarus, who had been kneeling on one knee, quietly rose and disappeared, backing away without even making eye contact with me.
Whew, I stopped crying and let out a sigh of relief.
'Loyal dog, my foot...'
The Icarus I experienced in my previous life was a rabid dog.
The problem is that after Gabriella's death, no one else knew the twins' secret, so that rabid dog Icarus would take care of us twins.
'I remember how many Royal physicians died because of that ignorant, loyal guy...'
It still gives me chills to think about it.
If anyone noticed anything strange about us twins, Icarus would mercilessly dispose of them.
So, Gabriella must be saved.
'Definitely.'
After Icarus left, my mother looked down at me with burning red eyes.
"Don't cry, Gabi. The doctor will heal Gabi."
"Hwaa, reawwy...?"
"Yes, really."
As I bravely wiped under my eyes, my mother smiled gently.
I mentally counted Gabriella's age.
'If she doesn't get consumption, how long will Gabriella raise me...?'
I hope she raises me for a long, long time.
Please...!
The cozy time with my reunited mother was short-lived, as a loud gust of wind struck my ears.
Someone in the room looked out the window and said in a welcoming voice.
"Grand Duke Nigel is returning."
Ugh...
'Kildebert Delacroix Nigel, Grand Duke Nigel.'
Married to King Oblin of Ruelle, but a King and High Priest when he goes to the Duchy of Nigel.
My father loved my mother so much that he would give up his entire country.
'But my mother often treated my father like a subordinate...'
My mother's leisurely voice turned to Beatrice as if she had been waiting.
"Beatrice. Shouldn't the Princess have breakfast now?"
"Yes, Your Highness."
Beatrice carefully concealed her puzzled expression, picked me up, and left the audience chamber.
'Yeah, I didn't know it well when I was young either.'
From long ago, which I don't even remember, my father was busy.
The Duchy of Nigel became Ruelle territory after their marriage, but my father still had to spend half of the month in Nigel, ruling it.
Moreover, as the High Priest of Baha, who served the Sky God, my father always had a dignified appearance in my memory.
'And what about the Celestial Steed that Father rides whenever he goes to Nigel?'
It was really easy to grow apart from my difficult father, whom I didn't see often.
'I never dreamed that it was my mother's skill, desperately afraid that our existence would be discovered.'
That's why, after we turned fifteen and the twins' secret was revealed, my father was more shocked than anyone else.
'Even with the position of High Priest, who should prioritize the oracle above all else, he couldn't overcome the sorrow of being betrayed by his family and returned to Nigel...'
But as the war turned into a serious long-term battle, my father eventually returned to protect us.
'Before discussing forgiveness, because he loved us.'
However, unlike Rosa, who was always full of charm, I couldn't even make eye contact with my returned father.
'I was so... so sorry.'
I was shaken out of my thoughts when Beatrice put me down at the banquet hall.
In front of me was a table full of my favorite breakfast dishes.
"Your Highness, shall we eat a lot again today and grow up healthy?"
Of course...!
I don't know what will happen in life, but I have hundreds of reasons to grow up stronger and healthier than Rosa.
I tried to shake off the memories of my father and firmly grasped the spoon.
Next was embarrassingly, class time.
'No, I'm in a bit of trouble to be learning how to write again now.'
I glanced at the face of the rejuvenated Silvia teacher with a curious look and read the vocabulary list with a sense of proportion.
"Gah..."
The biggest problem is that I don't remember how much we knew how to write when we were four years old.
'It would be strange if I suddenly did too well.'
But Silvia teacher didn't seem surprised at all.
"It's 'Autumn', Your Highness."
"Au...tumn."
As soon as I corrected myself, she turned a page of the vocabulary list.
Silvia Pavel is originally a person with few emotional ups and downs.
'But I didn't know it would be this difficult to read her expression.'
I read it once more, watching her carefully.
"Wea...ther."
"It's 'Weather', Your Highness."
Judging from the teacher's calm voice, it seemed okay to read a little better.
Another page of the vocabulary list was turned.
"Acorn."
As soon as I read it correctly, the teacher suddenly started clapping.
"Oh my, you remember the words you learned for the first time yesterday so perfectly. This teacher is really touched, Your Highness."
That was a touched face?
Only then did I relax and smile along with the teacher.
In fact, our class schedule was unique because we were playing 2 roles in 1.
'First, we had to learn in one day the amount that others would digest in two days.'
And then, the next day, we would review the same content again with the teacher.
The problem was that the class happened to start on the day Rosa was the Princess.
'I always participated only in the review without having learned anything...'
The teacher was clearly teaching for the second time, so if I took the class as if it were my first time, the Princess's reputation would hit rock bottom.
In the end, I had no choice but to do a fierce preview with Gabriella during the day spent in the detached palace.
'But there are good things about being reborn, aren't there?'
I guess I don't have to lock myself in my room and preview while crying anymore?
'Because I came back with everything in my head.'
The teacher smiled brightly and put her hand into the basket.
There was a handful of candy in the teacher's outstretched palm.
'You're going to praise me with just candy?'
I was dumbfounded, but I politely accepted the candy with both hands for now.
"It's a secret from King Oblin that I gave you this much at once, shhh."
The teacher raised a finger to her lips and smiled brightly for once, then added softly.
"I felt bad that I couldn't give you one more yesterday when you wanted it."
Oh, really?
That wasn't me.
'That Rosa is still a little kid who likes candy?'
I smiled brightly and replied.
"Thank you, teacha."
