Chapter 12
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Chapter 12
After pouring out my words with such earnestness for the first time in ages, my mind finally began to clear.
'Wait a moment.'
In that instant, I blinked rapidly and caught my breath.
'Did I just... interrupt the Crown Prince and speak over him?'
Even if preventing war was my top priority, this was unthinkable!
If I had interrupted Oson and spoken this way, there would have been absolute chaos.
But Crown Prince Kiaros stood so infinitely far above Oson...
'Could I face disciplinary action? Are there relevant regulations...?'
As I turned ashen and struggled to breathe, Kiaros's expression grew grave, and he suddenly turned his head toward his Aide.
Then he asked with utmost seriousness.
"Where is that official right now?"
"Ah, I believe... they've taken sick leave due to the shock they experienced..."
Kiaros's eyes gleamed with an eerie light. He seemed to be calculating his next move.
'...Huh? He's not scolding me?'
I lacked the energy to keep my eyes properly open, so I let my eyelids grow heavy, when he turned to face me and spoke.
"Forgive me, but I'll see you again later, Miss Namia Loapi. Your sharp insight has been most helpful."
"Ah, yes?"
"I'll compensate you for this matter as well, when the time comes."
"Ah, yes?"
"You saved my life."
Our eyes met suddenly.
In those crimson eyes that I had only ever found frightening, kindness now rippled across the surface.
'Wait, hold on.'
When he said he would compensate me for this matter as well... when he said my sharp insight had been helpful...
'He's saying he listened to what I said and will take it into consideration? Not only am I not being disciplined—he's offering me a reward.'
In a sense, it should have been obvious, but in the Scroll Management Department, such a thing was unthinkable.
'What, what is this? Now that I think about it, this has never happened since I started working here.'
That newfound realization bewildered even me. Without thinking, I stumbled over my words and murmured.
"I, I only... did what was... natural..."
"It wasn't natural at all. You've given me a new perspective on scrolls as well."
He spoke quietly.
"I wanted to express my gratitude directly and properly... but it seems I'll have to do that next time. It's important that I understand exactly what I'm grateful for."
Ah, so he called me here to express his thanks after all.
It wasn't because he'd fallen for me at first sight and wanted to confess, as I'd imagined.
Quietly abandoning my Cinderella strategy, I answered with proper courtesy.
"Yes, Your Highness. I shall await that time."
That was my way of saying, 'Don't you dare forget about this vaguely—make sure you call me again.'
"Thank you so much for speaking of scrolls in such a way, Your Highness."
As I added this, Kiaros nodded in acknowledgment.
Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he strode purposefully into the office.
With an elegant gesture, he opened a desk drawer, retrieved something, and approached me.
"Your Highness?"
Frozen in the hallway, I blinked without thinking.
Crown Prince Kiaros held out what he'd taken from the drawer.
"When I saw you up close earlier, you looked far too thin."
My eyes widened at the sight of the thick envelope in his hand.
"Take it and use it. I have no time for it anyway."
"I beg your pardon?"
"Your poor nutrition isn't from lack of income, so rather than cash, this should be better for your health."
With trembling hands, I accepted the envelope Crown Prince Kiaros offered.
Inside were meal vouchers from various restaurants throughout the Capital.
It was truly as moving as the IV drip I'd received early this morning.
My sense of loyalty began to surge uncontrollably.
"For now, you're dismissed for the day. Submit the documents as a Crown Prince's Office business trip."
Good heavens.
Dismissed! And without needing to use vacation or sick leave!
I bowed my head and offered a deeply respectful bow—not the perfunctory kind that means "I'm leaving now," but one filled with genuine gratitude.
"Thank you so much."
In any case, since he said he'd call for me again, another opportunity for a private audience would arise.
As I turned to leave with an armful of meal vouchers, something felt oddly weightless.
It was a strange restlessness that arrived belatedly once the situation had ended.
'So... he called me to follow him just to offer his thanks...'
I must have spent too long in an organization where you're punished for standing out, whether you produce 166 scrolls or 1,660. That's why I couldn't deduce something so simple.
'I was certain he'd just hand me a commendation and be done with it. He even said it gave him a new perspective on scrolls.'
My mood was not unpleasant. It was a sense of accomplishment I hadn't felt in a very long time.
Perhaps... for the first time since I started working here?
It felt so unfamiliar that my heart soared all the more.
'That's right. Scrolls are... truly a tremendous power. Truly.'
I even recalled the thrill I'd felt when I first studied scrolls as a child.
It was something like a passion I'd forgotten long, long ago.
'Just as much as saving the Crown Prince... it feels wonderful.'
Only then did I confront the true nature of what I had done. Using scrolls to accomplish something after so long, to demonstrate my abilities—perhaps it wasn't for someone else at all, but for myself.
Achieving something with scrolls and being recognized for it...
'Truly, truly, it's been so long. This feeling.'
I gazed upon that ancient essence buried beneath layers of reality.
The name of that essence, forgotten so long ago, was 'dream.'
"Then I shall take my leave, Your Highness."
With that, I bowed respectfully, closed the office door, and had just turned into the hallway alone when—
"Namia!"
Someone suddenly grabbed my arm.
"What is this? You haven't come home for two days straight. What's going on? Huh?"
Silver hair and green eyes.
"Oson?"
It was Oson. My twin brother on paper, who worked at the Imperial Treasury Department.
From the look of him, he'd been searching for me since morning.
'He couldn't bring himself to enter the Crown Prince's Office, so he waited outside.'
A sigh escaped me, though I couldn't say why. Oson wouldn't have chased after me so desperately out of genuine concern.
"Just... could you handle this for me? It's really urgent—due by tomorrow."
Oson thrust a stack of documents into my hands as he spoke.
'Of course, it's Treasury Department paperwork.'
I often handled Oson's work at home.
Leaking departmental documents like this was certainly improper, but Oson lacked the ability to manage such matters alone.
"And go home quickly. Do you have any idea how much Mother and Father have been looking for you? This is serious."
This isn't the end of it?
My head was already throbbing.
If they were searching for me, something truly grave must have happened. And it seemed they'd turned to me for a solution...
'But... there's so little time left now.'
I swallowed the rage rising from deep within. Only one memory could quell this inferno.
[Our daughter, just wait a little longer. You know Father loves you, right?]
[Yes, Father... I'll wait bravely and do well.]
I knew what choice my father had made for me.
So... I too had to make a choice for him.
I took a deep breath and bolted from the room.
* * *
Crown Prince Kiaros found himself utterly pathetic. In truth, he couldn't even remember what that Ministry of Justice Official had said.
It was something he never would have imagined before. He was startled by his suddenly dulled senses and couldn't even properly assess the situation.
"Ha..."
Crown Prince Kiaros irritably swept his hair back.
Even so, the image of Namia as she spoke those words returned to him.
[Your Highness! Wait just a moment!]
Eyes that had been lifeless throughout suddenly gleamed with brilliance. Remarkably, they were the very eyes he'd seen when she used the scroll.
'Until then, her gaze was clearly unfocused... and she couldn't even speak properly.'
The Aide, who had been watching carefully, spoke hesitantly.
"Your Highness, she is truly exceptional... All the knights heard her explanation, yet none of them conceived of such an approach."
That much was true.
Yet for Namia to be called "exceptional," her previous conduct had been far too lackluster.
'If she were an Academy graduate with genuine talent, the Magic Tower would have already scouted her during her student days.'
Those brilliant blue eyes overlapped with her first impression—like that of a zombie.
Once she finished speaking about the Ministry of Justice Official, she reverted to that exact state: unclear pronunciation, half-lidded eyes, and all.
The disconnect was profound. Whenever Crown Prince Kiaros thought of her, confusion clouded his mind.
That was when a voice called out from beyond his office door.
"Namia!"
It was a young man's voice.
Crown Prince Kiaros naturally turned his attention to the voice emanating from outside his office.
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org