Chapter 2: Because I was in loveUpdated: 25th May 2017To make me into the King"s bride!
The angelic princesses rubbed off the tears with theirlittle hands, and lifted their expectant faces to look at the astonished me.
"Due to his divine looks and wisdom, everyone says that LordFather is like a G.o.d. Even Queen Mother has been known to others as a G.o.ddessfor her beauty, so neither the ministers nor the countrymen would accept anordinary woman to be the bride of Lord Father."
"This should not be an issue for Glinda. You"re after all agenius, just like Lord Father."
"That"s right, even though you"re incomparable in looks toLord Father. I am sure no other country would have a Queen with horns andwings."
"Besides, Lord Father seems to be love-struck at Glinda atthe moment they met."
I could only let out a dry laugh.
"Hahahaha…. Haha… Both Princesses must be exaggerating... Howcould such a lovely person be love-struck by a dinosaur like me?"
Laugh it off. There was no other way about it. My mind wasnow completely in chaos, incapable of sensible thought.
"But the way Lord Father has been looking at Glinda is sointense."
Oh! That actually seemed true! Those eyes were truly enoughto raise goose b.u.mps under my skin!
"That has to be the 1st time that Lord Fatherlooked so at another woman other than Mother."
W-was that so?
"He even held yourhands."
That"s true. In fact, I felt the action a little tooover-familiar, not to mention too close for comfort.
"Glinda, do you know that in Eren, males seldom hold thehands of females? That"s because hand-holding represents the partners" commondesire to spend their lives together forever. Unmarried couples don"t eventouch each other"s hand when they are dancing because of that…"
Princesses Sarasa and Orie began to dance as they spoke,causing their lace-embroidered skirts to float lightly like the spinning petalsof two pink flowers. Anyone with even slight lolicon tendencies would certainlybe enraptured, but none of this registered with me.
So that was the meaning behind the hand-holding!
King Cecello liked ME?
I would become the new Queen of Eren…
"Both I and Orie would support Glinda as our new Mother."
"Elder brother Ryuuju and Elder Sister Seria may oppose, butboth Sarasa and I would be on Glinda"s side."
"So Glinda must like our Lord Father too! And, show us yourhorns too sometime."
"And picnic at the palace courtyard!"
"I would even tell you where the squirrels build theirnests. So adorable…"
The princesses tugged at my skirt, chattering continuously.
Their blue eyes and round faces shone with happiness athaving a new Queen Mother.
"Don"t loose to Elder Brother Ryuuju, Glinda!"
"Fight! Glinda!"
The twin angels adorably punched up into the air to cheer meon, and then left with a clutter of footsteps.
I, on the other hand, was covered from head to toes in gooseb.u.mps and cold sweat.
What kind of joke was this? It was barely tolerable for meto be forced into cross-dressing, and now they were going to make me a Queen???I am a man! I have things that man ought to have!
I rushed out of the room. I must definitely protest toHelmut! I had never heard anything about being made Queen! Nooooo! Goose b.u.mpswere popping up like a measles outbreak!
But…
"Lord Helmut has returned to Winstoria…"
"Huuuh!"
I had been left behind? Alone? So quickly?
I had been deceived - This fact stuck me like a bolt oflightning.
What should I do? If this continued, I would be made Queen!The cat would definitely be out of the bad the instant the clothes come off atthe bridal chamber! Absolutely, most definitely exposed! Then, my head wouldroll for treason…
Nooooooooo! I don"t wanna! I don"t want to go bed with a man!Absolutely don"t wanna be executed!
If I chased after Helmut now, I might still make it in timebefore the ship departed! Even though I had no idea where the port was located,I must still escape before I got forced to marry another man and then be executed!
Right! Run! Run now!
I would probably be discovered if I tried to escape via thecorridor, so I returned to my room, opened the gla.s.s-door to the balcony andclimbed over the parapet.
But I only discovered that this level was 5 stories highafter I climbed over to the other side.
Glancing downwards, the lawn and fountains brightly lit bythe moon and light from indoors looked so far away that my blood went cold fromthe view.
Ahhhhh! I would definitely die if I fell from here!
As I clunk for dear life at the parapet, my gown flutteredin the wind and hair flew wildly against my face.
Why hadn"t I change out of the gown first?
The skirt was filled with air by the wind and nearly blewaway like a balloon.
It was too late for regret, and rather than returning theway I came, it would probably be better if I continued my way downwards as thatwould decrease the chance of me sliding down by accident. Besides, my NEETarm-strength just would not allow me to climb upwards any more.
It must hurt to be executed, but falling down and breakingmy neck seemed like it would hurt a lot too. I didn"t want eitherrrr!!!
But my arms were gradually turning numb, and soon I couldnot feel my legs either.
Huh? Strange? Why was smoke raising out of the window overthere?
White thick smoke, both warm and… could that possibly be afire?
Trapped myself in this dangerous situation, I was certainlyin no place to care about a fire breaking out elsewhere, but I found myselfunable to ignore it either. So, sticking to the wall like a frog, I inchedtowards the window where the smoke spewed out of.
That which had looked so thick and white was actually steam.
There was a tub of boiling-hot water besides the window, andwithin it sat a familiar-looking boy.
Whoa!
When gla.s.s window went "Clob!", and the boy immediatelystood up and turned in my direction.
Standing in the midst of the thick steam, the naked boy hada look of shock on his face.
I took in the entire scene while glued to the window.
I guess my gown was probably in a mess and torn from my tripdown, and my tidied hair most probably had loosened and heaped all over myface.
As an aside, due to my lack of exercise, I was probablywheezing deeply with bloodshot eyes.
So I was gasping for breathe while I watched this starknaked boy - the heir-apparent to the throne of Eren - red-faced, brows liftedupwards, and face tightened.
Then…
"A-audacious fool!"
Prince Ryuuju screamed with a furious face as red as abarbequed squid.
"Whoaaaa! S-sorry!"
I sled down in a panic.
But, there was no foothold anywhere.
Rather than calling it sliding, it should be called falling...Whoa! Whoaaaaa!
As I clunk for dear life with my right hand at the parapet,my body swung like a pendulum. So this was the so-called, "situation of lifeand death"? Uhhhh… I must attempt to leap over to the balcony below.
I let go of both hands but due to the excess momentum, I didnot land on the balcony, but was thrown towards the window. It was fortunatethat the window had been opened, or I might have crashed into the gla.s.s.
Splash!
At the sound of water splashing, my entire body was wet.
Uwah! This was cold! Why would there be a pool inside theroom?
My clothes weighed heavily as they soaked in the water, andI felt myself sinking… Help! I was about to be killed by cross-dressing!
As I began to panic, I discovered that the water was onlyknee deep even as water dripped from my hair and cuffs.
I brushed aside the hair on my face to find that this placewas no pool, but a bath-tub filled with cold water.
There was even someone in the tub!
Silver hair that seemed spun out of moonlight, translucentjade white skin, delicate hand and neck, petal-like lips and violet crystaleyes.
The 9-year old beautiful princess of the king of divinebeauty.
Princess Seira stared at me expressionlessly like a westerndoll.
I could only let out a soundless scream.
After just peeking in at the bathing Eldest Prince Ryuuju, Ihad the extreme chance of falling into bath of the Eldest Princess.
What destiny did I have with baths in general? Was I tied tothe bathrooms by a red string of fate?
No, this was no time to escape from reality.
Even if it was just a 9 years old girl, children this age wouldalready begin to say: "I don"t want to take baths with daddy!"
Even if this was an accident, the situation of sharing abath with a 9 year old girl was still highly atrocious. If dragged before acourt of law, there was definitely no chance of appeal.
"T-That…Your humble servant… I mean, servant-girl is not apervert, there is a reason for this…"
As I covered my face in explanation, Princess Seira made noreaction.
Won"t she scream or call out?
I tried peeking from between the slits of my fingers, andsaw that those pair of clear eyes just stared straight into me.
"That…"
"Uhhh…"
As I spiralled into confusion and wondered what to do next,Princess Seira finally opened her mouth.
"… Isn"t Teacher going to strip?"
A clear and adorable, but flat and monotonous voice asked.
Teacher? Oh, was that supposed to be me?
"… Or is it that, everyone takes bath clothed in Teacher"shome-country?"
"N-No, people in Winstoria also take off their clothes whenthey bath. Oh, it is said that the 17th Emperor Chenchitosteadfastly refused to take off his robe and display his skin while bathing, sostrictly speaking, that isn"t the case for everyone… Argh, this has nothing todo with him though."
I stammered out a reply. How could this child possibly be soquiet?
If someone were to crash through the window while you weretaking a bath, normally you would be alarmed too, right? Suspicious? Definitely.Guarded? Of course! Who would discuss the customs of baths under this kind ofsituations?!?
The Princess continued in a serious voice.
"… Then please take off your clothes."
"Huhuhu??? But! That! That would be very problematic!"
"Why? We are both girls here."
"You would be fine if it is a female? You find it alright toexpose yourself to someone you have just met today?"
"… Yes."
She said in an even voice.
Please be more mindful of it! Even your elder brothercovered himself with both hands, screamed "Audacious fool" with a red face! Orcould it be that females were always this open to each other? Actually I hadheard some atrocious tales about the boarding rooms of all-girls schools too…
"… If Teacher also had a habit of bathing clothed likeEmperor Chenchito, it is not really appropriate of me to interfere with yourpersonal choice."
"R-right! Your servant… no, servant-girl loves to take bathsclothed!"
Whoa! This was the 2nd time I had a slip oftongue!
Princess Seira just looked at me unerringly.
Soft loose silver hair, having had all accessories andribbons removed, floated dreamily in the bath-tub.
Water dripped from her small chin and long lashes onto herwhite chest.
The moist skin was snow-white, pure like a doll of frost, oran elf resting in the water.
Urgh… I was definitely no lolicon! Absolutely not!
My type consisted of sweet-smiling and gentle sixteen toseventeen-year old girls!
But my brain was steaming and heartbeats raced non-stop.
No, that was certainly not because I was a lolicon, it hadto be because this child was too special. Perhaps it was her coldexpressionless stare, or maybe because it was the nakedness, that feltunusually mature.
The problem was that she felt no threat by my presence, butjust stared uninterestedly at me.
Not good! Should I stay here any longer, I might actuallydevelop some strange inclinations! Wearing this gown for ladies, I woulddefinitely be exposed as a pervert if anything extraordinary appeared on thelower portion of the skirt!
Besides, this bath was too cold.
At a second glance, there were even ice cubes floating atopthe water! Why would she not mind it at all? I was already chattering in theteeth from the cold!
"I, I-i-i-i-i-i-I have "warmed" up enough, and would humblytake my leave now. Oho."
I climbed out of the bath, splashing water all over.
Right, I was still trying to escape from the palace and hadno time to be distracted by a 9 year old girl.
But…
"… Teacher."
A cold little hand grasped mine.
"W-What is it?"
"… Isn"t Teacher… here to see me?"
She said while still emotionless, tilting her head in query.
"Huh? N-no, that is not it."
This child was certainly strange.
Would any guest visit the bath that his host was currentlytaking a bath in? No doubt a pervert would.
"… is that so?"
"Then, your humble servant… no, servant-girl would be takingher leave. Apologies for the disturbance."
Ohhhh! I said the wrong things again! Let"s flee before Imade any more mistakes!
For whatever reasons, Princess Seira seemed to display alook of pity, or was it just my imagination? No, what was I even turning backfor?
Princess Seira opened her mouth again.
"… Teacher, the soap is at your foot."
"Oh?"
As I felt uncertain, my foot suddenly slipped and my bodyplunged backwards.
So it seemed that there were paintings on the ceiling… ofdragons and moon and ladies… paintings of legends crafted with extraordinaryskills… While I pondered over such things, a "bang" sounded from the back of myhead and I experienced a tremendous concussion.
I had knocked the back of my head against the edge of thebath-tub.
Now was not the time to faint! Endure it!
You must fight! Sherlock Dolye!
But my head felt numb as my consciousness blurred over.
Nooooooo! What would happen to me next?!?
So warm.
I was covered by something soft and smelling of the sun. Howcomfy.
A clear song flowed into my ears.
"The Dragon watcheth over Seven doors;
Door of Water from which birth springeth,
Door of Light bearing G.o.d"s name,
Door of Earth which all-encompa.s.seth,
Door of Fire that burneth away the soul,
Door of Flowers which confesseth love,
Door of the Night which summoneth beginning and the end.
Every Door is guardeth by the Dragon.
So sleep well, my lovely child"
Ohhh, what a lovely voice. Smooth and clear, but verygentle.
Wanting to know who was singing, I opened my eyes for apeek…
"Oh? You are a awake already?"
A girl of sixteen or seventeen peered at me with warm eyesand a gentle smile on her face.
Whoa… so pretty!
I still had yet to figure out what was going on, but wasalready mesmerized by the smile.
Rather than having a mature and beautiful woman, I much preferredthis type of girl which gave off an amiable atmosphere of worldly gentleness.
The girl staring at me gave off a feeling of friendlinessand loveliness that completely fitted into my type.
She had a smaller frame than me, was both energetic and gracefuland a gait as delicate as a small bird with beautiful raven-black hair tiedbehind her head. A white-laced ap.r.o.n had been wound about her black westernskirt.
A maid? Had we hired a maid in our house? Did Glinda hire amaid?
So wanted to be partners with this kind of girl… To strollhand-in-hand out in the garden…
"Teacher fainted when she knocked her head against the sideof the bath. Does it still hurt here?"
As I got up, she gently stroked the back of my head.
The gentle stroking was certainly comfortable, but it alsobrought me back to reality and struck me with fear.
That"s right! I fell into the bath while Princess Seira wastaking her bath, and accidentally fell when I slipped on a piece of soap.
Where was this place?
It was as luxurious as my own guestroom, so I was probablystill in the city?
I glanced down and saw that I was clad in a nightgown forladies. Whoa! Someone had helped me change into these clothes!
"W-w-w-w-who changed my c-c-c-clothes…"
"… It"s I."
At the monotonous voice, I turned quickly.
Princess Seira was standing at the side, certainly no longernaked, but clad neatly with her hair beautifully tied.
"… As Teacher just fainted, I helped Teacher change out ofthe clothes… Before calling others."
She coldly said so while looking at me with purple crystaleyes.
"I-it must have been difficult?"
"… Yes."
"T-that, oh! … But… At that time… "
Had you seen my "naked body"?
I wanted to ask, but could not put it into words.
Princess Seira was just as expressionless as a puppet,giving no hint of any emotions. If she had actually discovered that I was amale, would she still be this calm?
Might that mean that while she helped me change my clothes,she did not look once at my body?
Let"s a.s.sume that was truly the case.
Even though my heart was in my throat, I could only thankPrincess Seira.
"Thank you. Princess Seira is the saviour of my life."
"… Please don"t mention it."
She replied in a calm voice.
Was this child truly only nine? Shouldn"t nine-year oldgirls be richer of expressions?
Princess Seira looked as if she was completely uninterestedin the rest of the world, and this was quite similar to Glinda.
Even though this was the case, she did not escape from myglance, but continued to stare at me.
"… That"s right. Why did Teacher climb through my windowdressed as such?"
My heartbeat nearly stopped.
To ask this just at this moment! She must have done it onpurpose, right? Definitely on purpose!
"That, T-t-t-t-t-that was because… I am still unfamiliararound the palace, lost my way by accident, and somehow climbed over thebalcony and ended up wall-climbing on the outside…"
H-how unpleasant.
Would anyone belief this? But since the opposite was just achild, maybe she would actually believe this…
Trembling, I stole a glance at Princess Seira, but she wasas expressionless as before, as if to say. "Are you kidding me."
Aaaaaa! Guess it really wouldn"t work!
At this, a smooth voice answered.
"Ara, that must have inconvenienced you greatly."
The maid looked at me with a face filled with sympathy.
"As Teacher has said, this palace is so huge that even now Iloose my way around."
"R-really?"
She believed! She then continued seriously while gripping myhands adorably in hers.
"That"s right! There was this time when I got lost in thewoods just outside the castle and nearly froze to death before I was broughtback; then this other time that I got lost in the changing room and was lockedin for nearly half the day; There was still this other time that I wanted toclean the windows at the eastern tower, but somehow twisted my ankle at thewine cellar in the west; Or that time when I went up to the roof to sun out theblankets, but fell atop the apple trees below together with the blankets."
What a miracle that she managed to survive to this day.
"Teacher must also be very scared? I most definitely ~~~understand it completely. Oh, so pitiable."
The maid said with warm tear-filled eyes.
"His Majesty has ordered me to come to tend to Ms Glinda. Itoo have wanted to come over myself, so I am truly happy. From now on, I wouldbe careful not to let Ms Glinda get lost so you can safely move about thepalace."
"T-thank you."
Despite being b.u.mbling and careless, she was such an honestand gentle girl.
Ohhh, I so wished I could go on a date with this girl in thegardens… but the thought of myself in cross-dress walking beside this maid nextto the fountains sent me bowing my head in despair.
"Teacher has been sleeping for a while, so are you hungry?Is there anything you would like to eat? Be it porridge, soup or sandwiches, Ican make it in an instant."
"Are you going to cook for me?"
"Yes, though I don"t know whether it would be to Teacher"stastes. Oh, I specialise at dessert, and can also prepare red tea."
The maid blushed and said in embarra.s.sment.
Ohhhhhh! SO CUTE! That impeccable gesture and expression sentmy heart pounding.
"Then may I have some dessert, red tea and some sandwiches,please."
I ordered a great deal directly.
"Alright."
The maid replied with a pure smile.
I could certainly live with this kind of conversation.
"I would be back soon."
She lightly left the room.
While I shyly watched the maid"s departure, I suddenlyremembered in fear.
Princess Seira was watching me listlessly.
"Haha… Hahaha… Looks like I have caused trouble for thePrincess."
"… That"s not so."
"That, isn"t my chest somewhat small? Due to its flatness, Ihave sometimes been mistaken to be a boy, but I am really a girl. I normallyhave to stuff 5 layers of pads!"
Did I say too much?
"Also, my crotch has become swollen due to insect bites!"
"Crotch?"
"A, Ah! That is really uncouth of me! F-forget that I saidanything!"
Calm down! Calm down now, Sherlock! Stop talking about crotchesto little girls and change the topic of conversation!
"The maid just now looks so cute."
"… Yes."
"Is black hair rare in Eren?"
People in the kingdom of Eren typically had blonde hair andblue eyes, so black hair was a symbol of foreign origins.
"… Things have changed recently. Lord Father likesforeigners, and many foreigners are now working in the city."
Whoa! I had thought her a dull kid, but it seemed that shewas actually pretty intelligent… This was nothing like what a nine-year oldchild would say, or was it that the children of royalty were all like this?
"… Teacher Glinda."
"Y-Yes?"
"… There"s something I would like to ask of Teacher."
T-T-th-th-that, w-what was going to happen this time?
Princess Seira quietly looked at me who frantically tried toprepare myself, and then said.
"… Nevermind."
Her calm voice carried nothing strange or remarkable.
What was it about? The curiosity was killing me. Was shetrying to bully me? Was this the so-called teacher-bullying?
As fear began to creep upon me, the maid returned.
"Sorry for the wait, Teacher Glinda."
The exuberating voice instantly flipped the forebodingatmosphere over.
Teapot and cups, sandwiches, tiny fruit tarts and apound-cake made from cherry tomatoes and lime were spread atop a silvertrolley.
The maid poured red tea into a teacup with a smile.
"Here, please enjoy."
"Wow thanks, I will tuck in."
I bit into a sandwich with slices of cuc.u.mber and hamwithin. The taste of mustard was a little heavy, but lightly sweetened and verytasty.
At my words of praise, the maid blushed happily.
"Thank you, please enjoy yourself."
"Enn."
The maid smiled in delight as she listened to my piledcompliments of "Tasty" and "Excellent".
It felt so much like honeymoon. If only I was not dressedlike a girl right now…
"Oh that"s right. While I was asleep earlier, I felt as if Iheard a song. Was that you?"
At my query, the maid shyly said.
"Yes. Sorry to have disturbed Teacher."
"There"s no such thing! Your singing voice is divine! I havenever heard such a lovely song."
As I said so, she flushed a fiery red throughout andcringed.
"No way… Teacher Glinda comes from the Winstoria Empirewhich is renowned for its culture and arts, where there has to be far bettermusic. Please don"t try to flatter me."
"This is no flattery. Your singing voice is more beautifuland touching than that of famed singers in Winstoria! "
She wiggled as the smile on her lips bloomed like a flower.
"T-that… I am very happy, thank you. It is said that thepeople of Winstoria Empire begin taking up music and composition at an earlyage. What instrument does Teacher play?"
I was drunk in her innocent smiling image as I replied.
"Enn… I dabble in the tambourine sometimes."
I blushed the moment those words left my mouth.
The tambourine, a wrist-sized bangle with seven bellsattached on its ring. This was little more than a musical toy for smallchildren. Having grown up in the capital city Vienna, which flourished in artsand music, and where families held orchestras on public holidays, I couldhardly hold my head up even over my skills in the tambourine.
Glinda was of course proficient in both violin and piano,but even played the conductor to the Winstoria Empire"s 1st cla.s.sorchestra in what became a legendary orchestral concert in the history ofmusic. Countless audiences to that concert went away moved to tears dreamily.
For a musical genius as such to claim love for thetambourine… Ohhhhh!
I was so ashamed that the roots of my ears blushed red, butthe maid simply displayed a gentle smile.
While the smile earlier bloomed with charm like a flower,the smile she gave me now emitted kindness and warmth, filling me with a senseof gladness.
"Wow… That"s marvellous."
Was that just flattery? Or was she consoling me?
But the maid looked genuinely happy and glad, and shecontinued in a voice filled with emotions.
"I also loved the sound of tambourine. It sounds soadorable."
My heart nearly leaped out of my mouth.
I was filled over with her clear refreshing voice, warmwords, gentle smile, all of which seemed to taste like honey.
Whoa! What should I do? I was fidgeting non-stop while myheartbeat raced.
Could this be…
B-But, I had just been ditched… and was wearing a breezygown for ladies right now… , Ohho, even so I still…
I had completely disregarded the fact that a 9-year old girlwas coldly staring at me nearby.
The joyful feeling of sugar overflowed from my chest as Ibarely stopped my nose from bleeding from the rush in my head.
This feeling - I recognized it as love.
"Well maybe it is alright to stay just a while longer."
The next day, I excused myself to rest from the exhaustionof my travels.
Both breakfast and lunch had been served by the cute pet.i.teblack-haired maid.
The mere sight of her kind smile was enough to send myfeelings fluttering to the sky. How great was the power of love.
Just a mere day before had I been trying to escape back toWinstoria Empire, but now I thought that it might be worth staying for a littlewhile as Glinda"s replacement if I could just enjoy this for a bit more.
Yes, since the targets are children aged between 5 to 11years old, even I should be capable of teaching them some elementarymathematics while living luxuriously in this room at the expenses of ErenKingdom.
Viewing it from another angle, was this not the ideal NEETlife I had been aiming for?
"Ya, you can definitely do it, Sher-chan."
The smirking face of Diplomat Helmut surfaced in my brain.
Despite forcing me into cross-dress and kidnapping me into afaraway country, the swindler did give me this opportunity to encounter newlove, so I probably should forgive him.
I should be the one thanking you instead. Thank you, LordHelmut!
Also, thank you to Glinda who disappeared!
I must sing of the springtime of my life"s fatefulencounters!
Muah, that"s certainly because I was in love.
Ohhhh, the joy!
I seemed to have forgotten something in my exuberance.
Something which I only remembered when evening fell.
The door suddenly opened, and maids filed into the roomcarrying evening dress, accessories and cosmetics.
"These are gifts from His Majesty to Lady Glinda. Tonight,there will be a special banquet to welcome back Her Majesty who had been absentfor so long, and we have been ordered to come help Lady Glinda prepare for it."
At these words, I nearly fainted.
I had forgotten it completely! I was supposed to become thereplacement for Queen!