Chapter 75
Adel realized it too. Not everyone in the world would like her.
[I want to see Teacher Ehin.]
Still, Adel wanted to see someone who had been kind to her.
“You said you wanted to see me, Your Highness?”
“…….”
The moment Adel saw Ehin, she ran and threw herself into his arms.
The first teacher paused, looking a bit startled, but perhaps he had heard about the incident with Teacher Gandajoo. He held her gently.
[Adel, you’re a genius. That one doesn’t seem fit to teach you.]
Kan had said that in yesterday’s lesson.
It seemed Adel had held some illusions about the Royal Fest Academy.
And why not? It was the same academy her brother and Kan attended, one her father had graduated from, and there was always kind Teacher Ehin…
But from the very first lesson, everything had been a mess.
‘I haven’t even made a single new friend.’
Adel felt sad. She didn’t think she had been this shy before.
It wasn’t easy to approach others first.
It seemed her classmates felt the same way.
“……Did you have something you wanted to say?”
“……I want to save someone.”
“Huh?”
Adel stepped back slightly and looked at Ehin.
‘I want to save my family.’
The thought had solidified even more when she had given her father the potted grass as a gift.
It didn’t matter who it was.
‘You have to save them while you still can.’
If only Lord Beasirta had saved them sooner, perhaps her father’s feelings wouldn’t have cooled.
To do that, she had to make a pact with the Divine Beast first, but…
“Who?”
“……Lehas.”
Ehin’s expression stiffened. So did the faces of the others who had been quietly observing.
‘I didn’t say anything before because it seemed everyone would hesitate.’
Adel had clearly heard the name “Lehas” from Brother Blake.
A boy who, if he survived, might become Adel’s second older brother.
‘I was told to give up because he’s practically already dead.’
But Adel couldn’t give up.
“Y-Your Highness… where did you hear that person’s name…?”
“I want to break the ‘Curse of God.’”
“……!”
Apparently, what Adel said was far more shocking than she realized.
The atmosphere had suddenly changed.
Adel herself didn’t know much. That was why she had been reading so diligently.
Kan had said that all men of the Alcibiades line experienced the ‘Curse of God.’
Her father and brothers were survivors who had endured terrible pain.
The only way to endure the suffering was through one’s own strength and will. Lehas had not been able to overcome the ‘Curse of God,’ it was said.
But Adel didn’t like that.
‘If I can completely break it, no one will have to suffer anymore.’
“I heard the Divine Beast is connected to the ‘Curse of God.’ …Is that true?”
Ehin looked surprised.
She had a cautious expression as she spoke, careful not to reveal where she had heard it.
“I read it in a book.”
“……You’ve grown a lot on your own in the meantime.”
Adel had read the difficult book all the way through.
“The Rights and Duties of the Head of the Alcibiades”
She had paused her reading to go see her father, only to witness a horrific scene at the training ground…
[Someone, please close their eyes.]
Her father had killed knights, claiming they were spies. Adel remembered that while reading the book—it was agonizing.
‘Every time I read, it felt like the smell of blood was in the air.’
Still, she endured. She kept a dictionary by her side and read until the end.
She even gained one more piece of information about the ‘Curse of God.’
“When the first head of the Alcibiades chose not to inherit the throne, the Divine Beast became angry. It sealed itself and fell asleep.”
Adel had only learned from the book that the Divine Beast had been sealed. That line jolted her awake.
“In the 37th year of the Empire, the prophet Beragon predicted that the ‘Prophesied Child’ would appear to awaken the Divine Beast. Coincidentally, the sealing of the Divine Beast and the worsening of the ‘Curse of God’ coincide. The author believes the ‘Curse of God’ is connected to the sealing of the Divine Beast.”
Perhaps the spirit beings had realized this from conversing with her a lot.
‘The Divine Beast was just sulking.’
The Divine Beast probably expected the Alcibiades to be royalty.
When the human it had chosen did not ascend to the throne, it was disappointed.
‘I’m not sure. But the Divine Beast isn’t evil. It’s like the spirits who are my friends.’
Perhaps…
‘The ‘Curse of God’ could have been resolved simply if the Divine Beast’s seal was lifted. But the Divine Beast didn’t expect the ‘Prophesied Child’ to appear so late.’
‘It didn’t know the suffering would last this long.’
But these were just thoughts in Adel’s subconscious.
She was too young to articulate them properly.
So she asked Ehin a question that skipped several steps.
“How can the Divine Beast’s seal be broken?”
“The fact that the Divine Beast was sealed is highly classified……”
Ehin looked at Adel, surprised.
Because of her cute appearance, she had barely realized she was the ‘Prophesied Child.’
But in this moment, Adel was exhibiting exceptional genius.
‘The Black Market incident wasn’t an accident at all.’
The Crown Prince, able to see through the essence of things, had noticed Adel’s talent early on. Others had not.
Ehin remembered teaching Adel letters as a child.
“……Just how much have you studied?”
“……?”
Ehin immediately understood.
This was the result of unrealistic effort.
He couldn’t even remember how he had lived at eight years old.
Eight was so young.
Yet, how much effort must she have made to know the facts she now spoke of—facts that a child her age could only know through relentless study?
He realized she must be treated as a person, not a child to be sheltered.
“Yes, that hypothesis exists.”
The bodyguards looked as if they wanted to stop Ehin from speaking.
Adel stared at him steadily.
“I’m listening, Teacher.”
“If the Divine Beast awakens from its seal, the ‘Curse of God’ may settle to a controllable level—that is the hypothesis.”
It was real.
Adel’s eyes widened in surprise.
“……What should I do?”
“Unfortunately, the method hasn’t been predicted. His Highness commanded that this not be told to you.”
Ehin added,
“You are already someone who survived the ‘Curse of God.’ His Highness didn’t want you to feel burdened. And yet, you discovered this yourself.”
“…….”
“Incredible. Truly… your own sleep, is it yours, Your Highness?”
Ehin, his voice rising in excitement, sincerely acknowledged Adel.
He admired her across age and years of experience.
Adel felt that sincerity as well.
“Ah… um.”
Adel blushed, embarrassed by Ehin’s astonished expression. She was not immune to praise.
No matter how much Kan called her a genius, she hadn’t truly realized it herself.
The moment she felt it most was yesterday, seeing the looks from her special class friends.
[She really is a genius.]
She had overheard the whispers but was too embarrassed to react.
In fact, Adel hadn’t imagined how formidable the spirits were.
‘No one had told me.’
But according to Teacher Gandajoo, the spirits’ kindness wasn’t guaranteed.
Adel didn’t know she was receiving special treatment or how incredible it was to understand the spirits’ words.
This time was no different.
Adel had simply been reading diligently.
“Did you sleep well?”
“You’ve done remarkably, truly remarkably.”
“……Thank you.”
Receiving praise, Adel smiled gleefully.
“And, Teacher Ehin…”
Adel hesitated briefly.
She carefully held Ehin’s sleeve. This was what she most wanted to say.
“The special class… can’t you just teach me yourself?”
Ehin was startled.
“I heard about yesterday’s unfortunate incident… but now, proper professors will come, far more distinguished than I…”
“I like you, Teacher Ehin.”
“……If His Highness permits, I shall comply.”
Ehin was the student council president, far less scholarly than the professors slated for the special class.
Yet the princess had chosen him.
“It’s an honor, Your Highness.”
Ehin bowed sincerely.
“I’m happy.”
Adel didn’t know how to hide her joy.
Ehin felt proud seeing Adel’s happiness.
As a teacher, witnessing the explosive growth of his first student was an unparalleled joy.
One month later.
The first outdoor class.
“This is the <Temple of Shakal>.”
Adel listened to Ehin’s voice while curiously looking around.
‘This is the place His Majesty mentioned when awarding the medal.’
There was said to be an ancient ruin nearby.
Being an ancient temple, only the foundations remained.
Many pillars, cracked and faded with age, hinted at its former grandeur.
‘A month has passed.’
Time had flown.
Ehin had received the Duke’s permission to teach the special class.
And Adel hadn’t made a single friend in that month.
She had mostly focused on studying.
There had been no assassination threats. Peaceful days had passed.
Being an outdoor class, everyone was together.
Madeleine, Kan, the special class friends, and all five bodyguards.
“<Temple of Shakal> was once used for rain rituals……”
Though the teacher’s voice carried from afar, Adel instinctively walked away from the group to be alone.
Soon, she noticed something glinting on the temple floor. Upon closer inspection:
‘A key…?’
Why was this here?
It was yellow and large, with a sharp end.
Adel reached out to grab the key.
Crrek—!
A strange cry echoed from somewhere. The sound of beasts, not human.
The sound of them.
