Chapter 6 — Knights, Naps, and Parents
Shattered not broken
Chapter 6 â Knights, Naps, and Parents
After what could only be called the most unnecessarily destructive nap-time tantrum in the history of the Rivera estate, Stella had returned to her room in the evening with the casual grace of someone who hadnât just wiped out the entire knight corps before lunch. Wrapped in her blanket like a queen wearing her royal mantle, she walked barefoot through the hallway while yawning like sheâd just returned from a week-long diplomatic mission to the dream realm.
Dinner? Eaten. Under protest.
Her maid had threatened to tell her parents again, so she endured the act of chewing like it was a royal burden. She sipped her soup with a pained look, muttered about how exhausting existing was, and then promptly collapsed back into her bed with the energy of a person running away from responsibilities.
The maid stood by the bed, eyes wide in disbelief.
"Sheâs asleep again? Thatâs the sixth time today... Does she not get tired of sleeping?"
Elsewhere in the mansion, chaos brewed.
The knight corps was in shambles. Rumors bloomed like weeds.
"She beat Sir Aster in one swing!"
"The sword came out of the air like a demon gate opened!"
"She didnât even stretch first!"
"I swear her hair glows in the dark. It's like a starfield. I need her shampoo."
Meanwhile, in the study, Duke Rivera stared at the ceiling.
"So... our daughter beat the knights."
Duchess Rivera, seated beside him with the most satisfied expression a mother could wear, clutched her teacup with barely contained excitement.
"Not just beat. She summoned a sword. From thin air. With no training. And she looked stunning doing it."
"That's not the point. Our house guard was humiliated. Aster is still unconscious. And the training yard looks like a war zone."
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"Sweetheart. She's a magician. A real one. Do you realize how rare that is? Most nobles hope their children will become swordmasters or politicians. But our daughter? Our daughter broke physics before breakfast."
"And morale."
"Morale will recover. This is incredible!"
The Duke sighed, rubbing his temples.
"She sleeps all day, has amnesia, and might destroy the estate by accident if someone coughs too loudly near her blanket."
"But sheâs still our little girl," the Duchess said dreamily.
They fell into silence, torn between awe and anxiety.
---
The next morning, they found her.
She was sneaking out of her room with the stealth of a cat carrying contraband. A pillow under one arm, slippers half-on, galaxy hair floating around her shoulders like an aurora.
"Stella," the Duchess called.
She froze, looked over her shoulder slowly, like a thief caught mid-heist.
"...Good morning. Or night? Is it still night?"
"Itâs eight in the morning. Sit down."
They herded her back into her room and shut the door.
"We need to talk about yesterday," the Duke said with parental gravity.
Stella slouched onto her couch like a dramatically misunderstood poet.
"If this is about the knights, they started it with all the loud clanging. I was dreaming about floating cities. It was very relaxing. Then metal happened."
"You knocked out every knight on the estate. Including Aster."
"He tried to hit me first. With a sword."
"It was a duel! You ordered it!"
"Which I won."
The Duchess pressed her fingers together.
"Stella, sweetie. Do you know how magic works?"
"Mmm... not really. I just felt like I could do it. So I did. Then I got sleepy."
The Duke muttered under his breath.
"Is this cosmic power or laziness incarnate..."
"Dad, Iâm capable of both. Donât limit me."
Her parents stared at her.
"Look," the Duchess began slowly, "weâre thrilled. You're clearly gifted. Youâve awakened to some rare and powerful ability. But, maybe... donât destroy the knight corps again? Theyâre still traumatized."
Stella blinked. Then grinned.
"Fiiiine. I wonât vaporize any more guards. Unless they wake me up."
"You should also consult your maid before wandering. People think you're a ghost when you drift through the hallways with a blanket and pillow."
"A fashionable ghost. Very on-trend."
The Duchess pinched the bridge of her nose.
"Stella. Please. Just try not to worry us."
Stella nodded slowly, yawning as she did.
"I will try... to make my chaos... quieter."
"Thatâs notâNever mind. Thatâs fine."
---
Meanwhile, in a his room somewhere across the estate, Aster lay in bed, wrapped in bandages and existential dread.
He stared at the ceiling.
"Did I... lose to a girl in a blanket cape...?"
He sat up with a wince, one eye twitching.
"Sheâs changed. She used to scream at servants and throw plates. Now she looks at me like Iâm a buzzing fly near her nap space."
He rubbed his face.
"That pressure... it wasnât just strength. It felt... alien. She didnât just swing a sword."
His gaze drifted to the window.
Outside, far below in the courtyard, Stella was dragging a lounge chair into a sunbeam.
Still in her nightgown. Still barefoot.
She plopped down, tucked her pillow behind her head, and sighed in contentment. A maid brought her juice with a little umbrella in it.
Aster stared.
"She knocked me unconscious... and now sheâs sipping mango juice like it was a spa day."
He closed his eyes.
"I need a vacation."
---
Back in her lounge chair, Stella took a long sip.
"Mmm... being unstoppable is exhausting."
She sighed and looked up at the clouds.
Then closed her eyes.
Then slept.
The estate exhaled a nervous breath.
For now... peace.
But everyone knew, in the world of Stella...
Peace only lasted until her next nap got interrupted.