Chapter 487: The Emperor’s Daughter 487

Eventually, our conversation ended with tremendous work left for both countries to lead a healthy relations.h.i.+p after ending the war.

Thus, the talks ended shortly, three nights and four days, yet what we achieved in that time was fantastic. They also declared that Ferdel will hold the second and third talks, so there were no more concerns about it.

Ah, there was one.

The two men bothered me.

… how should I put it?

I wasn’t that worried. I was just concerned; I didn’t even know why I was thinking about them.

Ah, forget it; I’ll throw those thoughts away! I will! Fly away, fly away, my thoughts! What good would such concerns do for me?!

Rotten luck.

When I left the Imperial Palace for the talks, it was autumn, but it was clearly winter when I returned to our Capital. When I looked over at the bare branches, I realized something.

‘Autumn is short.’

“Winter.”

I felt depressed at the thought of missing autumn. When I was young, I never really missed the changing seasons, but things changed as I grew.

Maybe dad was feeling the same thing. I remembered how my dad asked me not to grow up quickly; I smiled, not realizing what it meant.

Who was the elder one, and who was the kid? Tch.

“It’ll snow anytime.”

While I was taking in the silence, Libby broke down the obvious to me.

Nodding at her words, I looked over at the clouds. They weren’t the clear blue clouds like those in summer; the color of the winter sky was pale, yet it had a beauty of its own.

Right, it really would snow.

Once I returned, Ferdel called me, making it impossible for me to visit my dad for some time. However, as time went on, I could finally get some break time.

Right, I had to see my dad.

“How’s dad?”

“The same.”

I wasn’t sure if that answer was supposed to make me feel happy or sad.

Well, I heard the news that he could walk around now because of his swift recovery and that he was working hard to sign the doc.u.ments that Ferdel sent.

Well, I did expect him to recover quickly; for some reason, it felt like my future would be promising, as if somehow my dad would return to doing his words.

Right, he would.

“Ah, I think I can live happily now.”

My dad was healthy, I was healthy, Argigent was good, and the rest was okay. Even then, none of us should ignore the aftermath of war. We were supposed to pay attention to what happened, but it could be pa.s.sed with a generous heart.

The cold winter breeze didn’t faze me since I wore a lot of clothes.

I was walking down with my easy-thoughts when I suddenly heard something.

“Huh? Libby, why are you crying?”

“I am not.”

It didn’t seem like that.

It wasn’t typical for Libby, who was a quiet, smart, well mannered model maid, to express her emotions like that.

Why did she cry when everything was going so smoothly?

“It is just that, the princess… is walking… I am so thrilled…”

What? I really was a woman who could make people cry over such simple things. Men’s yelling wasn’t enough, and now I was making women cry. How would I be made to pay for such sins?

As I stopped, I patted Libby’s shoulder.

What must I do?

“It’s fine. I will not get involved in such things. Okay? So don’t cry, Libby.”

“For all my life, I wish to serve you… princess.”

Her words made me smile.

“I can’t allow that, Libby. You are supposed to meet a nice man and get married.”

“No, I don’t need things like marriage.”

She cried while answering.

In the end, instead of talking, I decided that hugging her would be good. Sometimes, actions worked a lot better than a hundred words.

Patting a woman on her shoulder was a lot weirder than I imagined.

Yet, Libby stopped crying as soon as I did that. I smiled while letting go of her.

After her tears ended, Libby bowed her red face, probably feeling ashamed of what she did.

Hmm, if I was being myself, I would have made fun of her again and again…

Well, l should try it…

“Princess!”

A familiar voice called me from a distance.

As I turned my head, I saw Elene waving her hand while approaching me.

Why was she running like that?

It hadn’t been a day or two since Elene last made a fuss, but her approach seemed different.

“Sir Knight is back!”

We didn’t have any shortage of knights in our palace, but I knew exactly who she meant when I heard her say that.

I took huge strides towards the Solay palace. If who I was thinking about really returned, I wanted to be the first to greet them after Caitel.

As I walked there, forgetting that I should act like a princess, I ran into a.s.sisi, who was leaving Solay.

Right, what I thought wasn’t wrong.

Walking at that pace, I was out of breath. As I approached a.s.sisi, I was already gasping for air; seeing me from afar, a.s.sisi seemed a little shocked.

A smile spread around that man’s enchanting face.

He was a.s.sisi.

My a.s.sisi was standing right in front of me without a single injury to him.

“Greetings to the princess.”

As soon as I reached him, a.s.sisi knelt and greeted me.

“Rise.”

a.s.sisi did so without saying anything. Then, I walked straight into a.s.sisi, who held me.

“You came back, a.s.sisi.”

How much have I missed him? The only knight I had.

We had only been separated for a month, but it felt like we had been apart for a year. Indeed, what I had with a.s.sisi was different.

“Really, I missed you, a.s.sisi.”

a.s.sisi nodded at my words with his firm expression. The same as always, but for some reason, a.s.sisi spoke back.

“I did too.”

Naturally, his words made me smile. I wanted him to pat my back, but what he said was enough. That was his honest feelings. However, we were outside the palace, so I decided to hold my actions.

Both a.s.sisi and I had to hold ourselves outside.

“Did you arrive just now? Kay then, wash up and rest.”

“I need to be the princess’s escort…”

Ugh, he was too dedicated to his work.

I mediately lifted my finger and shook it. It was the best way to defeat that stubborn man.

“It’s an order, my knight.”

I had no idea why the members of my palace liked having me order them so much. Did they need me to emphasize the order for them to work?

Well, if they said that out loud, Caitel would say I was too soft on them, but I preferred it. I knew that everyone around me loved me.

a.s.sisi bowed his head at my command.

He would never think about going over my direct orders.

a.s.sisi finally nodded at my resolute words.

“I will do as the princess ordered.”

Seeing a.s.sisi retreat, Elene spoke to me.

“You seem to be good at dealing with him.”

“I was always good at it.”

I had lived with a.s.sisi for years.

Elene laughed while I pouted.

Why was Elene’s dress different from usual?

“Why are you wearing your jacket?”

At my question, Elene nodded very energetically before answering.

“I am going back!”

“Huh?!”

Since she was in the palace for about a month, I was used to seeing her; I mistook Elene for the old her who used to stay with me.

Right, she had a life.

Although I knew it, I couldn’t hide the regret I was feeling.

Elene laughed as she saw me go stiff. I really couldn’t hold back the sad expression on my face; the more upset I was, the deeper her smile would be.

“I’ll come back again. Now, as a wife, I need to be faithful to that duty.”

“… right, you should.”

Eleme smiled, although I couldn’t smile back.

“Don’t be too sad, my princess.”

“I won’t.”

“And a gift.”

A small jewelry box that Elene showed me.

The box had a blue sapphire on it, which seemed beautiful yet modest.

“What is this?’

“My love for my princess.”

“Huh?”

What bulls.h.i.+t?

However, I decided not to say anything since Elene seemed delighted. I looked down, curious at what it was.

“Can I open it?”

“Oh no, open it after I leave!”

“Tch, okay.”

I handed over the box to Libby while Elene held the hem of her dress and bowed. For some reason, I got nervous since it was her first time greeting me like that.

“See you later, princess.”

“Be safe.”

I smiled, and so did Elene.

I watched Elene walk away with her back facing us.