episode_0015

After feeding her for a few days, she also gained weight. Should I say that she evolved from a crumbling skeleton to a sturdy skeleton? She was still skinny, but I could say that she had recovered somewhat. Her sunken cheeks were now quite plump. If she continued like this, it seemed that she would soon be able to start treating the burns on her body.

I gave her a name. I hesitated for a moment whether I should give her her original name or her princess name, but since the princess name was too long, I just gave her her original name. She liked it.

Time passed like that.

The long and arduous burn treatment was over. The medication was all used up. Her burn scars were too deep to do anything. I tried my best to appeal to her about that.

“You should be grateful to me. I saved you from death in the slave market, and I used very expensive regenerative medicine to treat your burns······”

Whenever I recited a long piece of writing, she always smiled strangely and thanked me.

“Thank you, Master. I will never forget you.”

Hug

And then he always hugged me tightly. I’ve hugged him often in the past, but I don’t think it felt like this······. Hmm···. It’s been so long since I remember it that it’s vague.

Anyway, I think the first step of the rehabilitation plan has been well-laid. I have definitely impressed upon myself the gratitude I feel for you. At this point, I will be able to recite my grateful achievements even when I wake up from sleep.

So now all that was left was to teach her what ingratitude meant and to instill in her the basic common sense that one should not harm others.

I was wondering how to convey it. Then a good idea came to me. I thought, how about using a fairy tale?

Teaching lessons to children through fairy tales is a traditional educational method that has been around for thousands of years. Its effectiveness has already been proven by our ancestors. I am one of the living witnesses, so I can say everything.

It was perfect for her, because she also had to learn to read. From that day on, I wrote fairy tales, mostly with lessons I wanted to convey.

“Master··· Don’t you think it’s a bit much for him to pass by and get struck by lightning and die because he didn’t repay you···?”

“Surprisingly, it’s true··· If you don’t repay the favor, it will be like that···”

“······”

I was a bit skeptical about fairy tales, but I quickly mastered the text. I remember being surprised at how quickly I learned it.

Still, I made her read the book, little by little. Maybe it was because I promised to read her books at night if she finished her quota, but she was quite enthusiastic.

“······The girl who stepped on the ant was punished in hell. This is because she did not value life······”

“···What religious scripture is it?”

She didn’t seem to be particularly focused on the content, but she really enjoyed me reading to her. I guess it was because she was her age. She was really into this kind of thing. And reading to her was a new experience for me, too. I never used to have that kind of experience. I didn’t really put in the effort to read to her. I also thought, “Why bother reading to her when she can read herself?”

Suddenly, it occurred to me that maybe I was treating her better now than I did in the past.

Is that why you killed me? No. No. Thinking back, it was a ridiculous thought. Now, it’s just that I learned how to treat her well through past experiences and experience, but I can’t say that I gave her better love than back then. I did the best I could at the time. I did my best for her, and she respected me. Yes. Like a parent and child······

When I recall that time, I suddenly feel depressed.

Lately, I keep thinking about the old days. It’s been decades, so the memories are already hazy. About the time when we were still masters and slaves, or parents and children······

I had forgotten about it, but seeing her with the same face and behavior as before made me recall my memories vividly. It would be rare to have an experience where the past and present from decades ago overlap perfectly. Not many people would go back.

And the end of this thought always ends with worries about the future.

This time I’ll have to abandon her again, but will I be able to do it?

I’ll try my best, but I’m not sure if it’ll work out. Her obsession with me is beyond my understanding.

If I fail this time······

I guess I should let her go······

Letting her go meant her death. To be honest, I don’t want her to die… No matter how much I hate her, I can’t wish for her to die miserably in the slave market, the child I considered my daughter. Even if she was a traitor who killed me ten times.

But if the situation drives me that way, then there’s nothing I can do. It’s not like I can die, right?

I tried too. I seriously thought about living together like this. And then I came to the conclusion again. It’s impossible. It’s true that I’m starting to feel affection for her again while raising her in this episode, but no matter how much I think about it, it seems difficult. She’s young now, so it doesn’t really matter. I don’t have the confidence to live with her when she’s over twenty. That was a kind of trauma that was ingrained in me.

And in the long run, wandering around like me is not a good choice for her. She is a wanted person and cannot stay in one place for long, and such a wandering life is no better than the luxurious and abundant life in the palace. Besides, isn’t she the material to become an emperor?

It’s better for both of us to break up.

All I could do was pray that my education would be successful.

Time passed like that.

******

She has now turned 16. I have been consistently teaching her character education, but I don’t know if it has worked. It seems like she is the same as before, or maybe she has become more polite······

Well, actually, even if it’s not like that now, you just have to accept it. There’s no more time to educate her. She’ll wake up soon. As royalty.

The manifestation of blood that the royal family experiences at the age of 16. In other words, awakening. The old me could tell that she was royal when I saw it.

The awakening process is simple. You get sick for a few days. Then when you wake up, your eyes are red. They say your magic power also gets stronger, but I’m incompetent so I don’t know much about that. I just looked at your eyes and figured it out.

Bright red eyes. And the pupils were long and slit vertically. Anyone who saw them could tell that they were the eyes characteristic of royalty.

I was in shock for a while after seeing that. I was raising that man’s child…

Anyway, this time, when she awakens, I plan to take her to the palace.

I think that part looked a little better. Taking her to the palace after accidentally revealing her blood.

I waited for her awakening like that.

It seems like it appeared around summer, so there isn’t much time left. It will awaken within a month at the most.

···Then, what I felt strange was when I saw the first snow of that year. It was winter.

‘Why doesn’t he wake up?’

I was confused. Even if I went back and changed history a little, could something like this change? In the end, I ended up seeing her when she was 17. Until she turned 17, she had not awakened at all, and only had ordinary black eyes shining.

Hehehe… She’s 17 years old. I’ve never seen her before, but somehow I ended up seeing her like this. It’s amazing. She’s at an age where she should be fighting for power…

It doesn’t matter. When spring comes, I will take her to the palace regardless of whether she is awake or not. In the first place, I have taken her here at a much younger age. There must be some kind of magic tool in the palace that can distinguish between the royal family members.

I waited for spring with those thoughts in mind.

And as soon as spring came, we headed to the Yellow Sea.

“········Master. Why are you going to the imperial capital? You usually avoid our big cities. You might be wanted.”

“That, that’s right! But just… Ahem! What should I say… I wanted to go there once…! I’ve never been to the Imperial City… Ahem…!”

“········.”

I managed to almost reach the imperial capital by coaxing and comforting her, who seemed to be dissatisfied for some reason.

I haven’t told her the truth yet. I just don’t feel like talking. She’s been quiet lately, and she looks really depressed.

But now it was really time to speak. The time had come.

If she didn’t accept it here, I was going to spend some time trying to persuade her, within peaceful lines. I was willing to at least promise to exchange letters.

I was going to give it my all because if I failed this time, it was really over.

That night when I arrived in the zodiac, I told her everything.

Her birth, my secret, and that we can no longer go together.