PMF 2

chapter 2

The surface world had long ago been given to humans by the gods.
That was why, on land, humans were the apex predators.

Beings that were not human fell into two broad categories:

Either tamed… or hunted.

So if I had been born as a beast, chances were I would belong to the latter.

“Pyaaahhh.”

Whenever I felt frustrated, strange noises kept spilling out of my mouth.

‘Come to think of it… is there even an animal that cries like this?’

As I quietly thought about it, I remembered that when I was a beggar, stray cats used to cry like this.

‘Ah… then was I born as a cat?’

With that complicated thought, someone suddenly came to mind.

Ulrika.

A king who never left behind an heir.

Yet, for some reason, always wanted to hand the throne over to me.

Cough.

And in the end, my friend who passed away meaninglessly due to illness.

“You lit a fire?”

Ulrika—a king who showed laziness toward me, yet was incredibly wise.

“Because you don’t like the dark.”

“You remember things like that well.”

“Isn’t that obvious? It’s about you.”

Ulrika’s final moments were very quiet.
Thinking back, what remained most vividly was her clear eyes under the flickering lamp.

“Are you dying?”

I had long transcended the fear of death, while you remained calm.
That part annoyed me.

“Everyone dies.”

Since you didn’t cry or make a fuss like normal people…

“I know. Do you think I don’t?”

“I thought you might not.”

That day was Ulrika’s last.

By coincidence, I had a bad feeling and secretly entered her room that night.

Thinking about it now, maybe it was an instinct of someone who had lived too long.

“You’re about to die, and you’re smiling?”

What a strange friend.

To be clear, the reason I remember Ulrika’s last day isn’t as sentimental as others might think.

“Maybe the end can be happy. You could die today, or tomorrow.”

To be honest, I was indifferent.

No—everything just felt bothersome.

So even if I had known in advance it was her last day, my feelings wouldn’t have changed.

In my long life, had there ever been a friend as close as Ulrika?

“Hey.”

Everything began with a single sentence she spoke at the very end.

“You know… the answer to that ‘problem’ you’ve searched for your entire life.”

“Ah… that tiresome thing.”

My life had been like grime stuck in a sewer.

‘Ah, I don’t want to live. I really don’t!’

Muttering childish nonsense like “May that damn god get thorns in their backside.”

“I… think I finally understand it now.”

“Yeah, you would—…what?”

Who could have guessed that one sentence from Ulrika would overturn centuries of my boredom?

“Hey, you’re not talking nonsense, right? You’re not senile, are you?”

“Do I look like it?”

“No!”

Ulrika was known as one of the wisest people in the kingdom.
And more than anything, her steady gaze didn’t seem like a lie.

In all my long years, I hadn’t gained much—but I was good at reading people.

“What is it? What is it?”

Am I finally ascending? Am I dying?

‘Oh my god! Heavens!’

After countless reincarnations searching for that answer, how could I not be anxious?

“You know I’m impatient. Hurry and tell me!”

So I pressed my friend.

Even then, that damn Ulrika just smiled quietly.

“Well, you see…”

We were connected across two lifetimes.

Such coincidence was rare even in my long existence, making it special.

To Ulrika, I must have been the same.

So she knew how desperately I had searched… how much it meant to me.

And yet, she still teased me.

‘If you’re joking, I won’t forgive you.’

I swallowed nervously, staring only at her lips.

“The god wants you to li—”

Her lips slowly parted.

“…Hey?”

And then—it ended.

Ulrika fell into eternal sleep mid-sentence.

I froze, trembling as I looked at her.

Her eyelids closed, and she stopped moving entirely.

It felt as if my own heart had stopped too.

“Huh…? Hey? Ulrika? Hey?”

She gave no answer.

‘Is this a lie? Acting again? A joke?’

My mind knew she had finally found rest.

But unable to accept it, I shook her harder.

Her hand dropped limply off the bed.

Proof that it was already too late.

“Hey! Damn it… what the hell! How can you die like this?!”

I grabbed my long hair, my hands trembling.

“Hey! You idiot! Even if you die, at least tell me first! Hey! Hey!”

No matter how much I shook her, the dead do not respond.

“Hey, you bastard… what am I… what am I supposed to do now?!”

With that hollow echo, the moment closest to the answer to the god’s question passed.

In truth, part of the reason I later became king—without running away from Ulrika’s will—was this:

I thought that if I sat where she once sat… maybe I would find the answer.

It turned out to be useless.

It took me a few days to realize I had been reborn as a human, not a dog or cat.

At first, my body wouldn’t move as I wanted—but gradually, it began to respond.

And this life started far better than any before.

I didn’t know which empire or ruler I belonged to, but everyone called me:

“Your Highness, the Princess!”

Normally, if you lived well in one life, you’d be a beggar in the next.

This was strange.

Still, I had tried to live without doing too many bad things before, so I figured I wouldn’t be born as a beast.

In fact, being born as a princess might make finding the answer easier.

But there was something odd lately—

The room I stayed in felt strangely familiar.

Like I had seen it somewhere before.

“Your Highness, did you cough?”

A figure appeared beside me.

After blinking a few times, I saw the face of my nanny, Miranda.

“Abuu… bubaa?”

Hi, Miranda.

Even though incomprehensible sounds came out of my mouth, Miranda smiled brightly and shook a rattle.

“Good morning, Your Highness.”

As if she understood me, she placed a bottle in my mouth.

Since it was routine, I accepted it and enjoyed my meal.

Thankfully, even though I had become a baby, my mind hadn’t regressed.

Well, the soul inside me had lived for hundreds of years.

Still… I couldn’t avoid being influenced by my younger body.

In other words—

“Oh my, Your Highness. Is it tasty?”

Damn it!

‘It’s delicious!’

Even as my mind crumbled in embarrassment at drinking premium goat milk from a bottle…

My body honestly enjoyed it.

‘Your mouth says no, but your body is honest, huh?’

For a moment, it felt like someone whispered that.

For reference, that line was once said by a ridiculously handsome guy in one of my past lives.

His name was unusual, but that’s off-topic.

Anyway—

Perhaps because I had been an emperor in my previous life, I adapted quickly to palace life.

In other words, palace life wasn’t bad at all.

The premium goat milk I was drinking, colorful jewel-studded rattles, and a peaceful life in a sunlit palace—

The welfare here was top-tier.

‘I could just roll around and live like this forever.’

Thanks to that, I grew quickly.

Just lying around, opening and closing my eyes, eating whatever I was given—

And suddenly, I was already one year old.

‘That’s surprising.’

I never knew babies grew this fast.

In my recent lives, I rarely encountered infants.

My life was usually short, or spent alone searching for the god’s answer.

Naturally, I never had a family or raised children.

I had barely even met other people’s kids.

The closest was when I was king—I picked up the Duke of Piccadilly as a child.

‘He was such a vicious little brat back then.’

While I was lost in thought, I heard loud footsteps in the distance.

Lying in a cradle, I couldn’t see what was happening—but it sounded like someone rushing.

‘Why are they in such a hurry?’

Before I could process it, another loud sound echoed.

“His Majesty the Emperor approaches!”

A knight guarding my room shouted.

‘Oh, the emperor?’

Why is the emperor here?

In the past year, the emperor—whether my father or mother—had never shown their face.

Yet everyone treated me with utmost care, so I wasn’t a neglected princess.

Which made his sudden visit strange.

“Is the princess awake?”

A deep, heavy voice followed.

From the voice, the emperor was a man—and judging by his rough breathing, he had rushed here.

‘That voice… I’ve heard it before.’

Soon, his breathing steadied.

“Yes, Your Majesty. She just coughed.”

Miranda answered softly, and silence filled the room.

‘He’s coming to me now.’

Still sucking on the bottle, I decided to greet him with my eyes.

It’s not like he’d have a conversation with a baby.

Step. Step.

Slow footsteps approached my cradle.

Soon, I saw silver hair with a hint of pink.

Standing in the light, his face was shadowed—only his green eyes were visible.

Looking closer, he was in full armor, stained as if he had rushed from battle.

Without explanation, I could guess why he had never shown himself before.

“You look healthy.”

At that moment, the emperor let out a relieved sigh and reached out to pick me up.

I flailed my limbs in protest.

“Abubu! Waaah! Abbu!”

Wash first! Wash before touching me!

“Quite spirited.”

Perhaps my resistance worked—he hesitated, then stepped back.

As he did, the shadow left his face.

His features became clear under the light.

‘Huh…?’