78. The Cruel Princess is Troubled
My morning begins with the sound of the curtains being opened and the morning greetings.
"Good morning, Princess Pryde."
"Good morning, Princess Pryde."
I wake up to the voices of my personal attendants, Lotte and Marie.
"Good morning, Princess Pryde."
After finishing my preparations, the door opens, and my bodyguard, Jack, greets me.
"Good morning, Princess."
"Good morning, Big Sister."
When I step out into the hallway, my dear younger brother, Stayle, and my dear younger sister, Tiara, are there to greet me.
"Good morning, both of you."
First Princess, Pryde Royal Ivy
Fifteen years old.
The first in line for the throne in this kingdom, and now recognized as the next queen.
However...
"Ahhh... what should I do...?"
I was troubled. No matter that I’m the next queen or that I’m fifteen, there are times when I just can't help but worry.
After finishing breakfast, I spent a brief moment resting by the garden tree before my study time began.
"My lady, is something the matter?"
Tiara, at thirteen, came and leaned next to me with a thick book in hand, glancing at me with concern.
"Could it be that you're still pondering over the idea of establishing a unique institution for our country, as you mentioned before?"
Stayle, sitting on the other side of me, glanced at me quietly, trying to gauge my mood.
"...Well... that’s part of it..."
I let out a deep sigh in response to Stayle’s words.
Now that I’m fifteen, the things I have to think about as the first princess have been piling up. One of them, as Stayle has now sensed, is the matter of establishing a unique institution for our country. To be honest, I had been thinking about it for a while, had consulted Stayle and Tiara about it, but never came up with a good idea, and so I just let it slide—it's my own fault for neglecting it.
I had previously drafted and established the law regarding the "Imperial Guard," and since then, I’ve been wondering if there were other good laws I could create for the kingdom. With the knowledge from my past life, I wanted to come up with something unique that could contribute to the nation. What I came up with was the idea of creating a distinctive institution that could be a symbol of our kingdom.
In the past life, many countries had institutions they could be proud of—things like the world's greatest banks, museums, hospitals, and even amusement parks. I thought it would be great if we could create something our country could be proud of on a global scale. But the problem was, I couldn’t decide on what to create.
When I had brought it up casually to some high-ranking officials, they unexpectedly responded enthusiastically with, "That’s a brilliant idea!" and "Let’s do this together!" So now, every time I meet them, they keep asking, "How’s the idea coming along? Surely, as Princess Pryde, you’ll come up with something wonderful..." The pressure has been mounting, and I still haven’t figured it out.
"Could it be that you’re also troubled about the alliance and joint policies with other nations, as Mother discussed?"
Tiara’s words made me bury my head in my hands.
...That’s another thing. Our kingdom, the Kingdom of Freesia, has been progressing with alliances with neighboring countries for the past few years. Originally, with the presence of people with special abilities and our kingdom being a prominent power among the neighboring nations, other countries were often wary of us. However, Mother and Father have been steadily building relationships with each country. Recently, we've managed to form good relationships with several neighboring nations, and now, to show our friendship, we are being asked to work together on joint policies.
As the next queen, Mother has tasked me with coming up with a proposal for this joint policy.
Joint policies... Maybe I should suggest something like the Olympics, as in my past life? But we already have joint military drills every year... maybe we could create a shared library or museum among the countries? But this world doesn't have things like phones, the internet, airplanes, or bullet trains, so coordinating between multiple countries is a huge hassle and takes a lot of time! Even the fastest communication method is through pigeons, and while I could ask the knight division’s advance unit to help, that would only slow down their actual duties...
"And then... there's the naming of the daughter entrusted to you by Gilbert and Maria, right?"
Stayle added with an apologetic look, following up his words.
"Ahhh..."
I groaned like a cow and buried my face in my hands.
Yes, recently, Prime Minister Gilbert and Maria had a baby—a healthy little girl. At the time, everyone, including Tiara, Stayle, and our parents, was filled with joy and congratulated them. But then, privately, Prime Minister Gilbert asked me and Arthur to become the godparents for their daughter.
I mean, it’s an incredible honor, and I’m happy, but... Naming a child is a huge responsibility! What if I accidentally pick a flashy name or, like my own name "Pryde," a name that's arrogant and sets off dark fate flags? The moment we were asked, both Arthur and I went pale. But when Gilbert said, "Please, we would love for you two to name her, as you’re the ones who helped Maria and me," we couldn't refuse.
They said there was no rush, but leaving the child unnamed for too long seemed cruel, so we had to choose a name quickly. Yesterday, I was so stressed out, my mind was overloaded with thoughts, and when I swung a sword wildly at a discarded knight’s armor, it split in two.
Stayle and Arthur were completely shocked. I had become the hysterical princess. I didn’t mean to, but I had been such a cruel queen in the game before, easily slashing through knights and soldiers, so it wasn’t a surprise. If only my sword in the game had been a magical or legendary weapon, I could’ve justified it...
"...I need to talk to Arthur about this..."
I muttered to myself. I couldn’t keep avoiding this. Even if, just for a moment, a magical staff existed, Gilbert and Maria's wish was for me and Arthur to come up with a name for their daughter.
Hearing my mutterings, Stayle and Tiara each patted my head. They kindly said, "We’ll discuss it during the inspection of the town later today." I thanked them and took a deep breath.
For now, I’d start by thinking about the name for the Butler family’s first child...
________________
(Eun: from hereon is Arthur's POV)
"Ha... Haaaa... ah..."
After the knight division’s drills, I let out a long sigh.
"Hey, Arthur, isn't it time for the Imperial Guard? Aren't you going?"
"...Yeah, I'm going."
Captain Karam called out to me, and I sluggishly began preparing to go to Princess Pryde’s side. Lately, my mind has been occupied with too many thoughts, and I haven't been able to get any proper rest.
"What's wrong, Arthur? Don’t you look forward to seeing Princess Pryde? Or have you gotten tired of her after being the Imperial Guard for a year?"
"No, I’m still really nervous and super happy every time I see her."
I answered Captain Alan’s teasing comment without thinking, realizing how exhausted I was. Captain Karam chuckled and said, "You’re honest, and that’s good," but I couldn’t even process it properly.
"If I were just a little bit closer to becoming the knight captain... then I could've volunteered for the Imperial Guard too."
"No, even if you're Captain Alan’s subordinate, I would still fight for it."
I absentmindedly replied, and before I knew it, Captain Alan grabbed my head firmly.
"Wh-why are you so stubborn when it comes to Princess Pryde and swords, even though you usually listen to Captain Karam?!"
Captain Alan grumbled as he tightened his grip on my head. I stammered but didn’t know how to respond. Fortunately, Captain Karam sighed and came to my rescue.
"Alan... stop messing with the junior. In a few years, Arthur will be able to apply to become a knight captain himself."
Hearing this, Alan finally loosened his grip, and I realized I’d let my mouth slip out of exhaustion.
"So, what’s bothering you?" Alan asked, wrapping his arm around my shoulder, trapping me.
"Well... it’s something else..."
"Oh hey, Arthur! Have you decided on the name for the child yet?"
A voice called from behind, and I froze in surprise. At the same time, Captain Karam and Captain Alan stared at me intently.
"What?! Arthur, you had a baby?!"
"Wow!! Congratulations! Is it a boy or a girl?!"
Both of them misunderstood, with Captain Karam and Captain Alan excitedly congratulating me.
"No!! It’s not me! It’s a friend’s child!"
I yelled, trying to explain frantically to the two of them. They initially said, "You don’t have to hide it," but after some explanation, they finally understood.
"It’s a girl... So, you’re deciding the name with your friend, huh?"
"Well, as long as it’s a cute name, that’s fine."
"I agree. When Arthur asked me, I said the feeling matters the most..."
Eric added, and the three knights, Captain Karam, Captain Alan, and Eric surrounded me, making me feel very embarrassed.
"No, but a name is something you’ll have for life. I wanted to think of a good one... I want to consider it carefully with... that person, but I haven’t come up with any good ideas yet."
Prime Minister Gilbert’s daughter. It’s an important task, so I didn’t want to rush it.
"So, how about thinking about what kind of person you want her to become?" Captain Karam suggested.
"How she should grow...?" I echoed.
"Maybe... giving her the name of someone you respect?"
"Ah, that’s what I did! My parents gave me the name of someone who helped them a lot."
At that moment, I remembered something from today.
"Ah?!"
Crap, I’d spent too much time already. I needed to head to Princess Pryde's side!
I quickly said my goodbyes and ran toward the royal residence, with the three knights waving me off.
"Arthur! Say hi to the baby for me!"
"Stop with the weird phrasing!!"
Shouting at Captain Alan, I rushed to the palace.
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