Chapter 13
A pitch-black room.
The dark room, barely letting in any light, was illuminated only by a faint glow seeping through a gap in the curtains.
Inside this dim, dusty room, there was a large mirror.
The mirror looked exactly like the full-length mirror in Vivian’s room.
Ripples appeared on the mirror, and Ainsel’s face, bearing Vivian’s likeness, gradually started to appear.
– “…It won’t be long now. Soon, ‘Vivian’ will become suspicious of you all.”
Ainsel spoke to ‘someone’ in the dusty room, but the only response was the sound of something shifting in the dark.
– “It’s gotten to the point where I can’t fulfill the contract any longer. Although the secrecy remains intact, there’s nothing I can do besides maintaining the confidentiality.”
Ainsel continued with an irritated tone, but ‘someone’ in the room remained silent.
Ainsel scowled, staring at the faint shadow, and shouted.
– “So now…!”
*
After roughly handling the matter with the Marchioness, I returned to my room to find it was already well past evening.
Dressed in a light nightgown, I sighed deeply and flopped down onto the bed.
“This is exhausting…”
It was such an utterly exhausting day.
Pretending to be Vivian on a normal day was draining enough, but today, having to lose my temper and even slap someone made it too much to handle in one day.
From the start, the matters stirred up by the Marchioness were greater than expected.
It turned out that she managed everything regarding the princess, so fixing things was no small task.
‘So that’s why the princess was alone in the garden…’
Back then, I thought the princess had snuck out of the castle without a maid, but it was because the Marchioness hadn’t assigned one.
What? The First Queen didn’t have a maid when she was young?
Though I lacked trustworthy maids myself, Ellie was the one I could rely on most, so she had to become the princess’s temporary maid.
After hastily sorting through the issues the Marchioness left behind, I finally returned to my room.
Now, the next thing was…
I turned my head slightly and looked at the large full-length mirror, Ainsel’s main form.
Ainsel was peeking out from the corner of the mirror, looking at me.
She looked like a child fearing punishment, aware of her mistake.
“Ainsel.”
– ……
“Don’t you have something to tell me?”
Sitting up on the bed, I crossed my legs and looked at Ainsel.
She hesitantly stepped out from the corner of the mirror and lowered her head with a sullen expression.
“…About the First Queen, don’t you have something to say to me?”
– W-Well, that’s…
“Why did you lie to me? You told me, ‘Vivian performed a ritual to switch bodies because she was jealous of the First Queen, loved by the King.’ But didn’t the First Queen commit suicide? And that was two years ago.”
– I-I didn’t lie to you..!
Ainsel bit her lip, looking at me with teary eyes as if wronged.
But I couldn’t bring myself to believe her.
From the start, it just didn’t add up.
– Even the ‘Sylph’ you met last time said the same thing! That Vivian died attempting a ‘body-switching ritual!’ I really didn’t lie! Fairies aren’t supposed to lie!
“…What?”
At that moment, I recalled what the ‘Sylph’ in the garden had said.
The fairy that perched on my shoulder had said the same thing as Ainsel.
That Vivian died after failing the ‘body-switching ritual.’
– It’s true! There’s a lot I can’t say about the First Queen, but I didn’t lie to you! Vivian really did perform a ritual to switch bodies with the First Queen!
“No, wait, that doesn’t make any sense…”
Listening to Ainsel’s plea, I covered my mouth, deep in thought.
The First Queen who committed suicide two years ago.
Vivian, who performed a ritual to switch bodies with the First Queen a month ago.
And me, now in Vivian’s body after that ritual failed.
‘If Ainsel is telling the truth, why would Vivian have waited two years before trying to switch bodies with the First Queen? It doesn’t add up. After two years, the body would have decomposed—’
What?
Suddenly, a thought flashed in my mind, and I looked up at Ainsel.
Could it be what I was thinking?
Perplexed, I brushed my hand across my mouth and asked Ainsel.
“Is the First Queen… alive?”
-……
Ainsel didn’t respond.
She neither nodded nor spoke but simply kept silent.
I took this silence as confirmation that this was the ‘task’ she couldn’t reveal.
“I heard the First Queen’s body was buried in the royal family’s tomb behind the palace. Is that true, Ainsel?”
-……
“What’s the reason the First Queen committed suicide?”
-……
“Is His Majesty’s seclusion also related to the First Queen?”
-……
Seeing Ainsel unable to respond about anything concerning the First Queen, I felt sure of it.
Had she made some kind of contract?
It was maddeningly frustrating.
Even if the First Queen was alive, this was a tangled issue.
Everyone in the palace knew the story of the First Queen’s death.
The tale that she ended her life by hanging herself.
That’s the problem—the fact that everyone believed the First Queen to be dead.
If the First Queen was indeed alive as Ainsel’s reaction suggested, then she must be hiding her survival entirely.
‘What’s going on? Is the First Queen a witch too? Or is she a soul possessed like me? Is she hiding somewhere in secret?’
No matter how much I thought about it, there was too little information.
With the one who could fill in the gaps remaining tight-lipped… For now, based on Ainsel’s reaction, it seemed right to conclude the First Queen was alive.
I glanced at Ainsel.
Seeing her standing timidly, I suddenly felt a pang of doubt.
‘Can I really trust this mirror?’
“Haa…”
Just as I let out a long sigh of frustration, Ainsel, with tears brimming, let out a small sniffle as if struggling to hold back her sobs.
– Hic, I-I’m sorry… I know it’s frustrating… B-But… there’s nothing I can do… I’m just a weak and useless mirror…
Unable to hold back her sobs any longer, Ainsel’s tears started to trickle down her cheeks.
Once the tears started, they only grew heavier.
Finally, Ainsel collapsed onto the ground, clutching her knees and curling up tightly.
Though I didn’t know why she couldn’t speak, she looked genuinely aggrieved.
Getting down from the bed, I crouched to match Ainsel’s eye level, watching her bury her head in her knees and start to sob even harder.
“…Alright, I’m sorry, so get up now, okay?”
– Huuuuh, huuh, huuuh, huuh.
“Um, how about we talk about something else? Like… the ‘lessons’ for the princess starting tomorrow.”
At the mention of the princess’s lessons, Ainsel perked up, lifting her head slightly.
In a calm voice, I tried to reassure her, like soothing a child.
“You’ll need to help me with those lessons from tomorrow… No, I can’t do it without you!”
– Me..? Me..? How..? I’m just a mirror…
With her self-esteem bottomed out, Ainsel lowered her head again and began rolling around on the floor.
Just what could have happened with the First Queen for her self-esteem to hit rock bottom?
Clearing my throat, I started talking about the lessons for the next day.
“Of course, that’ll be…”
*
The princess, her arms filled with books, waddled toward Her Majesty the Queen’s room.
Ellie quickly took the books from her and asked.
“Princess..? Why are you carrying so many books?”
“Well, that’s… because Her Majesty didn’t… tell me what lesson we’d be having.”
“Oh… Uh, shall I go ask Her Majesty for you?”
The princess shook her head.
She didn’t want to upset Her Majesty the Queen on her first day of lessons.
She feared the Queen might react like the Marchioness if she asked indirectly.
The princess reached her hands toward Ellie, asking for the books, but Ellie insisted on carrying them herself.
Ellie gathered the ten books, which she once used in class, and followed the princess.
“Princess… don’t worry too much. Her Majesty won’t conduct lessons like the Marchioness.”
“Do you think so..?”
Despite Ellie’s words, the princess couldn’t help but shudder.
Playing in the garden had been fun, but now she was nervous about the Queen, who was notorious for her bad reputation.
From the start, the Queen had been someone who disliked her.
Though she hadn’t hit her, she had cursed, clicked her tongue, and looked at her as if seeing something loathsome.
Why would someone like that suddenly take on the role of her ‘teacher’?
The princess had no idea.
All she could do was pray the Queen wouldn’t hit her like the Marchioness had.
With her hands clasped in prayer, she arrived before Her Majesty’s room.
“Princess, shall I open the door for you?”
“Oh, no need..!”
Seeing Ellie’s arms trembling under the weight of ten books, the princess quickly knocked on Her Majesty’s door.
Moments later, the Queen’s voice called from within, inviting her inside.
Opening the door, the princess quickly lowered her head and greeted Her Majesty.
“G-Good morning, Your Ma-!”
Bite.
Nervous, the princess bit her tongue mid-greeting.
The pain brought tears to her eyes.
The embarrassment of messing up her first greeting and the pain that brought tears to her eyes left her too flustered to think straight.
The Queen moved toward her with calm footsteps, and the princess, eyes squeezed shut, stood still, unsure of what to do.
The Queen then knelt on one knee before her.
“Princess, say ‘ah.’”
“Huh?”
“Hurry.”
At her words, the princess opened her mouth wide.
After inspecting the inside of her mouth, the Queen smiled and stood up.
“Luckily, it’s not bleeding. It’ll be fine soon.”
“O-Okay…”
The princess looked up at the Queen in a daze.
She tilted her head, looking at Her Majesty with a puzzled expression.
The Queen didn’t look like a teacher at all.
With a large white hat and a dress fit for active wear, she looked more ready for a picnic than a lesson.
The Queen looked over at Ellie, who was holding the books.
“Ellie? What are those books?”
“Oh, they’re for the princess’s lessons…”
“Let’s see… Administration, Diplomacy, Military Studies, Law, Economics, The Prince..?”
Glancing through the books, the Queen chuckled in disbelief.
She took the books from Ellie’s arms and tossed them onto her bed.
The books bounced on the bed, and a few fell to the floor.
The princess stared blankly as Her Majesty placed a large sun hat on her head.
“We won’t need books for our lessons.”
“Huh..? But… the Marchioness’s lessons always…”
“You’re only six. Why do you need to study The Prince? You can learn all of that later.”
With a hint of amusement, the Queen pressed down on the hat atop the princess’s head.
Unable to see, the princess lifted the brim, revealing the Queen’s radiant smile.
“Get ready; today’s lesson will be at the lake in the garden.”
“A lake..?”
“Yes.”
With a grin, the Queen crouched to meet the princess’s gaze.
The princess, feeling a little shy, clutched the brim of her hat.
“Let’s go for a boat ride.”
