Chapter 04
Zertemion’s eyes narrowed slightly.
He began observing Erkina from head to toe with a relentless gaze.
Probably for the same reason as everyone else—
The illegitimate child of a princess.
Her father was unknown, and until last year she had no surname. Because of that, despite being of royal blood, she had once been secretly scorned by the nobility and had cried herself to sleep.
When the emperor learned of this, he was enraged and, for Erkina’s seventh birthday, granted the title of Duchess of Invern to Mernelia.
Thanks to that, Erkina became a princess with a royal surname.
It was likely for that reason that he was staring at her so intently.
Erkina shrugged her shoulders as if to say it was fine, smiling calmly at him.
“Erkina, there’s no etiquette that requires a royal to greet first,”
a stern voice said right beside her.
Once again, Mernelia’s arrow was aimed at the wizard in front of them.
“My apologies for the late greeting. I am Zertemion, from the Northern Tower,” he said, bowing politely toward Erkina.
Erkina clasped her hands together and stamped her feet excitedly, like a thrilled child at a long-awaited opportunity.
“Zertemion? You’re the head of the Northern Magic Tower, right?”
Perhaps because of the young girl’s warm reception, Zertemion, who had been so sharp with Mernelia, smiled gently.
Even his previously blunt voice seemed to melt like soft whipped cream at Erkina’s smile.
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Really? Wow! I’ve always wanted to meet you!”
Erkina buried her longings in a corner of her heart and expressed her excitement freely, grinning at him.
Zertemion’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Me?”
“Yes! You, the head of the Magic Tower… uh!”
Erkina glared at the owner of the delicate hand that had covered her mouth in frustration.
In that moment, her body floated helplessly in the air. No matter how hard she kicked her chubby legs or waved her short arms, it was useless.
“Erkina, the Empress is waiting, so we must be going,”
“Ugh! Thhh!”
Even with her mouth covered, Erkina shouted desperately.
But Mernelia walked upright, without looking back, toward the Empress’s palace.
Erkina didn’t know when she would see Zertemion again. In a panic, she reluctantly put a little force into her hands, hoping to create a slight gust to push her mother’s arm away.
“Wait! Please!”
At that moment, a large hand suddenly rested on Mernelia’s shoulder.
Startled, Mernelia turned around.
Her contorted face looked as if she were staring at a wild animal right in front of her.
Of course, the other party’s expression wasn’t exactly pleasant either.
“Take your hand off me. Didn’t I tell you back then? Never let me see your face again,”
Zertemion said coldly. A small cloud of dust stirred in the otherwise calm garden.
“What are you trying to do? Using my daughter as an excuse for your schemes?”
“This concerns my honor. I must hear directly from the princess why she called me ‘Father,’”
Zertemion replied.
So she hadn’t said it by mistake.
Erkina struggled, trying to free herself from her mother’s hold.
“Furthermore, the princess just—”
“What are you saying? Who did Erkina call ‘Father’?”
Erkina froze. Things were about to escalate.
“Your Majesties, Zertemion, the head of the Northern Magic Tower, greets you,”
and, unfortunately, the intimidating grandfather and kind grandmother had entered the scene.
Erkina was sitting alone with the Empress in a cozy little room set aside in the palace.
This was the place she stayed whenever she came to visit the royal palace. Her grandmother had filled it with beautiful dolls and books for her granddaughter.
There would be no time to enjoy that today.
“Erkina, tell your grandmother,” the Empress asked while choosing a snack to offer her granddaughter.
The table was piled high with warm milk and sweet treats: cookies, puddings, tarts, fruit jelly, and even a rare lemon-flavored royal candy.
Erkina tensed her fingers slightly, worried the Empress would choose the candy. Fortunately, the Empress offered her a cookie that went well with the milk.
Feeling relieved, Erkina bit the cookie and answered innocently.
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“Has your mother ever spoken to you about your father?”
Erkina rolled her eyes, trying to recall. But she had barely heard anything about her father.
Sometimes, when Mernelia was drunk, Erkina overheard her muttering to herself: ‘What a bad man… How dare he deceive me… An unforgivable person… I’ll never let Erkina see him.’
“No.”
The Empress’s eyes drooped slightly, perhaps a little disappointed. She might have hoped the wizard was Erkina’s father.
“Then why did you call that wizard ‘Father’?”
“Well…”
“Did you like him?”
Erkina tilted her head innocently.
The Empress hesitated for a moment, then spoke carefully.
“You wished that commoner wizard had been your father?”
Erkina’s bright yellow eyes widened, like the royal candy on the table. She twiddled her fingers nervously and didn’t answer.
The Empress then took out a handkerchief and wiped her eyes.
“No, Erkina. You don’t need to answer. The child must have missed someone terribly…”
“No, I just said it by accident. I wanted to protect my mother.”
“Mernelia?”
“Yes. They say a strong wizard is worth ten knights.”
“That’s true. I hear that person is an excellent wizard. Though a commoner, respected for both skill and character.”
Good.
I had worried that her being a commoner might make her unsuitable, but this assessment meant he would be acceptable even as a future husband.
“So I want to learn magic from them! I’ll become a strong wizard and protect my mother!”
“Our Erkina has grown up.”
“Hehehe.”
If she had lived long enough, the Empress would have protected her granddaughter after Mernelia’s death so she wouldn’t be left alone.
Having been shocked by her mother’s early death, the Empress had passed away, but if she could save her mother, perhaps she could also save her grandmother?
Erkina buried her face in the embrace of someone she longed for, seeking the familiar scent of her mother in her memories.
“But magic can only be learned by those with talent. Unfortunately, the royals so far have had no aptitude.”
“They say King Prillius III, the righteous ruler, was talented in both magic and swordsmanship,”
Erkina said.
“He was an exception. Of course, if you have talent… it wouldn’t be wrong to learn,”
the Empress replied.
“Really? I’m confident. But…”
Erkina deliberately drooped her lips and pouted.
“But why?”
“My mother opposed it. She said I only need to command a wizard, not learn myself.”
“Were you upset?”
“Yes… today is my birthday, after all.”
Seeing Erkina unusually downcast, the Empress raised her eyebrows.
“That child, I gave her everything she wanted when raising her,” the Empress murmured, clicking her tongue. Then she suddenly grasped Erkina’s small hand tightly.
“Don’t worry, your grandmother will take care of this.”
She had gained an invincible ally against Mernelia.
Erkina took the Empress’s hand and went to the large audience hall on the first floor of the palace.
Through the slightly open door, she heard Mernelia’s discontented voice explaining herself.
“Your Majesty! How could you believe such nonsense? Erkina’s father was a noble from the Southern Continent. He was on his way back to send me a marriage proposal when his ship sank, and he died!”
“Are you sure nothing happened between them?”
“No, nothing at all.”
“…Zertemion, you may speak,”
the Emperor said.
“The same answer as the princess. We met at the Academy, but were never lovers. How could a lowly person like me ever dare approach the princess?”
“Ha…”
The Emperor sighed in displeasure. Silence filled the hall.
“Perhaps we shouldn’t go in?”
Erkina said, tugging on the Empress’s hand.
The hall was quiet, but it wasn’t peace—it was only a temporary standoff.
“Well… let’s wait a moment.”
