A Fortune-telling Princess - Chapter 122

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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She instinctively raised her hand in alarm, calling out urgently, but then slowly lowered it again.
[I do want to eat, but I’m already dead, you see….]
Food wasn’t something the dead could simply eat whenever they pleased. Since her death, she had never tasted food even once.
“Please, have some.”
[No, as you can see, I’m dead… wait?]
She reached out instinctively toward the cookie Camilla offered, but her words caught in her throat.
The cookie… she could actually hold it!
[This can’t be real!]
The cookie Camilla had been holding turned black and crumbled away, but in its place, an identical cookie materialized in her own hands.
[Heavens….]
She stared at the chocolate cookie in her trembling hands for a long moment, then brought it to her lips with agonizing slowness.
Crunch.
[Eek!]
…Could I have been mistaken? No matter how I look at her, she doesn’t seem like a duchess at all. She’s on the verge of tears over a single bite of cookie.
“Would you like another?”
[Yes!]
Camilla placed two cookies directly into her outstretched hands.
Watching her beam with radiant joy over merely two cookies, as if she possessed the entire world, Camilla smiled gently as well.
It was exceedingly rare for her to initiate conversation with a ghost first.
The fact that she had been Duke Escra’s wife simply made her want to have a conversation with her.
[I’ve always loved cookies very much, you know.]
“I can tell.”
[I can’t remember how long it’s been since I’ve eaten one. I died at thirty-one-]
“Wait… what?”
Hold on, hold on!
“You’re thirty-one?”
[Yes.]
That face is thirty-one? Really? Even if I exaggerated and said she was a high school student, some people would believe it?
[I do look rather young, don’t I?]
“Rather is an understatement. You look very young.”
Laughter spilled from the woman’s lips. She looked even more youthful when she smiled.
Crunch.
As she took another bite of the cookie, a contented smile bloomed across her face without fail.
[It’s strange. This is my first time having a conversation with someone who’s alive.]
Only after finishing all three cookies did she finally turn her attention to Camilla.
[I’m Sharua. What’s your name?]
“Camilla.”
[Camilla… that’s a beautiful name.]
She smiles brightly again.
[You’re his daughter, aren’t you?]
Had she overheard something from Duke Escra, Count Alton, or someone else? She seemed to know something about me.
Camilla offered no response to her question. It appeared Sharua hadn’t truly expected one either.
[Is he… going to be alright?]
At Sharua’s words, Camilla turned her head and clicked her tongue. Dorman was hesitantly backing away, gradually distancing himself from them.
“What are you doing?”
“Oh, it’s nothing.”
I genuinely couldn’t fathom why he was acting this way. A former soul administrator afraid of spirits? The man kept insisting that souls and spirits were different, spouting nonsense. Was he losing his mind?
“Hmm?”
That was when I noticed someone approaching our location with an extraordinarily slow gait.
[Oh!]
Sharua immediately recognized who it was and sprang to her feet. Camilla soon caught sight of the figure’s face as well.
“Daive?”
Camilla’s brow furrowed slightly as she wondered why the child had wandered here alone at this late hour.
“His clothing…”
The approaching child was wearing nothing but pajamas.
Not even an outer garment draped over them…
“Barefoot?”
Realizing something was amiss, Camilla immediately rose and approached the child. What on earth was happening?
[Wait, please!]
But Sharua hastily grabbed her arm.
[Leave him be.]
“What?”
[That child right now…]
Sharua’s eyes glistened with tears as she gazed at the boy.
[He’s asleep.]
What did you say?
[He’s not awake. Speaking to him would be pointless.]
Upon hearing this, Camilla looked at the child again and immediately understood. His expression was vacant, his eyes utterly glazed over.
‘Could it be sleepwalking?’
In the end, Camilla could only watch silently as the child passed before her without a word.
Chapter. Her Kingdom
[Kyuu…]
“Hmm?”
[Kyuu… kyuu…]
“Mm.”
Duke Sorpel finally set down the documents he’d been holding, unable to endure Shinsu King’s incessant whimpering from the moment morning broke.
The creature had been listless ever since Camilla’s departure, but today his whining was particularly severe.
“Shall I let you hear Camilla’s voice?”
He asked, wondering if he should establish a communication connection. Yet King shook his head vigorously. I thought he’d be delighted and bouncing with joy?
[Kyuu…]
“You want to see my face?”
[Kyuu!]
“But you know there’s no way to do that.”
Duke Sorpel gently coaxed Shinsu, reaching out his hand, but King snapped at it in protest, biting down on his palm.
“….”
The bite didn’t hurt since Shinsu hadn’t bared his teeth, but it was still somewhat shocking. This was the first time Shinsu had ever bitten him.
[Kyuuu!]
“…?”
Watching the creature scratch frantically at the floor and bounce in place, Duke Sorpel ventured a guess.
“You’re going to find that child?”
[Kyuu kyuu!]
King nodded his head vigorously in confirmation. Duke Sorpel couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle.
“How will you find the way alone?”
Uuuung—
“…!”
But his smile vanished quickly. Before he could even finish speaking, a small magic circle materialized beneath King’s paws.
[Kyuuu!]
King lifted his front paws and waved them, letting out a cheerful cry. It was as if he were saying goodbye.
Enveloped in light, King vanished from that spot in an instant.
“Hah….”
Having just witnessed Shinsu’s new ability, Duke Sorpel remained speechless for a long while.
Did he really go to find that child? Could he travel that easily?
“…I’m envious.”
A wistful laugh escaped his lips.
* * *
Lick.
Huh?
Lick, lick.
“…!”
Camilla’s eyes snapped open. Having fallen asleep late the previous night, she’d overslept this morning, and the familiar sensation of something licking her face caught her completely off guard.
“King?”
[Kyuu!]
“What?”
It really was King.
With her eyes open, Camilla’s mouth fell slack in bewilderment.
How was he here? Shouldn’t he be in the Empire?
Uuung— Uuuung—!
As if on cue, the communication crystal on her bedside began ringing frantically. Camilla quickly grabbed it.
「Camilla.」
“Father, King is…!”
“So you found your way here, did you?”
“You knew about this?”
Duke Sorpel let out a soft chuckle.
“It kept whining about wanting to go to you, and then suddenly it disappeared.”
“Suddenly?”
“It seems to have grown without our knowledge. It’s using its magical power quite freely now.”
Grown? This creature? It’s still only the size of my palm.
I watched King, who had been licking my hand repeatedly as if venting frustration over our time apart.
Still small and pale, with white fur, it looked far more like a kitten than a tiger.
“Still, I’m relieved that it went to you.”
“I’ll be back soon, Father.”
“Very well.”
After exchanging a few more pleasantries, I ended the call.
“Did you really grow?”
[Chirp!]
At the word “grow,” King stretched its limbs and legs as far as possible to extend its body, and I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Either way, it’s nice to see you like this after so long.”
When I extended my hand, it immediately rubbed its face against my palm. The cheerful chirping sounds it made were unmistakably those of a kitten.
“You mustn’t cause trouble.”
[Chirp!]
* * *
“Oh my!”
“So cute, so cute.”
“How can it be so small?”
As I entered the Dining Hall cradling King, exclamations burst forth from all around.
This creature certainly is adorable.
King, understanding that it was being praised, lifted its head even higher with pride. The people around us squealed even more.
“What is that small thing?”
Of course, not everyone reacted the same way.
Duke Escra, unusually seated in the Dining Hall rather than his Study, frowned as he looked at King nestled in my arms.
“Shinsu?”
He seemed to have sensed the peculiar aura emanating from King, and he clicked his tongue softly.
“Why did Shinsu suddenly appear here?”
“It came to see me.”
“I heard it only follows Kaise. And why is it so small?”
“It hasn’t been born for very long.”
I sat down without offering further explanation. Then I noticed Daive staring intently at me—or rather, at King.
Behind the boy, I could also see Sharua, her eyes still gazing at Daive with tender affection.
[Low growl….]
“Hush.”
Camilla gently stroked King’s head, quieting him as he bared his teeth at Sharua.
At King’s sharp reaction, Daive flinched and quickly turned away, his expression slightly wounded as if he believed the growl had been directed at him.
Yet afterward, the boy continued to steal glances at King.
Whenever his eyes met Camilla’s, however, he swiftly averted his gaze as though nothing had happened.
‘Sleepwalking…’
Last night, Daive had wandered through the Garden for some time before suddenly stopping in his tracks, staring blankly up at the sky.
Then he had turned around and made his way back to his quarters.
[It’s been like this for two years now. Sometimes he wanders through the Garden like that, then returns as if nothing happened.]
‘The weather is pleasant now, but it was terribly cold not long ago. There was so much snow.’
[That’s why he catches colds so easily. Not long ago, he had a severe cold and suffered through it for about a week.]
‘Do the others not know?’
[Sevine… she knows. But Lord Kaise knows nothing. Sevine made sure to keep it quiet.]
Only a few people around Daive were aware of his condition.
Camilla glanced at Duke Escra and shook her head slightly. Informing him about the boy seemed unlikely to concern him in the slightest.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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