Episode 116
“Kieek!”
—S… Save me!
The monster’s pained screams were deafening. The ground and trees shook as it thrashed, trying to escape the light binding it.
But the bright light, engulfing the monster, swallowed even its screams. It shone even brighter than the light I had seen when I defeated the monster at the Imperial Palace.
As I watched, mesmerized, I felt a burning sensation in my chest.
“Beep!”
‘The artifact is burning hot!’
The artifact around my neck was burning hot, as if placed in fire. And then, as if reaching its limit, it cracked and shattered, falling to the ground.
“Chirp?”
‘Huh? What’s going on?’
As the artifact disappeared, the crescent moon mark on my chest glowed white.
I rolled my eyes, wondering what to do, and then I noticed the monster’s screams fading. And then I witnessed a strange sight.
The light that had been binding the monster began to spread. It quickly engulfed the surrounding area and then dispersed into the air like scattered stardust.
As the gentle light settled on my feathers, Cesar spoke, a puzzled tone in his voice,
“…My depleted mana is replenishing. Lily, did you do this?”
“Beep?”
‘I’m not sure?’
I knew I could use my power to eliminate monsters and heal people’s wounds. But replenishing mana?
And my body felt different than usual. Normally, I would be completely drained after using divine power, but I felt strangely light.
“The rampaging monsters in this area have also quieted down. I can’t even sense their presence anymore.”
Listening to Cesar’s words, I wondered if it was related to the bird that looked just like me, which had appeared before me.
But I couldn’t dwell on that thought. I saw the Second Prince, who had been lying on the ground, trying to get up.
“Beep!”
‘Shouldn’t we do something about him?’
I chirped loudly, trying to get Cesar’s attention. He looked up and followed my gaze.
His eyes narrowed, a murderous glint in them.
“It seems the Crown Prince made a mistake.”
“Beep!”
‘Yes! Something must have happened, so we should at least capture him…!’
“I hope he wasn’t stabbed…”
“Beep?”
‘Did Cesar just express concern for the Crown Prince?’
They loathed each other, but now that they were allies, he seemed to be concerned.
Of course, Cesar’s next words made me realize how ridiculous my thought was.
“Dealing with corpses is troublesome.”
‘Okay, never mind.’
Cesar, placing me on his shoulder, started walking. He casually walked towards the Second Prince, who was trying to get up, and stepped on his ankle.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
“Ugh! C-Clovis…”
“It would be better for both of us if you didn’t bother running; you’ll be caught anyway.”
Cesar’s eyes gleamed menacingly as he pressed down harder on his ankle.
The Second Prince laughed hysterically.
“What made you side with my brother? You wanted Sylvia Veronica. You were rivals; why… why are you humiliating me like this?”
His low mutter turned into a lament.
“If only you had sided with me… this wouldn’t have happened…! Ugh!”
“Shut up.”
Cesar knocked the Second Prince unconscious again and then checked on me. I was clinging tightly to his shoulder, wagging my tail feathers.
Cesar chuckled.
After restraining the Second Prince, Cesar was about to head towards where the Crown Prince was.
But the Crown Prince appeared first, followed by his knights.
Arenz was also among them, his left hand unharmed, unlike in the original story.
“Duke Clovis, the Second Prince went this way… It seems you’ve already taken care of him.”
“Didn’t you say you would handle it yourself?”
“There was an incident. The Second Prince, who was supposed to be unconscious, cut his restraints and sprayed something, and then the ground shook, and a dragon-like monster suddenly appeared.”
‘Similar to the original story.’
Even there, the Second Prince, in his last-ditch effort, had released a sealed monster that rampaged throughout the Empire.
It seemed like the major events were still happening, albeit differently.
“I and my knights were injured and overwhelmed by the monsters, but then, a bright light suddenly engulfed the area, and the monsters disappeared. It felt too divine to be magic…”
The Crown Prince’s gaze suddenly shifted to me.
“Beep?”
‘What, why are you looking at me?’
“It seems like sending her there was the right choice.”
He seemed to think sending me there as bait was a good decision.
I didn’t become bait because of you. The monsters were targeting me, so I did it to help Cesar!
“Chirp!”
“Haha. I can’t understand a word you’re chirping.”
“Beep!”
‘That Crown Prince!’
My head feathers ruffled in anger as he casually dismissed my complaint.
As if sensing my feelings, Cesar spoke up for me,
“What was the right choice? We had to clean up your mess because you couldn’t handle things properly, Your Highness. We almost died.”
His cold voice made the temperature drop. My heart pounded, sensing the tension between them, like a fight about to break out.
But to my surprise, the Crown Prince apologized,
“I apologize if you’re offended. Thanks to you two compensating for my incompetence, I’ll be able to become Emperor, just as someone predicted.”
I avoided his gaze, remembering the time I lied about being able to see the future.
It all worked out in the end, didn’t it?
Rationalizing it that way, I just wanted to return to Cesar’s mansion.
This story would end when the Crown Prince became Emperor.
Once I saw the ending, I wouldn’t have to get involved in any more dangerous situations. All I wanted was to spend the rest of my days happily with Cesar.
But my life wasn’t that simple.
“Excuse me, could you wait a moment?”
We heard a voice calling us. I could easily tell who they were, despite their robes. The white crescent moon marks on their chests shimmered in the light.
My body trembled.
‘If you go now, they will surely discover your true nature, and your freedom will be taken away.’
I knew. I knew, and yet, I had thrown myself into this dangerous fate.
Because I had to save Cesar.
Because I wanted to see a different ending.
“The delegation from the Holy Kingdom. Why are you here? Ah, did you come all this way without running because you needed this?”
The Crown Prince, his expression cold and hard, sneered, pointing at the captured Second Prince.
“I know you made a deal with him using Petri, the heart of the Empire. Did you really think the Empire would forgive you for that?”
“It was a legitimate transaction. The Empress possessed Petri, and the Empire approached us first with the offer. We simply provided resources in exchange for temporarily holding it.”
“That’s why the Second Prince is captured. I, the Crown Prince, never agreed to that deal, and no one should have traded Petri.”
“Taking your anger out on us? That’s quite an unwise remark, coming from the future Emperor. We prefer peaceful resolutions.”
“Peaceful resolutions, you say?”
The smooth, slippery words, like a snake’s forked tongue, reached my ears.
“Yes. Why resort to violence when we can simply discuss what we want and resolve the matter through dialogue? We don’t want that. We’re just here to retrieve what we lost.”
My breath hitched. My heart pounded, perhaps a reaction from the original bird’s body.
“We witnessed a bright light engulfing this area. We knew of the presence of dense divine power occasionally appearing here, but to see it fully bloom in a place with almost no divine power… we’re overjoyed. It seems like she’ll be able to fulfill her role when she returns.”
Pale eyes, like a predator’s, fixed their gaze on me.
“We’ll return Petri. You can interrogate us if you’re suspicious. But please keep your promise to return what belongs to us, which is currently in the Empire.”
“Is there something of the Holy Kingdom’s here?”
“Yes. A sacred artifact. That bird with the crescent moon mark.”
I flinched at their gesture towards me. I trembled and clung to Cesar’s neck, and he shielded me with his hand.
“We’ll be taking that bird back.”
“That bird belongs to Duke Clovis.”
“Ah, it doesn’t belong to the Imperial family. Then this is even simpler.”
My heart pounded at their words, a chilling, invasive energy penetrating even my feathers. My nonexistent feathers stood on end, and my legs trembled.
“Chirp…”
‘No. My place is by Cesar’s side.’
“This is a peaceful proposal, in exchange for Petri, the heart of the Empire. It’s practically unconditional. So, will you give us the bird?”
“I can give you the bird, but…”
“Beep!”
‘Hey! What’s that supposed to mean?!’
Startled by his shocking words, I chirped in protest, and Cesar, smiling, poked my beak and said,
“Unfortunately, I can’t give you my woman.”
Ignoring their outstretched hand, Cesar spoke to the Crown Prince,
“Your Highness. It seems they want a mere bird, but unfortunately, she has no intention of returning to being a bird and wishes to remain as my fiancée. Would you mind conveying that to them?”
The Crown Prince chuckled at Cesar, who was smiling leisurely and teasing them.