A Secret Shared
‘Not trustworthy, she says.’
Of course she would say something so obvious.
No matter how much grueling training he had endured with the knights, it had only been a year.
How could anyone send a mere thirteen-year-old child alone into a place crawling with monsters?
“I……”
I started to answer, then closed my mouth.
Catherine’s nagging about not being too honest with the children echoed in my ears.
‘If I were truly honest here……’
Edwin wore a crestfallen expression.
Being frank would only crush the spirit of the boy who would soon march into battle.
“It seems Your Highness finds me untrustworthy as well.”
In the end, I deflected instead of answering directly.
“Is my presence at your side so inconvenient?”
“What? No, that’s not it……”
“Or perhaps Your Highness believes I am weaker than you?”
He couldn’t possibly think that a bit of sword training from Philip during knight drills had put him above me.
If he was arrogant enough to think that, I intended to give him a thorough lesson.
But Edwin’s answer was nothing like what I expected.
“You idiot, I’m just worried about you!”
The boy’s face flushed as he lifted his head and shouted.
“What if you go there and…… and die?”
“And what about Your Highness?”
“Huh?”
“What if Your Highness dies?”
Had the person actually heading into the subjugation never once considered his own death?
Edwin’s eyes widened, and he could not continue.
“I feel the same way.”
“Eung?”
“I worry about Your Highness too.”
I had asked myself the question before.
Even if Ian did not participate as an attendant, even if this subjugation had nothing to do with the succession, would I still go?
‘Of course I would.’
If the Third Prince went, if Edwin went, then I had to go as well.
That was a nanny’s duty. That was the promise I made to Emma.
“Have I ever told you this before?”
I placed a hand on Edwin’s shoulder.
“I will stay by your side until the day Your Highness no longer needs me.”
Edwin needed me now.
He knew that fact all too well.
“But…… but what if we both end up in danger? What if neither of us can save the other?”
The boy’s voice trembled as though a single touch would send tears spilling down his cheeks.
“If you get hurt or die because of me……”
“Injuries and death are common on the battlefield. Even if such a thing occurs, it will be my failure, not Your Highness’s fault. Please do not worry.”
My attempt to reassure him had little effect.
Edwin stared at me, visibly shaken.
“So you’re saying…… you don’t care if you die? Even though Emilia and I are here, you can just…… say that so easily……”
“Your Highness, please calm down.”
He had clearly misunderstood my words.
I swallowed a sigh and continued.
“I will not die. I will not even be seriously injured.”
“How can you know that? No one can predict the future!”
“No. I am certain.”
Edwin’s mouth twisted at my answer.
The boy who had stubbornly pressed the issue now furrowed his brow deeper and deeper.
“You will get wrinkles.”
When I tapped the spot between his brows with my index finger, Edwin flailed his arms.
“Ugh, stop that! You think this is funny……”
“Are you not curious why I can promise that I will neither die nor be gravely injured?”
“What?”
I had wanted to keep this secret from Edwin if possible.
But there was no helping it now.
“This is a secret between only Your Highness and me.”
I drew out the small dagger I had hidden inside my sleeve.
“Wait, why is that even……”
Edwin’s words died in his throat.
The dagger I had thrown spun once in the air before returning straight into my hand.
“Wh-what? What was that just now?”
The young prince looked dazed, unable to believe his eyes.
He glanced back and forth between the dagger in my hand and my face.
“How did you do that? Was that magic……”
“It was not magic. I am not a mage.”
If I had any talent for magic, I would have become a mage long ago.
Instead of working as an assassin who killed people for money.
“What I just showed Your Highness is a secret known only to the two of us. Do you understand?”
“Y-yeah. I get it, but how did you do that?”
I shrugged at Edwin’s bewildered expression.
“It is a power only I can use. You could call it a secret technique.”
The Silver Thread Death God.
The alias I earned in my days as Kayla came from this very power.
‘The ability to draw out mana like threads and manipulate it freely.’
Moreover, the mana I was born with had the unique property of blending naturally with both people and objects, unlike anyone else’s.
‘I never dreamed I would still be able to use it in this reborn body.’
I had only recently learned that the real Rachel possessed the same mana as I did.
‘I thought that as an ordinary nanny who was neither a knight nor a mage, I would never be able to draw out mana.’
But they say you never know until you try.
Rachel’s body possessed the same talent I had before my death.
At least when it came to mana.
“Are you reassured now, Your Highness?”
Meanwhile, Edwin no longer tried to stop me.
He simply stared at my face and sleeve with wide, astonished eyes.
“Then please tell Sir Philip there is no need to find a separate attendant.”
I slipped the dagger back into my sleeve and smiled.
“Also tell him that this nanny personally selected the one who will attend to Your Highness.”
It was a bright, cheerful day, perfect for welcoming new family members.
The Third Prince’s Palace bustled with activity for the first time in a while.
“Really? It’s true, right?”
Emilia spun around me in the pink dress sent by the King of Adamant.
She looked just like a tiny flower dancing.
“So Lia gets her own personal maids too?”
Today was the day the new maids Somnia had sent would enter the palace.
Emilia had been excited ever since she heard the news days ago.
“There they are, over there!”
The child spotted the back of Catherine’s head in the distance and began walking quickly.
‘She’s still being careful.’
Ever since the day she ran through the garden and collided with Ian, Emilia had stopped dashing off on her own.
I had told her it was not her fault, but my reaction that day must have shocked her deeply.
“Catherine! Catherine!”
“Oh my, Princess Emilia. You are already awake?”
Catherine lifted Emilia into her arms as the girl rushed into her skirts.
“You must be tired. Why not sleep a little longer?”
“Eung, you said the new family members were coming! Lia came to greet them!”
Even though it was the hour she would normally still be dreaming, Emilia was full of energy.
“Oh my, how thoughtful of you.”
Catherine smiled radiantly, as if Emilia’s cuteness was too much to bear.
“Ah, Nanny! Good morning!”
“Good morning.”
“I was wondering when you would come out. The new arrivals said they were introduced by someone you know.”
The five maids sent by Somnia, head of the Golden Goose Merchant Coalition.
I turned my head toward the women standing across from Catherine.
“……Huh?”
“Nanny?”
Catherine gave me a puzzled look at my reaction.
“Is something wrong?”
I could not bring myself to answer.
‘Somnia, has that woman gone mad?’
The five maids standing before me all wore gentle smiles.
Though their faces and attire differed, their transparent, glass-like eyes gave off an eerily identical impression.
‘I asked her to send real maids, and she sends nothing but these things that aren’t even human.’
That was right. The maids Somnia had sent were not human.
They were all magical dolls, identical to Lily, the spy she had placed beside the Second Consort.
“Nanny? Is there a problem?”
“Ah, no. It is nothing.”
The new maids turned to me and curtsied in perfect unison.
Their etiquette was flawless, worthy of the imperial palace.
“We greet Lady Brown.”
“We have heard much about you.”
“Please give us any order you wish.”
They even greeted people well. Just like real humans.
I rubbed my temple and swallowed a sigh.
“Hello! Hello! I’m Emilia!”
Completely unaware of my inner turmoil, the young princess ran toward the new faces with obvious delight.
“All the big sisters are so pretty! You look just like dolls!”
At the child’s blunt remark, the new maids and I alike flinched.
“You know, Rachel said all the big sisters would play with Lia. So from now on, you only play with Lia! Got it?”
Could the young princess’s charm melt even the mana-stone hearts of dolls?
The maids smiled as they watched Emilia dart about at their waists.
“Of course, Princess Emilia.”
“It is an honor to meet you.”
“We have come solely to serve Princess Emilia. It is only natural.”
Emilia’s eyes sparkled at their affectionate replies.
“Really? Then we’re going to play word games together from now on?”