Chapter 78
Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 78
Chapter Title: Pranks and Presents
“Kyaaah!”
“What is this?!”
The passengers screamed and clung desperately to the fixtures on the boat.
Splash!
But as the boat tilted completely, everyone ended up in the water.
The people nearby were thrown into chaos.
“Your Highness!”
“Are you all right?!”
Ellensia flailed about in the water.
“Help! Somebody save me!”
But her cries for rescue soon stopped. She had realized the water was only up to her waist.
The other young ladies who had fallen in had already waded ashore on their own feet long ago.
The imperial palace lake was designed to deepen gradually from the edges toward the center to prevent drownings. The area near the dock naturally had shallow waters.
Still, the princess falling into the water was a major incident, leaving everyone milling about in panic.
Taking advantage of the confusion, Lexion approached.
Without even turning around, Philomel asked him,
“What happened here?”
“It's a security feature. The boat is set to dump anyone trying to operate it without the designated owner.”
The pleasure boat that had dumped Ellensia and her group floated leisurely back to its original position once all the passengers were gone.
“...You knew this would happen?”
It was a question implying whether he had deliberately not mentioned it.
“You didn't seem eager to ride it, Phil, but that princess was determined to board anyway, so I just had a hunch it might end like this.”
Lexion replied nonchalantly.
“Why didn't you warn them beforehand?”
“There was definitely an instruction manual included with the boat. The ones who didn't bother reading it properly are over there. And besides... it was fun.”
He flashed a sly, fox-like smile.
Ellensia, looking like a drowned rat, was eventually carried back to her palace.
Philomel later heard that she had whined about feeling ill, only for the physician summoned by the emperor to expose it as malingering.
Philomel asked Lexion if the boat's ownership could be transferred, but he said it was impossible.
Growing annoyed, she decided to just keep the boat.
'I'll buy a house with a lake later or something.'
For now, she'd have to leave it docked at the imperial palace lake.
The news of the emperor's gift to Philomel had alarmed one person. Tower Master Rguin.
On top of that, he had only recently learned about the vast fortune the emperor had bestowed upon her.
He had plenty of money himself. But giving her cash felt like it wouldn't set him apart from the emperor.
After pondering for a bit, Rguin rummaged through his pockets.
A short while later, as Philomel sat at her desk reading the newspaper, Rguin approached.
“Phil, take a look at this.”
He held out an old-looking book. Its cover was solid black.
Feeling an inexplicable sense of foreboding, Philomel asked,
“What is it?”
“A forbidden grimoire. Your birthday was recently, right? This is my gift.”
Philomel waved it off.
“No thanks. I'm no mage—what good would it do me? And if it's forbidden, doesn't that mean we're not supposed to read it?”
Rguin thrust the book closer to her face.
“Nonsense. It's incredibly useful. Even a non-mage can easily cast curses with this book alone.”
“...I don't really want to curse anyone.”
But it was a little tempting. At least until she heard what came next.
“The catch is, the one casting the curse pays an equal price.”
“...Then what's the point?”
“That's the nature of curses. People are willing to suffer harm themselves if it means hurting someone else.”
“Yeah, pass.”
Jeremiah, who had been watching, chimed in.
“When I asked to borrow that book for my research, you said you'd lost it.”
Rguin replied casually.
“Did I? Must've been too lazy to dig it out.”
Jeremiah ground his teeth, but Rguin ignored him and pocketed the book.
'How did that even fit in there? Is the pocket enchanted?'
As Philomel stared curiously at his pocket, Rguin pulled out another item.
“Ta-da! How about this? A mandragora.”
Mandragora was a plant Philomel knew of. Its stems and leaves were fairly ordinary, but the root resembled a tiny human figure.
“How about it...? It's creepy.”
It was a rare plant with various effects, but its appearance left something to be desired.
Rguin explained proudly.
“This isn't just any mandragora. It's a rare one that doesn't scream when uprooted—a deranged mandragora, if you will.”
Come to think of it, mandragoras were known to emit a horrific scream when pulled from the ground. So terrible that anyone who heard it would drop dead...
'It is pretty quiet.'
Philomel tilted her head.
“Is not screaming a good thing?”
“Of course. Not many know this, but regular mandragoras make decent sleeping aids at best. But ones like this can be used as ingredients for miracle cures. The scream depletes all the good stuff inside them.”
“...I see.”
“Not to your liking either?”
“I get that it's impressive, but the look is just...”
Rguin went on to offer several more items as gifts. But every single one was somehow off—nothing Philomel could happily accept.
Having emptied his pockets, he scratched his head and said he'd go find something else before vanishing.
Philomel turned to Jeremiah, who was polishing his sword.
“Tower Master Rguin has a bunch of weird stuff, huh.”
“They're all incredibly valuable if you only care about worth. Plenty you couldn't buy for any price.”
Maybe she should've accepted and sold them?
Still, rare items like those would be better off with someone who could actually use them.
Jeremiah said offhandedly,
“He thinks if it's good for him, it'll be good for others too.”
“I see. He was trying to look out for me in his own way.”
A warm feeling stirred in Philomel's heart.
When she first met Rguin, she'd thought he was the worst. But spending time with him revealed his good sides too.
She didn't see him as a father figure, but she did feel a bit of fondness.
Until recently, she'd only gotten close because he could help her. Now, she paid less attention to his moods.
Maybe because he'd spent so long as a cat. Or perhaps it was his childlike personality.
Sometimes, Philomel even wondered if she was being too casual with him.
She resolved to treat Rguin a little better.
'Next gift, even if I don't like it, I'll pretend to be thrilled and accept it!'
But that resolution didn't last long. Rguin returned with an egg bigger than himself, presenting it as a gift.
“It's a dragon egg. Picked one up from a dragon's lair.”
“Oh my god. Did you get permission?”
Philomel gaped in shock, but Rguin answered calmly.
“Nah. You think I'd ask?”
“You can't just steal a dragon egg! Take it back right now!”
“Don't want to raise a dragon?”
“No! And how is a human supposed to raise a dragon anyway?!”
“You like cats.”
Jeremiah clutched his forehead and yelled from the side,
“Are cats and dragons the same?! Return it now!”
And so Rguin went off to return the dragon egg, narrowly averting a furious dragon storming the palace.
Getting closer to him might need some rethinking.
But there were more people wanting to give Philomel gifts. One day, Lady Melinda visited the rear palace with her friends.
Having finally convinced her family, Melinda brought along two other young ladies to see Philomel.
Both had shown fondness for her even back when she was still the princess.
As they sipped tea in the rear palace garden, Melinda spoke first.
“About the gift I prepared for you... Would it be okay to give it to you now?”
The Lady Etwal sitting beside her expressed the same sentiment.
“If it's not rude, I'd like to do the same. It's something I carefully chose thinking of you, Philomel.”
Lady Godfrey agreed.
“Me too! Though, if it makes you uncomfortable, I understand.”
The young ladies were being so cautious because on the day they had planned to give the gifts—Philomel's birthday—she had fled.
The presents prepared for the birthday banquet remained undelivered due to the sudden events.
'They're worried it might remind me of that day.'
They all had kind hearts, considerate of how the memories might hurt her.
The conversation stayed on light, everyday topics. Philomel's heart warmed.
'I thought all the relationships I built as princess were fake...'
These ladies, Lady Deless, Nassar—even Emperor Justis, perhaps.
They all genuinely cared for Philomel.
She never would have known if she hadn't returned to the palace.
At least until she left this place, she wanted to keep those good relationships going.
Philomel smiled brightly and replied to the young ladies,
“Thank you. But if these are gifts prepared for the princess, they're probably all incredibly expensive. Are you sure about giving them to me?”
Melinda exclaimed,
“Of course! We'll bring them next time we visit.”
The others chimed in.
“Me too! Should we invite some other young ladies while we're at it?”
“If more people join, it might turn into a full birthday banquet.”
Birthday banquet. That sparked a great idea for Philomel.
When you thought about it, this would be her first birthday not as the princess, but simply as Philomel.
Sure, the actual date had passed long ago, but so what? The day she chose was her birthday.
Philomel said on impulse,
“Then I'll formally invite you all to my birthday banquet. If you're giving gifts, the least I can do is host you properly. And if anyone else wants to attend, just send me a letter.”
And so, Philomel's belated birthday banquet came to be.