Seriously, it’s severe, Shir thought, but held back.
It’s not severe.
This is an incurable disease.
“Uuuuuuh…!!”
After gripping the pillow tightly and starting to dance for 30 minutes.
Shir, genuinely worried, swatted Epherna with his thick front paw.
Smack!
The sound was chilling, as if struck with a heartfelt fist.
For an ordinary person, the shock would have them rolling on the floor in pain, but Epherna’s reconstructed and enhanced body only complained of slight discomfort.
“Ouch! Why did you hit me!”
How could he calm her down with words?
Shir pondered for a moment before deciding to speak up.
[Contractor. Is it that good?]
“Yeah!”
Epherna replied with a wide smile, resembling a joyous infant, causing Shir to let out a wry laugh.
[Looks like she’s regressed to a child….]
How did it come to this?
The culprit was undoubtedly Ern’s kiss, but it couldn’t all be blamed on that; there was a history built up over time.
Epherna had occasionally expressed her feelings, whether consciously or unconsciously.
Given her unrequited love, it was only natural.
However, she had never experienced the opposite perspective.
She had virtually no immunity to love expressed through actions.
And now, wasn’t that kiss she received from Ern an unexpected occurrence?
With no mood or genuine feelings, it was precisely this situation that made the fact of being kissed by the one she liked feel even more stimulating.
[But still, you should calm down a bit. You can’t be satisfied with just that.]
Shir decided to use a method that wasn’t straightforward but might help her regain her composure.
[This situation is truly a ‘happenstance.’ Such an opportunity might never come again.]
It was a way of forcibly bringing her back to her senses, but he deemed it better than watching her make a ruckus on the bed.
[Don’t you want to receive another kiss from him?]
Shir whispered like a devil tempting a human.
And the next morning.
Epherna received the news of Merien’s pregnancy.
*****
The news came when Epherna was least expecting it.
She had never imagined that Merien would leave this place, and when Merien suddenly declared she would return to her hometown, Epherna was momentarily speechless.
Along with Merien’s pregnancy announcement, it felt as though a massive lightning bolt struck her. Before Epherna, Merien calmly apologized for the sudden request for leave.
She felt sorry for bringing the news of her pregnancy so abruptly.
Originally, she had planned to delay her leave until her belly grew large enough to make movement uncomfortable.
She wanted to buy time to hire someone to manage the Princess’s Palace in her absence. But with Meriel visiting the palace, the timing of her leave had to be moved up, and Merien had mentioned it to find a deputy chamberlain as soon as possible.
Epherna, recalling the happiness of receiving a kiss from Ern, hardened her face and secluded herself for several days.
She refused to eat or drink, shutting out everyone who came into her room, even Ern, who was mostly prohibited from entering, with a few minor exceptions.
Days passed, and concerned for Epherna, Merien asked Ern for help.
“Astra.”
“…Yes?”
As night fell, she caught him before he entered his chamber and placed something string-like into his hand.
“Could you deliver this to the Princess?”
Attached to the string was a small paper bag.
Inside were clothes and undergarments suitable for a teenage girl.
“This is the first and last outfit I bought for the Princess.”
“Oh….”
He remembered.
There had been a time when he didn’t even consider Epherna the eldest daughter of the Grandeum family, as she had been clumsy, with her ankle caught in the edge of the bag.
He had left Epherna with Merien while he talked privately with Valtean.
When he returned, Epherna had been holding a paper bag filled with things a fifteen-year-old girl needed.
It was Merien who had provided for the aspects he, as a man, couldn’t.
“Please also tell her this: my leaving is only temporary. I’ll be back soon, and I hope she stays healthy and cheerful.”
He nodded with a faint smile.
Then he turned and walked toward Epherna’s chamber.
*****
The distance between the shamans and the imperial palace wasn’t as far as one might think.
Typically, it took about a week to two weeks by carriage.
Given the years the empire and the shamans had built their connection, the roads leading south were well-maintained, making that time more than sufficient.
However, that long duration was only for ordinary carriages.
Using the magic engineering carriages reserved for the royal family, one could arrive in as little as five days.
These carriages, pulled by well-trained military horses, changed mounts at set points, minimizing travel time.
Epherna allowed Merien to use her carriage to return home.
“Is it okay? We also need to go to the Academy soon.”
“But it’s Merien.”
“…”
Late in the evening. On the terrace of the Princess’s Palace.
Epherna brought a cup filled with scarlet tea to her lips.
At the tip of her gaze, she spotted a small moving dot.
Merien, Valtean, and Meriel had just departed in that carriage.
It had already been a week since Merien had requested her first leave from Epherna.
She had revealed that she was carrying Valtean’s child, and upon hearing this, Epherna had secluded herself for several days.
And this morning, Epherna stepped out of her bedroom, holding a paper bag worn from being rubbed so much.
She looked relatively relieved after a few days.
She knew it well.
She couldn’t stop Merien from leaving the palace.
Soon, within ten months, her child would be born.
There was no justification to stop her if she wanted to spend that time in her hometown. Though it was disappointing… she understood it couldn’t be helped. Wishing for Merien’s happiness meant she couldn’t interfere.
Epherna had been aware of this from the beginning and needed to prepare herself mentally.
This was the first time in her life that someone was leaving her.
For someone who wasn’t even twenty yet, adjusting to and accepting such an experience required time.
“I didn’t expect Meriel to go, too.”
“Meriel will come back when the shamans’ warriors arrive.”
“…?”
“She said she would feel guilty if she just took what she wanted and left.”
To be honest, it didn’t matter to him.
Whether Meriel returned or stayed here was of no concern.
“Since Merien is gone, you’ll be taking care of the duties of the maid for a while, Mister. Please bear with it.”
I nodded quietly.
I roughly knew what the chamberlain’s duties were, having watched over Merien for the past four years.
I just needed to manage the finances of the palace and supervise the other attendants.
There wasn’t much time left before I would return to the academy, so I had to appoint a new maid by then.
Even if she wouldn’t be here during Epherna’s academy year, there still needed to be enough personnel to manage the palace and someone to lead them.
“…”
Epherna stared at the path the carriage had taken for a long time.
Even though she had prepared for a few days, it would still be quite hard to soothe the ache of losing Merien, who had been like a mother to her.
Merien had been the woman who had cared for her lovingly since four years ago.
To reiterate, if I were Epherna’s father, then Merien would be her sister and mother.
No one could deny how significant Merien was to Epherna, even if things were different now.
I tried to comfort the sorrowful Epherna by speaking up.
“She’ll come back. Even if she has to take care of the child and rest, it won’t be more than two years.”
As much as Epherna had grown attached to Merien, Merien had also formed a deep bond.
I was sure of that. Merien would return.
“…That’s a long time.”
“If you actually experience it, it won’t feel long at all.”
When you think about it, two years is just a short span.
That means the seasons will change eight times, and she’ll return a year after she becomes an adult.
For someone who had spent ten years isolated in that mansion, two years shouldn’t feel like much.
“It’s different from that.”
Epherna vehemently shook her head in denial.
“When you know something is coming versus when you don’t, it’s completely different.”
She looked at me with a bitter expression.
“Then, Mister, you can’t go anywhere, okay?”
She asked this, gripping my hand tightly.
“Of course not. Where would I go without you?”
I hooked my hand with her pinky finger.
I hooked our pinkies together, sealing our promise.
After playfully ruffling her hair with a reassuring smile, Epherna glared at me, but the smile on her face seemed to agree that this was the right thing to do.
At that point, I hadn’t yet realized something important.
Promises should never be made lightly.
A promise that might be forgotten by one person could be a crucial vow to someone else.
I had forgotten this fact and couldn’t recalled it at all.
