Your Majesty, My Lady
“Joren Tamer, do you have something you’re hiding from me?”
The grave question caught him completely off guard.
So the queen wants to talk to me alone. And she even made me take off the Ring of Truth. What is that supposed to mean…?
A cold sweat trickled down Ho-yeong’s back.
How am I supposed to know whether my answer is sincere or not now? There are times even I don’t know my own heart for certain.
The Ring of Truth was no priest’s consecrated cross. If he wanted to lie, there was nothing stopping him.
“Speak freely. Whatever you answer, I shall believe your words.”
The queen, who had used I instead of the regal we and you instead of the formal your lordship, looked at him with an unexpectedly plain warmth.
“And if you do not wish to answer, you need not answer at all.”
Ho-yeong considered Daisy’s question again.
She didn’t ask what I’m hiding. She asked only whether I’m hiding something. That means…
After taking a slow breath, he found Daisy patiently waiting for him. With her crown removed, she looked very different from the woman he had seen in the audience chamber.
“It is true that I do have something I am hiding from Your Majesty.”
“I see. That is all right. Go on.”
Buoyed by the queen’s gracious mercy, Ho-yeong decided to speak from the heart.
“I cannot tell you what I am hiding at present. But please believe that both what I hide and the fact that I hide it are all for Your Majesty and for the people of this kingdom. When the time comes, I shall tell you everything.”
“When the time comes, I shall tell you everything… What a very vague thing to say. I am the sort who prefers plain words.”
“The matter is that I cannot quite name a month and day, or a year and hour, as though pointing to a specific date… I beg you to judge with leniency.”
Daisy’s face had stiffened for a moment, but then a faint smile appeared.
Come to think of it, this big sister is incredibly pretty. A graceful beauty type, I guess. Her face and her figure are almost like two different people. Is this what they call gap moe or whatever?
Her looks stood out even more because of the sheer force of her presence and her imposing build. Before he knew it, Ho-yeong was staring at Daisy’s face, dazed.
“I do not know whether that day will come tomorrow or decades from now… but at times, it is not so bad to enjoy the uncertainty of waiting.”
“Thank you for understanding, Your Majesty.”
Background
A woman who looked strong on the outside and was, if anything, even stronger within.
Born a princess of the Kain Kingdom, the superpower of the Western Continent, she was named crown princess at the age of eight and ascended the throne at eighteen after the death of her father, the former king. For the past ten years, she had ruled the kingdom.
She had never wanted to be a king. And yet she had accepted the truth that there was no one else fit to bear the crown, and so she had shouldered the fate of her royal house and governed the kingdom well.
Every now and then, she wondered what sort of life she might have lived had she not become king, but Daisy was hopeless at everything except ruling a country and fighting.
Character information unlocked! You can now view the stats of one of the most important characters, Daisy.
When the queen’s status window, which had not been visible until now, unfolded before him, Ho-yeong was startled.
Warning! If Daisy dies, the game will become extremely difficult to continue, so protect her well.
Protect a sister with SSS-grade strength? I’m the one who wants protecting here.
He could only stare in awe at those overwhelming numbers, no longer merely impressed but genuinely astonished.
Just moments ago, he’d been drawn in by her beauty. Now he was fixated on her abilities and couldn’t look away.
“Is there something on my face?”
“Ah, no, Your Majesty.”
“Then why are you staring so intently? If you mean to start up with that nonsense about how adorable I am, I suggest you stop now.”
Though she sounded as though she were snapping at him, the atmosphere was wholly different from the one at the formal audience — far warmer and more familiar.
“Since you’re here, let us talk a little longer. I won’t keep you long. We are both busy people.”
“Talk… Your Majesty means?”
“Yes. I wished to speak with you about various things. However, I have no intention of discussing state affairs, so let us not. I detest having headaches sprung on me even in my own bedchamber.”
Positive event triggered! Daisy is trying to deepen her intimacy with the Guardian. If you proceed with this conversation event, you can increase Daisy’s Edification level.
“What, do you dislike it? Well, I suppose there’s nothing enjoyable about meeting with a king who has no sense of fun.”
“N-not at all! It is truly a great joy to converse with Your Majesty.”
Ho-yeong hurriedly accepted the event.
“You are lying with a shameless face. Even if I am not a priest, I can tell that much.”
“N-no, Your Majesty. Truly.”
“Then shall I bring out the Ring of Truth and see?”
“Pardon? Earlier, Your Majesty told me to keep the ring in my bosom—”
“Do you mean to defy a royal command? If your words are sincere, then I shall let you take whatever you wish from the royal treasury and keep it. But if they are false, you shall have to offer up your heart.”
“Your Majesty, what is this all of a sudden—”
Shocked by the sudden chill in the atmosphere, Ho-yeong froze.
“I was joking.”
Daisy spoke with an expression that hadn’t changed in the slightest.
“Pardon? Ah, it was a joke. A joke… yes.”
“It was not very funny, was it?”
“No, it was. Truly hilarious. Only, Your Majesty had ordered me not to laugh without permission, so….”
“I grant you permission. You may laugh.”
“Good heavens, my sides! That’s absolutely hilarious. If you’re sincere, you pull out an object; if you’re lying, you pull out a heart? The rhyme is killer! Bwahahahaha! Daisyares Marie Kain, is she an angel of laughter or what!”
Seeing Ho-yeong overacting like that, Daisy actually began to feel as though she wanted to make him take out the Ring of Truth after all.
“You look ridiculous, so stop laughing now. Do not laugh again until I give you permission.”
“Yes… y-yes, Your Majesty.”
Still, the mood had not turned bad.
Hmm… if I handle this well, I think I can raise her Edification.
Ho-yeong’s goal was to turn Daisy into a Leader.
To do that, he needed to push her Edification level up to C+ somehow.
├─ Tier 1:You can designate leaders from all races, not just monsters. However, any being other than a monster must have Edification of C+ or higher to become a leader. ✓
├─ Tier 2:For humans and chosen races only, you can additionally designate leaders by faction. However, these become subordinate leaders and their specs do not match the main leader. ✓
└─ Tier 3:The main leader is treated as a “hero” unit, increasing all stat values and granting levels and skills. As the level rises, the skills become stronger and new skills may also be learned. ★
Since the Kain Kingdom was a superpower, Daisy was practically the king of the Western Continent, if the truth were told. If he could make someone like her his leader, it would surely help him immensely.
She’s already this strong, and she’s just one step away from the +3 enhancement. If Daisy becomes a hero on top of that, how much stronger will she get? What kind of skills would she gain?
As a player, his curiosity was thoroughly piqued.
But her Edification is only C, and the range is 41 to 65. That’s way too wide. If I say something wrong and hit a sore spot in her personality, I could tank it in one shot. Though I guess the opposite is possible too?!
Daisy regards the Guardian as a dependable loyal subject. Since she has no one she could call a friend, it seems she secretly hopes to become a little closer to the Guardian?
The queen said she was a year older than me, so she’s twenty-eight. Hm. If she didn’t have anyone she could call a friend, does that mean I, being her age peer, can become that friend and raise her Edification? But what does it mean that she seems to hope to become a little closer to me…?
Daliha’s guidance was helpful, but the way it ended in a question mark instead of a period felt oddly suspicious.
“Well now. What are you thinking about so intensely?”
At that moment, Ho-yeong had been thinking of a classic historical drama he’d once watched on a streaming service.
Every time the show used the peculiar expression “Your Brother Majesty,” he used to type in the chat, “If he’s your brother, then he’s your brother; if he’s the king, then he’s the king. What the hell is ‘Your Brother Majesty’? Such a meaningless title lol.” But looking at Daisy now, he somehow didn’t think Your Lady Majesty sounded strange at all.
“Ah, nothing at all, Your Majesty. Pfft!”
Maybe the atmosphere had grown too comfortable. Ho-yeong couldn’t help it — laughter burst out of him.
“Oh. I’m sorry, Your Majesty! You told me not to laugh earlier, but I blurted out a most impertinent laugh again. It is certainly not my intention to mock you, but being here somehow puts my heart at ease… though I mustn’t relax too much, so I shall rein myself in at a proper level.”
He rambled on in a fluster.
Ah, damn. Is my Edification going to get slashed to pieces?
But Daisy only snorted a laugh.
“If I give permission, then so be it. Laugh. Not just now, but for as long as you are here.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“I said laugh as much as you like. This is not the audience chamber. This is my bedchamber, the one place where I can truly be at ease. And besides, it is only you and I here, so relax your manners as well.”
Rather than falling, his Edification rose a little.
“If it pleases you, then try making me laugh for once.”
“Pardon?”
“It has been a long time since I laughed freely. I am not someone who dislikes laughter. There is simply not much to laugh about.”
For Daisy, even this trivial sort of conversation was something she had not enjoyed in a very long time.
“Why are you silent? I thought you might have some amusing tale to tell.”
“Then, Your Majesty, I shall pose a question. Please answer it.”
“Let me hear it.”
Ho-yeong was the sort of person people often called cheerful or entertaining wherever he went. His tongue was naturally sharp and lively.
“What sound is made when a subject laughs at the king?”
“Hmm… I do not know.”
But when he tried consciously to make others laugh, his sense of humor became catastrophically awful.
“The answer is ‘Your Majesty-hahaha.’ Your Majesty-hahahahaha!”
“…?”
“What about when the king laughs at a subject? Subject-hahahahaha!”
Daisy’s Edification has decreased slightly.
“That will do. For a fellow with so many tricks, you have no talent for jokes. Though I suppose we are much the same.”
Ho-yeong lowered his head dejectedly.
Was that not funny at all?
---