Chapter 28: CH 28

“Sian?”

“…H, Hicc, hic.”

I called him several times, yet he didn’t hear me.

Did he cry so much that his vision was blurred?

Seeing him burst into tears like a child, unable to even raise his body, made me realize that Sian was my age.

“Sian.”

I called a little louder this time.

“…Billie?”

His back twitched as he lay on his stomach.

After a long pause, he slowly raised his head.

As expected, his face was covered in tears.

‘Turns out people can cry so quickly and this much.’

Transparent tears were forming between the densely raised eyelashes.

The bloodshot red eyes around it.

Feeling sad just looking at it, I unconsciously wiped Sian’s cheek with my thumb.

Flinch.

He seemed startled by the sudden contact.

But even in the midst of this, his eyes, which were similar to the night sky, were fixed on me.

“…Sian, why are you crying? Are you okay?”

“You?”

“Hm?”

“Billie, are you okay? Where does it hurt?”

His gaze, which had been dazed for a moment, came into focus.

“Are you not hurt anywhere?”

Perhaps coming to his senses, Sian carefully removed the leaves that were covering me.

Then he grabbed my wrists and lifted my arms.

There was no surprise.

“In case you didn’t know, you might have gotten poisoned because you didn’t even hear me.”

Such an urgent voice.

My neck, armpits, cheeks. And the gaze that scanned every nook and cranny of my body.

“… You’re not hurt anywhere, really…”

After such a long search.

Phew.

A sigh of relief escaped Sian’s mouth.

How much did he cry?

Even the sigh he had reluctantly let out was filled with tears.

“Did you fall while running away?”

“Why would I run away?”

“Huh?”

“The Duke’s Castle is my house, so why would I run away and get hurt?”

Immersed, Sian brushed off the dusty clothes I had spilled.

“Why are you making a fuss all by yourself? I’m taking a nap here…”

“A nap?”

At my words, Sian frowned as if he had realized something.

He quickly released his hand from my arm.

“Why are you taking a nap here, Billie?”

He then returned to normal.

“I just wanted to do something today…”

“Billie. It’s dangerous to sleep outside no matter how here is the Duke’s Castle. If you want to sleep, go into your bedroom and sleep.”

At his scolds, I stuck out my lower lip like a duck.

There are so many people who interfere with my actions these days.

I’m the princess of the direct line of Vallois!

“What does it matter if I want to sleep in my own house as I please?”

“…You, really.”

Was he angry?

Swishㅡ

He swallowed his words, turned around, and walked away.

“Anyway, sleep in the castle. Don’t make people worry.”

“Sian, why are you doing this all of a sudden?”

But it was frustrating for me as well.

I hurriedly brushed my hips and stood up, shaking my short legs as hard as I could to match Sian’s wide stride.

Step, step, stepㅡ

“Sian! Are you worried about me?”

I’m not sure, but I think he’s angry.

And I’m also not sure, but it seems like Sian is worried about me.

Hmm.

“…”

I patted him on the back as he walked away.

“Are you worried that I will die?”

I eagerly chased after him.

“No.”

‘Then why did you cry?’

He furrowed his brow with a strange spirit at the stone-stern voice.

“If you’re worried, tell me you’re worried. Why can’t you be honest with your feelings?”

“It’s just that I’ll pay back what you gave me.”

“What?”

“Bread. Treatment. Steak. Something like that.”

“Will you leave after paying it back?”

“Yeah, after I paying it back.”

Can’t he remember the next word?

His hesitant expression crumpled.

“You can pay it back.”

It was then that his surprised gaze returned to me.

“I just wanted to play with you. You have nothing to do, too, because you’re a slave. Or how about joining Vallois as a servant?”

I smiled.

Sian’s tears and a completely changed attitude.

If one asked which of the two was the truth, there was a high probability that it was the former.

“The competition rate for Vallois employees is 1,000 to 1. What a golden opportunity.”

Please be tricked.

I hummed as if I was singing

Sian’s expression hardened vaguely.

He had a look in his eyes, as if he couldn’t understand me, who was so dedicated to him.

“You’re not an ordinary slave, are you?”

“…”

“If you don’t want to talk, you don’t have to. I’ll wait until you feel comfortable.”

“What do you believe in? You believe in me?”

Sian asked seriously.

I looked confident in my relaxed appearance.

“No. I believe in myself.”

Of course, I didn’t do it without reason.

“Hundreds of thousands of knights who won the war, families of vassals following Vallois. Hundreds of estates. I have Dad, who runs it all.”

Round, round.

I stopped in front of him as I was walking.

“Do you think the Princess of such Vallois can’t take care of a single slave?”

Of course, Dad is responsible for that, but.

“Well, it’s your choice anyway, so don’t do it if you feel pressured.”

I failed again this time.

Seeing Sian’s strangely hardened reaction, I realized.

‘If I go any further, it will only backfire.’

“No matter what you do, we are friends. Sian. Just do it when you want to.”

I gave up coolly and shrugged my shoulders and went back.

It was then.

“…Can I earn 5,000 gold by working here?”

A weak question popped out of his gaze, which was only looking down at the ground.

Deep in thought, Sian grabbed my sleeve without realizing it.

***

“Have Sian as a servant.”

“Pardon?”

Are you crazy, Human?

(the ‘Human’ part was in english lmao)

Agasa stared at us holding hands for a moment.

And he covered his face with his hands and burst into laughter, as if he had nothing to see.

“I can’t.”

I thought he’d agree because he laughed.

“Why not? He’s a slave, so he has nowhere to go. Right, Sian?”

As I waved the hand I was holding, he weakly nodded his head.

And I looked up at Agasa with stern eyes.

Sparkling, sparklingㅡ

Uuugh. Passion, passion, passion!

“Listen! In a way, Vallois brought him in, so we have to take responsibility!”

I, who was determined by those eyes, raised my cotton fist and protested.

“…I think His Grace needs to know this, so I’ll send a message to him right away.”

“Congratulations, Sian! Now you’re going to be a servant!”

“…Really?”

“I never said yes. Send that slave away and let us talk alone, there’s a lot to do.”

“Alright.”

Indeed, just because Agasa is good doesn’t mean Sian can work as a servant.

“…Can’t I?”

Sian, who was surprised, blinked.

I quickly shook my head and grabbed my friend’s hand.

“I will tell Dad again when he comes back. Would you like to go to your room for now?”

“Yeah.”

Fortunately, the nice Sian nodded obediently.

“I’ll be there soonㅡ!”

“Come quickly.”

We waved our hands at each other then I closed the door when Sian disappeared.

Suddenly the air became still.

A shady, bleak aura seemed to emanate from Agasa.

‘Was it a little too much to make a slave into a servant?’

It was only then that I realized that my feelings were ahead of me, and cold sweat dripped down my back.

Suddenly, a sullen voice broke the silence.

“Miss Baby. Are you kidding me? Are you going to insist that this is also a prophecy?”

Flinch againㅡ

If I’m a princess, isn’t that fine?

In the beginning, the slave trade was illegal in the Rolls Empire.

Sian was a victim.

“Sian is a friend who wasn’t in my prophecy. It’s just a fateful encounter.”

“You like fateful encounters. Please calm down and have a seat.”

“…Yes.”

“Now shall we discuss the regular meeting?”

Depressed by Agasa’s scolds, I sat on a chair dragging my shoes.

My ears perked up at Agasa’s question.

“The regular meeting?”

“Yes. Of course, the vassals won’t believe the topic of prophet.”

He became serious before he knew it and tapped the desk with a pen.

“So I’m thinking about other alternatives, but.”

Unable to speak, he sighed.

“The fact that the royal family of the defeated country itself cut off contact means a rebellion. In this situation, I can’t think of any reason to maintain the kingdom’s fund.”

“Is it really necessary to keep the fund?”

“…Pardon?”

Agasa’s face wrinkled as if my question itself was wrong.

“You said that the future of Vallois would collapse if the fund was abolished.”

“Yeah. That’s true.”

Blinking my bunny eyes for a moment, I shut my mouth.

‘To be precise, I just need to not disturb Peter’s heart.’

“Come here.”

“Yes?”

“I’ve been thinking…”

It was then.

Without knocking, Lisa jumped out through the open door.

“Sir Agasa. Emergency, emergency!”

Uncharacteristically, Lisa didn’t even knock.

Seeing her face went pale, something was clearly wrong.

“…Haaa, no way.”

Agasa, who was hesitant, understood right away whether it was a secret language, and was dispirited.

Am I the only one who doesn’t know anything?

My eyes widened at the unexpected warning.

“He has already passed through the main gate of the castle. Judging by the look on his face, he came to see the Princess…”

“Me?”

Something related to me.

I woke up like a meerkat.

“It’s about me?”

“It’s the Duke of Bluebell family, but it seems that he came here because he was curious about the Princess. Please wait a moment.”

Agasa, who said something, closed the door with Lisa and left.

Seeing that he gritted his teeth, the Bluebell family must be a trouble.

“…They know because they heard a rumor.”

The Bluebell family.

It was a collateral family of Vallois.

Exactly now, they’re the ‘Duke of Bluebell family’.

There were people everywhere who wanted to be a collateral of the direct lineage.

However, I heard that the Duke of Bluebell, who exceeded the level of obsession, had followed everything in Vallois since the old days.

The number of mansions and estates managed by Vallois.

Gender ratio and age group of employees of Vallois.

‘I heard that he even tried to follow Vallois’ child plan in my previous life.’

Shiverㅡ

“…Are they crazy?”

Just thinking about it gave me goosebumps down my back.

In any case, the tenacious Bluebell was awarded the title of duke thanks to their dirty benchmarking, and they rose to the four largest families.

It was also a family famous for its magic in the Rolls Empire.

Duke Bell is currently the intelligence manager responsible for the security of the Imperial Family of the Rolls Empire, and the best magician in name and reality.

However.

Bluebell, who imitated the exterior of the castle and even the garden, couldn’t follow Vallois in the end.

Something the Bluebell family doesn’t have, yet we do.

Only those of direct lineage could have, Magi.

A rare talent that only those born with it can handle.

“…By the way, we have to talk about the regular meeting, but I think Agasa handled it well?”

Knock, knockㅡ

It was then.

Tired of the sound of the door knocking at the right time, I got up and opened the door.

“Uh, wow!”

“?”

Yet it wasn’t Agasa who knocked.

Dark blue hair resembling the deep sea.

Orange eyes like shaking carrots.

The child who was looking at me with rabbit eyes as if she had finally found it turned her head around and shouted.

“Dad! I finally found it!”

The youngest princess of the Bluebell family.

It was Bella.