Chapter 4
“Of course. It would be fine if we came later with a proper invitation.”
The nanny answered vaguely, worried that I might get upset again after she had only just managed to calm me down.
“Then I should ask my brothers to come with me!”
At my deliberately innocent voice, the maid flinched.
One might think that grown young lords wouldn’t come all the way here just because their little sister begged them to—but in reality, the things people think couldn’t possibly happen often become reality, and sometimes grow into much bigger problems.
As a six-year-old child and a nanny from a minor noble family, we had no authority to officially reprimand the servants of the detached palace for their negligence.
But if my brothers—who had recently begun taking part in family affairs—were to find out, things would become complicated.
The Emperor is a weak man.
Too weak to either abandon or embrace the son he believed to be cursed.
All the Emperor wanted was for Leonhardt to live quietly, as though he did not exist.
But he certainly hadn’t intended for him to be treated this poorly.
“When should we come? Tomorrow? Next week?”
As I pretended to ponder when my brothers might be free, the maid anxiously chewed her lower lip while repeatedly glancing at Leonhardt’s messy room.
For the time being, the servants of the detached palace would probably start watching how they behaved.
They would clean up a little.
And the meals they served would probably improve as well.
After all, I was still only six years old—this was about the most I could accomplish.
Still, you should be grateful I came to rescue you earlier than last time.
I winked at Leonhardt so only he could see.
Leonhardt blinked in confusion, as if he didn’t understand what my gesture meant.
He had definitely become even more oblivious since becoming younger.
I felt a surge of frustration, but I kept smiling until the end.
After all, it would surely take a long time before I could come to see him again.
As we left the detached palace, I had the strange feeling that a familiar gaze was following the back of my head.
* * *
The moment we were far enough away from Leonhardt’s residence, the nanny began her scolding.
Maintaining her elegant, gentle smile, she spoke in a small voice only I could hear as she held my hand.
“My lady, if you suddenly run off by yourself like that again, this nanny might cry her eyes out.”
To anyone watching from a distance—far enough away not to hear us—it would simply look like we were having a warm and affectionate conversation.
The nanny had the appearance of a typical delicate noblewoman full of sensitivity, but contrary to her looks, she was actually a very strong-willed person.
Even in the previous timeline, I only saw her cry once.
For someone like her to say she would cry her eyes out was simply a form of discipline adjusted to the level of a six-year-old.
So I obediently promised that I would never do it again.
“That was just one time. I won’t do it again. Really. I promise!”
The one and only time I had seen her cry in the previous timeline had been when she shed tears of relief as she died—after trying to save me when I was caught in the Crown Prince’s scheme.
Seeing how dejected I looked, the nanny seemed to soften.
She crouched down in front of me to meet my eyes and pulled me into a hug with a warm smile.
“Our young lady is so mature.”
“Did I seem like an older sister?”
“Yes. At this rate, you could attend the academy already.”
Nestled in the nanny’s arms—something that felt strangely nostalgic—I allowed myself to act spoiled as much as I wanted.
Eventually, when the nanny’s legs started to go numb and she subtly tried to pull away, I finally let go after hugging her tightly one last time.
“Nanny, you know…”
I whispered to her.
“I think it’s a good thing that I’m six years old.”
Because that meant I could save the nanny and rescue Leonhardt a little sooner.
The nanny laughed at my sudden remark, but I meant every word.
* * *
Perhaps the Crown Prince had another engagement, because the nanny and I were able to take a peaceful walk around the lakeside garden without encountering anyone.
“The hydrangeas are so pretty.”
“They really are.”
This place really is beautiful.
The garden itself had done nothing wrong.
Since the nanny seemed to like the lakeside garden, I took a rather long walk there—partly as a small apology.
“Oh my, my lady. Aren’t you tired?”
The nanny finally noticed that I had been walking longer than usual and asked with concern.
“No! Not tired at all.”
I shook my head vigorously.
“Really? If you’re tired, you must tell your nanny.”
“I’m really, really fine!”
In truth, my stamina wasn’t particularly great, and I had suffered from minor illnesses from time to time.
But I was generally healthy.
The problem was that in the previous timeline, whenever I wanted to be alone, I pretended to be sleepy or tired.
As a result, people began to think of me as a frail child.
Thanks to that, I grew up receiving excessive protection from my family.
This time, I’ll be a reasonably healthy kid.
While planning my image transformation, I said energetically,
“I’m just so excited that I’m not tired at all!”
The nanny smiled with crescent-shaped eyes, apparently finding my unusual excitement adorable.
“But I’m getting a little tired. Shall we head back?”
She lightly patted her legs and suggested we return.
To be honest, I was a bit tired too.
Even though I hadn’t come here often, I had still visited this place dozens of times while living in the imperial palace. Pretending to see everything for the first time like a curious child had taken quite a bit of energy.
“Hmm… okay!”
But in order to perfectly act like a six-year-old, I pretended to hesitate briefly before answering.
“We’re going back because you’re tired, Nanny!”
As I held her hand and chattered proudly, the nanny laughed and played along.
“As expected, our young lady is the best.”
Even on the way back, I kept talking to the nanny nonstop.
Pretending to be six years old is exhausting.
By the time we arrived home, both the one speaking and the one listening were worn out.
I was completely exhausted.
I decided to postpone my “reasonably healthy child” plan until tomorrow.
“I’m sleepy, Nanny.”
A six-year-old body couldn’t easily fight off sleep.
The moment I acknowledged my drowsiness, my eyes were already half closed.
“There’s still some time before dinner. Shall we wash up and take a nap?”
Washing was bothersome, but I nodded vaguely.
The nanny called in the maids assigned to me.
“My lady, washing with warm water will make you feel better.”
“Shall we make some bubbles for you?”
The maids tried their best to soothe my sleepiness while washing me, and afterward I felt even more drowsy.
I felt like I would fall asleep the moment my head touched the pillow.
As I walked half-asleep, the nanny lifted me into her arms.
“You might fall over.”
If she hadn’t picked me up, I probably would have.
Still in her arms, I was carried to the bedroom.
The last thing I remembered was the nanny laying me gently in bed and covering me with a blanket.
After confirming that I had fallen asleep, she left me briefly in the care of the maids and stepped out.
I had a bad feeling.
But I was too sleepy.
That was my mistake.
* * *
“My lady, are you awake?”
As I tossed and turned, struggling to wake up fully, my personal maid Anna spoke softly.
“Mm.”
I answered in a sleepy voice.
Anna stifled a quiet laugh.
Then, in a gentle tone, she dropped a bombshell.
“My lady, you can stay alone for a moment, right?”
“Yes… but why?”
“Your mother asked to be informed when you wake up.”
Perhaps my instincts had returned after waking up, because I suddenly sat upright.
“Mother? Why?”
“I’m not sure. I didn’t hear anything specific.”
Anna tilted her head as if she genuinely didn’t know.
But my instincts were telling me the truth.
The nanny must have reported everything that happened today to my mother.
Unlike my father, who was always soft on me, my mother always scolded me when I did something wrong.
Considering my future character, my mother’s parenting method was undoubtedly the correct one—but even if my mind was twenty-four years old, I still didn’t want to be scolded.
I shouldn’t have gone to sleep.
I should have stuck to the nanny’s side.
But no matter how quickly you regret something, it’s already too late.
If the price for meeting Leonhardt two years earlier is just a few days without snacks, that’s not a bad deal.
I comforted myself as I slowly climbed out of bed.
“I’ll go see Mother.”
If I was going to be scolded anyway, I might as well get it over with.
“Shall you?”
Anna neatly tied up my messy hair from sleep.
“Mm.”
My steps felt heavy.
