LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 28
Chirp chirp!
The early birds chirped cheerfully, announcing the arrival of morning, while sunlight streamed in through the window.
A straight beam of light gradually changed direction and finally landed on the girl’s face.
As the sunlight touched her, the girl’s golden hair began to shine brilliantly, and light seeped through her closed eyelids.
Yuer, proving the saying that beauties are heavy sleepers, frowned and refused to wake up.
Ultimately defeated by the sunlight, she rose up and stretched.
“Uuuh! Nghh…! Haah!”
How long had it been since she experienced a good night’s sleep?
Even when making a shelter, she had to catch what little rest she could, as danger could strike at any moment.
Even when trying to sleep soundly, nightmares of her beloved mother being killed right before her eyes troubled Yuer.
However, last night, she slept deeply without nightmares or any restless slumber.
“Mmm…”
Still a bit dazed, Yuer stared blankly into the air.
Wasn’t this scene just a dream as well? She welcomed the morning with uncertainty.
But as she gently embraced the warm moment, memories of the previous night erupted, and she began to get flustered.
“Uugh!”
Yuer hurriedly scanned her surroundings, but of course, the person she was searching for was nowhere to be found.
That mysterious man who had appeared in her moment of crisis, saved her, and helped her sleep comfortably after giving her sleeping medicine.
Due to some sort of magic used at that moment, she could only remember part of his face, excluding the jawline.
Even if she wrapped her head in fox ears, she just couldn’t recall it.
Just like her specialty, illusions, it was an area completely beyond recognition.
‘Who on earth was he?’
Though he claimed to be a guard of the Academy, it was a laughable lie.
What kind of guard would rescue a princess abandoned by a horde of zombies through a fourth-floor window?
She was certain that none of the guards working there fit that description.
But there was one thing she knew for sure.
‘Even if he’s not a guard, he’s definitely staff of Kia del Academy.’
She wanted to avoid the ruckus that would ensue from the princess’s death at the Academy.
When she heard the reason for his help, it didn’t feel like a lie at all.
To survive in the hellish royal family, one must be observant and know how to discern the truth from lies.
Especially Yuer, the princess, was adept at detecting lies, so she trusted her instincts.
‘I might have crossed paths with him in the hallway at least once.’
Yuer curled up and tightly hugged the tail she had wedged between her upper body and legs.
As they say, sleep is the best medicine, and after a good night’s sleep, Yuer had shaken off any cold symptoms.
Yet, her face was unusually flushed, and her toes were fidgeting incessantly.
Unable to control her emotions, Yuer buried her face in her tail fur.
‘I finally found you!’
After losing her beloved mother, she had always longed for a companion who would look at her, empathize, and be with her.
She thought she had met such a person on what she considered her most unfortunate day—the night before.
Though it might be premature to call him a life partner, Yuer didn’t care in the slightest.
He saved her, abandoned by everyone else, and accepted her even with her beast ears and tail.
Where else could she find someone like that in the Arungarde Empire, where beastkin were scorned?
Though she acted prickly while with him, inside she was basking in happiness.
‘I hope I get to meet him again…’
She was being awkward over the first kindness shown to her by someone other than her mother.
Yuer grabbed her hair, letting out a muffled groan.
She was tormented by the thought of having acted embarrassingly.
“T-thank you! Is this too stiff? I really appreciate you saving me! Aah!”
Yuer quietly murmured the words she wanted to say the next time they met.
Then, overwhelmed by the rush of embarrassment, she buried her face deeper into her tail.
Feelings of fondness fluttered like cherry blossoms.
Carried by the wind, it might reach him, or it could fall to the ground and end in vain.
But one thing was certain; spring had finally arrived in the heart of the princess, which had only known a cold blast.
*
Having magnificently thwarted the assassination plan against both the Crown Prince and the princess.
It would be completely normal for suspicions to arise that the Empire’s guard knights were collectively on strike.
However, this time there was nothing to be done.
The treatment of Kyle Crown Prince and Yuer Princess was worlds apart.
The royal family probably didn’t even know about Yuer being in danger the night before.
They likely wouldn’t want to know, and someone might even be lamenting the failure.
Seeing the royal family treat a princess with beastkin blood like trash made him feel mixed emotions.
Especially the emperor, who was neglecting his own daughter, was utterly incomprehensible.
He was once again reminded of the importance of birth control. If one cannot take responsibility, then prevention is always the right choice.
Of course, I’m prepared to be a good dad, so there’s no need for me to do that.
If I merely take the emperor as a cautionary tale, I’d say I could become a good dad.
“The remaining problem is Kitty Garfield…”
She wasn’t the type to give up just because a contract on an assassination failed once.
She might go after Yuers’s life again using a substitute for Tarus.
This meant that I was necessarily led to protect Yuer Princess, which posed the risk of me being uncovered.
There’s no way the person who saved her multiple times wouldn’t fall head over heels for them.
My neck started to feel tense, but the solution was surprisingly close at hand.
“Kitty Garfield? You mean the one who commissioned me, right?”
“Exactly.”
“Is there a problem with her?”
After a contract of the soul and a potion for gender transformation, Tarus’s demeanor slightly softened.
Since he had been consistently rebellious even after the agreement, it seemed the transformation had quite the shock on him.
Considering the fact that unlike Skarl, he had to obey my orders, I understood.
If he didn’t please me, I could send him to a pleasure house to be corrupted, so he’d better comply.
“We managed to protect the princess, but unless we eliminate the fundamental problem, it won’t end.”
Even if we publicized this incident, the Empire would side with Kitty Garfield.
Moreover, it would look like I was advertising myself as the one who saved Yuer Princess.
It was impossible to deal with Kitty through straightforward means.
“If that’s the case, you don’t need to worry.”
“Do you have a clever plan?”
“After encountering the harmful energy of the client, I became so intrigued by her corpse that I already put the screws to her.”
“You meant to kill the client too? What a complete scoundrel.”
“Well, if the results good, isn’t that what really matters?”
“True enough. So specifically, what did you do?”
“I manipulated her brain with necromancy, compelling her to repeatedly relive a traumatic scene. She’s probably dying slowly from stress.”
“Nice! I like it!”
“Can I take care of her body? I have a feeling I could get high-quality undead.”
“Sure thing! It’s way more satisfying to resurrect her as undead and make her serve me for life rather than just killing her.”
With handing the Kitty Garfield issue over to Tarus, the situation was resolved.
As long as Yuer Princess didn’t come near me, I figured I wouldn’t get tangled up with her.
Even if I used a facial recognition obstruction spell, would she really recognize me?
Shoving aside needless worries, I was about to relax when a deeply unsettling sound reached my ears.
KNOCK KNOCK!
Someone knocked on the front door, and I already knew who it was.
Trying to hold my breath to pretend I was alone, I heard a deep inhale from outside.
“Professor Daniel! Last night…!”
I sprang up and quickly opened the door.
There stood Rynelle, lowering her hand, which had been resting on the corner of her mouth, acting natural.
“Good morning, Professor!”
“Yeah….”
It was not a good morning for me at all, so I let out a heavy sigh.
Rynelle was grinning widely, as if my feelings didn’t matter in the slightest.
Thanks to the promise we made last night, I was destined to be dragged around by her all day today.
“You’re all dolled up!”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“Your clothes. You look so pretty today.”
“Oh wow! I didn’t expect a compliment from you, Professor!”
“Are you trying to make fun of the person who compliments you?”
Wearing an off-shoulder knit top and a short skirt, Rynelle showed up emphasizing her shoulders.
She looked like a college girl enjoying her holidays.
In contrast, I had been lounging around at home until just now, wearing worn-out T-shirts and shorts.
“I’ll get ready, so wait a minute.”
“No, you can come out just like that.”
“I’d get scolded roaming around in this state.”
“You promised to spend today with me, right? Don’t waste even a second and just come out!”
“Grr…! Fine.”
With sandals added to my look, I was a complete mess, like an old man wandering the neighborhood.
Yet, Rynelle didn’t seem to care at all, grabbing my arm and persuading me to go.
Her enthusiasm was starting to get a bit frightening.
“Have you eaten breakfast yet? I know a great restaurant, so let’s go there!”
“Please don’t say it’s a restaurant!”
“How did you know?”
“Are you nuts? You want me to dress up for a fancy restaurant like this?”
“Hehe! Of course, I was just kidding!”
She really had a knack for giving people a shock.
I wanted to scold her, but since it was a promise, I couldn’t do anything about it, making it quite awkward.
“Professor Daniel…?”
But there was a more awkward situation unfolding.
As soon as we arrived in the bustling area, we accidentally ran into Nina.
With a shopping basket in her hand, she spotted us and approached, having been grocery shopping.
“Professor? Why are you with Rynelle on your day off?”
“N-nina! This is, um…”
“It’s a date!”
Rynelle proclaimed proudly, wrapping her arms around mine with a triumphant grin.
As I tried to clarify the misunderstanding, Rynelle’s actions only fueled further misunderstanding.
Her sudden move left my mind blank, like a clean slate.
“D-date…?”
On the other hand, Nina widened her eyes, reacting sharply to the word.
She tilted her head slightly, observing us with a puzzled expression.
Nina’s pupils were quivering, showing no sign of vitality.
I had an overwhelming feeling that something had gone drastically wrong.