Episode 11
Teacher Silvia stared again and again at Pip-pip, who was sitting quietly on my shoulder.
“I’ve never seen a bird so completely red. Its feather color is exactly the same as Your Highness’s eye color.”
Gabriella desperately hoped that Pip-pip wouldn’t draw attention, but that was impossible.
Because the little thing refused to leave me.
“Teacher, do you know what kind of bird this is?”
I asked on impulse, but Silvia only shook her head.
“No, I’ve truly never seen such a red bird. Ah! I’ve only seen something like it in temple murals. The sun god Shamash has a bird that follows him around, and it’s this red.”
“That one’s suuuper big though. And the tail is, like, this long.”
I couldn’t help but snicker as I spoke, and Silvia’s jaw dropped.
“Your Highness knows that bird?”
Ah. I messed up.
*A four-year-old princess shouldn’t know that kind of thing…!*
I rolled my eyes and improvised.
“Um, I… saw it on, um… a mural.”
“At the temple? Does the Temple of Water have a Shamash mural…?”
No, it doesn’t.
Shamash murals exist only in the Temple of the Sun, which is in the Troin territory.
Even when I lived until age twenty-two, I’d only visited Troin once.
*Definitely not before I turned five.*
To fix my increasingly dangerous slip-up, I racked my brain.
“N-not that… Daddy showed me in a book.”
“Ahh, I see.”
Thank heavens my father is the high priest.
Silvia smiled as if everything now made sense.
“You must have looked very closely at the picture.”
“I–I just saw it, that’s all…”
Maybe because I sounded defensive, she added gently:
“Remembering details from a picture is a wonderful skill, Your Highness. You deserve praise.”
“Th-thank you…”
Pip-pip stayed perfectly quiet on my shoulder the entire time.
I had planned to yank him off and leave him with Beatrice the moment he caused trouble, but he had surprisingly good instincts.
After glancing at Pip-pip one last time, Silvia opened a book.
“As I mentioned before, starting today, after reading practice, we will also begin writing practice.”
Damn that Rosa—she never told me that.
I frowned slightly, and Silvia misunderstood.
“It’s all right, Your Highness. The beginning is difficult for everyone. Let’s start with reading. Now, what does this say?”
“R… Reu… El, la.”
I struggled and pretended I couldn’t read well. Pip-pip silently peered down at the vocabulary card beside me.
“Very good, Your Highness. Personally, I think it’s a name you must learn even before your own. Ruella—the name of the kingdom you will inherit.”
Oh, I wish that were true, teacher.
—
After class, we went to the palace physician.
“How on earth…?”
He looked shocked that Pip-pip was still alive.
I glared at him with all my might.
Even Beatrice, sounding unusually curt, asked:
“Could you check how the stitches are healing, please?”
“Y-yes, my lady.”
Pip-pip was desperate not to leave me, so I set my palm on the desk and placed Pip-pip on top of it.
― *Pip-pip!*
“Quiet.”
― *Peeep…*
The physician examined the wound and reached to pat Pip-pip, impressed.
Pip-pip snapped at his finger in irritation.
“You dummy. He’s the one who fixed you. Be polite.”
― *PIP! Pip-pip-pip!*
No remorse whatsoever.
But the physician didn’t seem bothered.
“It’s healing very well. I’m relieved. A strong little one, Your Highness.”
Beatrice still looked uneasy.
“It’s healing properly, right?”
“Yes, my lady. I’ll disinfect the stitches and apply ointment. I’ll also give you a jar so you can apply it regularly.”
“So he’s going to be all right…?”
Beatrice was surprisingly persistent.
Maybe she wondered if the bird still might die.
Fortunately, the physician smiled.
“He seems fine. Once the stitches are completely healed, we’ll remove them. Please return in about two weeks.”
“We fed him egg yolk. Is that okay?”
The physician thought for a moment.
“I’ve never seen this species, so I can’t be sure… but for now, it should be fine. Once he recovers fully, he’ll fly and find what he wants to eat.”
As he disinfected the wound, Pip-pip flailed wildly.
― *Pip! Pip-pip-pip-pip!!*
It sounded louder than when the cat grabbed him. My heart ached, but it had to be done.
I held Pip-pip steady with my tiny hands. The physician looked at me with admiration.
“I didn’t realize Your Highness was so brave.”
Well… the real me at four years old wouldn’t have managed this.
I’d always been timid.
*And I had been taught that a quiet life was the virtue of a secret twin princess.*
With a bitter feeling, I looked at Pip-pip, who was fighting with all he had.
So small, yet so brave—my friend.
“You’re the brave one. You beat a kitty even though you’re tiny.”
Surviving means winning.
In that sense, I lost once. I won’t ever lose again.
As soon as I said that, Pip-pip—who had been screeching—went shockingly quiet.
*…As if he understood. Ridiculous.*
—
By sunset, the palace grew noisy.
“The King is returning!”
Now Pip-pip refusing to leave me was becoming a real problem.
*I promised Gabriella we’d keep him unnoticed…*
If a mysterious red bird followed me everywhere, wouldn’t people find it suspicious?
Then a thought popped into my head.
*He’s a bird.*
Once he can fly freely, no one can say anything.
*If someone asks, we’ll just say he flew away. Who can prove otherwise?*
With that logic, I went to greet my parents with Pip-pip still on my shoulder.
Beatrice held my hand as we stood at the front of the welcoming line. A herald shouted:
“The King and Queen return from the autumn hunting trip!”
Behind him, my parents rode toward us.
“Mom!”
Calling Father *Dad* still felt awkward.
Hearing me, Mother leapt off her horse.
“Sweetheart, did you do well? And… what is that bird?”
Before I could answer, Father dismounted too.
I turned toward him.
“…Dad.”
His violet eyes sparkled as he bent down to look at me.
“You’ve been well, my daughter? Looks like you made a new friend.”
“Mm. Pip-pip.”
Mother glanced anxiously at Beatrice, then picked me up.
Pip-pip flapped wildly but managed to stay balanced.
“What a cute friend. I bet you have a lot to tell me.”
“Mhm! The kitty bit Pip-pip. And scratched me too.”
Pip-pip chirped loudly in agreement.
Mother’s expression froze. She glanced sharply at Beatrice, but when she looked back at me, her eyes softened as always.
“What? A cat hurt my daughter?”
“Mm. My dress tore. It wasn’t Tris’s fault. It was the kitty.”
I felt bad for putting Beatrice in trouble, but that cat deserved it.
*I knew I never liked that creature.*
You’re finished, stupid cat.
—
Oblin queens do not forgive.
Before even entering the main palace, Mother ordered:
“Have the guards capture every cat in the royal gardens and remove them. Tell the head gardener that no cats are allowed inside the palace ever again.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Pip-pip chirped softly, like a tiny victory song.
*Probably just my imagination…*
As Mother carried me up the stairs, Beatrice spoke in panic.
“Your Majesty—yes, the cat scratched the princess’s sleeve, but she was not hurt—”
Mother’s fury was unstoppable.
“It clawed her dress! What were you doing while that happened?”
“I apologize, Your Majesty. The cat grabbed the bird, and Her Highness tried to save it—”
Mother froze in place on the stairs.
“So you are telling me that a four-year-old princess saved a bird from a cat?”
Her voice trembled with anger.
To calm her down, I hurriedly interrupted.
“No, Mom. Icarus saved him.”
