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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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Early morning, too soon to be called daybreak.
Although the position of the 2nd Princess, far from wielding real power, was not one that suffered from such tremendous workload that she couldn’t even get enough sleep, Elena’s closed eyes slowly opened.
Her crimson eyes, clearly visible even in the darkness, and her sharp gaze.
Anyone could see that her drowsiness had completely vanished. Elena, who had forcibly closed her eyes again, muttered while holding her forehead.
“Another unpleasant dream…”
A quick glance out the window confirmed that complete darkness still enveloped the outside.
The dream she had repeated dozens of times since that day.
Even today, Elena had not been able to fully shake it off.
As she sat up, the blanket slid off. Elena, wearing a light negligee as sleepwear, gulped down water. However, even the cool water could not completely quench her burning thirst.
“…Rudrick.”
A suppressed voice escaped through her dry, cracked lips.
It was an unpleasant dream.
Although she could dismiss it as a mere nightmare, the dream was too vivid for that. After all, she was merely reliving the events she had actually experienced, like an old, worn-out film repeating the same scene.
When she reached out her hand, it felt like she could touch him, but she couldn’t. In the end, that subtle, unbridgeable gap was driving her insane.
“How pathetic, even after returning to the past,” Elena chuckled, brushing aside the golden hair covering her vision.
Regression.
A miracle that could not be explained by any existing theory or phenomenon. Even though she had become the subject of that miracle, the unpleasant nightmares still tormented her every night.
Although she didn’t show it, she was deeply disappointed. So disappointed that she couldn’t even put it into words.
The fact that there were four others besides her who had also become subjects of that miracle.
“…But there was one difference from the dream,” Elena muttered, wiping her mouth after drinking cold water to soothe her burning throat.
In her dream, no matter how much she reached out, she could never touch him. But now, if she just extended her hand, she could reach him whenever she wanted. This was the most crucial and significant difference from the dream.
Of course, apart from that, the bitterness was inevitable.
“I had prepared a feast, thinking I would have it all to myself, but who would have thought that a lizard would shamelessly beg for scraps like a beggar,” she grumbled, roughly running her fingers through her hair.
It wasn’t that she couldn’t face reality. Even if she grumbled like this, Sylphia, who had infiltrated as Lorenzo Tonali’s disciple and naturally blended into the Imperial Palace, concealing her identity and possessing outstanding qualities as a mage, wouldn’t meekly back down on her own.
However, if she didn’t at least vent her frustration through such slander, she felt like she would burst with annoyance.
If love meant being happy and joyful just by being together, Elena was undoubtedly in love with Rudrick.
But for her, who couldn’t act as she pleased considering the eyes of others, the mere thought of Sylphia, who could stick close to him all day long under the pretext of studying under the same mentor, made her stomach churn.
“…No,” Elena thought, frowning.
Upon further reflection, judging by her brilliant and astute mind, it was a rather critical situation.
Hadn’t she personally created conditions overwhelmingly favorable to her competitor?
Elena made a decision.
She had to roll the dice.
The most daring decision she had made before the regression had returned to her as the sweet reward of the throne.
She had assassinated the emperor who was unfit to rule the nation, let alone being the mother who gave birth to her. She had also emerged victorious in the civil war against her sisters who were ahead of her in the line of succession. And she had overthrown the countless enemies who sought the throne she had usurped.
The current situation, where all five of them had regressed, was the same.
If she had already done it once, would it be difficult to do it a second time?
“At this point, the most threatening one is indeed… that damn lizard,” Elena muttered coldly.
However, she was still unaware of the fact that Arwen was staying in Rudrick’s room in the form of a cat.
In other words, she didn’t know that they were effectively living together.
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A morning that was too early to be called morning.
Thanks to the introduction of the autonomous research system, I was able to sleep in until 9 a.m. and start my day in a good mood.
My mentor was happy to have a disciple who would continue his research for generations to come, and I was happy that I didn’t have to live according to that murderous graduate student schedule.
Wouldn’t this be the realization of a world where everyone is happy and no one gets hurt?
In fact, although the autonomous research system sounded grand, it simply meant that I could learn the magic I wanted to learn, and if I encountered any obstacles or ambiguities, I could go to my mentor and ask. So, in reality, not much had changed from before.
Still, it was meaningful that I could make decisions on my own.
Yes, indeed.
With such thoughts, I opened the door to the research lab with a good mood, ready to start the day with renewed energy. But at that very moment…
“Oh, Rudrick. Come in. I was just thinking about sending someone to get you,” my mentor greeted me as soon as I opened the door, pacing near the entrance.
“…Did something happen while I was asleep?”
The way he spoke, as if he had been waiting for me with anticipation, made an inexplicable sense of unease begin to rise within me. This doesn’t bode well.
“Something did happen. Her Highness the Princess has summoned you,” he said.
“Ugh.”
The image of Princess Elena instantly popped into my mind.
She had the typical appearance one would imagine when thinking of royalty, which was natural since this was a fantasy world. With blonde hair and red eyes, she had the face of a typical Western beauty.
Apart from that, when actually conversing with her, it was difficult to guess what she was thinking.
Recently, her dignity and prestige as a princess had been somewhat tarnished due to various incidents, mainly the one where Grand Duchess Eileen barged into her office after receiving my SOS signal…
Still, she remained a daunting person to have a one-on-one conversation with.
Personally, I didn’t particularly enjoy being summoned like this for a one-on-one meeting, as it made me feel like I had committed a crime.
“I don’t know the reason either. But Her Highness the Princess summoned you early in the morning,” my mentor explained.
“…Then shouldn’t someone have come to wake me up earlier?”
“When I told her you were sleeping, she said to leave you be until you woke up on your own. She mentioned that you’re the type who lacks energy in the morning.”
“…”
Indeed, a regressor.
She even knew my daily routine. What a formidable opponent.
Apart from the bitter taste in my mouth, I couldn’t hide my disgruntled expression.
“Why do you think Her Highness summoned me?” I asked.
“How would I know? But if it were truly urgent, she would have already ordered me to wake you up and send you. It’s probably nothing serious, so don’t worry and go see her.”
“…Hmph.”
Alright, I got it.
With those words, I closed the door I had eagerly opened and turned around.
The 2nd Princess’s office was in the same separate palace.
In fact, if I thought about it rationally, the office of the empire’s princess wasn’t a place I could just visit, knock on the door, and enter whenever I felt bored.
It was only possible because of the special relationship between Princess Elena and me. Even if I were to translate it to the original world, it would be like a young lady from a rural noble family knocking on the door and entering the prince’s office.
When I thought about it that way, it didn’t make sense, but…
With such thoughts in mind, I aimlessly walked along the corridor and found myself in front of Princess Elena’s office.
Compared to the main palace, the separate palace was unnecessarily small.
Standing in front of the door, I took a deep breath. Then, trying my best to maintain my composure, I knocked on the door.
Knock, knock.
A light knock.
“It’s open. Come in,” a voice permitted from beyond the closed door.
I opened the door and timidly entered the office.
And there was one more person who brightened up upon seeing me.
“I heard you’re the type who sleeps a lot in the morning. I thought it was about time for you to come, and sure enough,” she said.
“…Where did you hear that I sleep a lot?”
“Ah… Of course, I heard it from your sister. Lady Serilla told me so.”
“It’s been six years since my elder sister entered the academy…”
“Ahem,” Princess Elena cleared her throat.
As if to indicate that my probing question had little impact, she immediately offered a stereotypical excuse.
Sigh. We all know the truth anyway, so why do they keep hiding it?
If they were straightforward like Arwen, saying, “I regressed, I returned to the past, so you should know,” it would be much more convenient for everyone.
What’s so significant about it that they have to conceal it?
Inwardly sighing, I pretended to believe her.
It was a peculiar situation where there were people deceiving but no one being deceived. Princess Elena, who had drawn attention with a cough, asked as she stood up.
“Shall we have a cup of tea? What kind of tea do you like? We have almost all types of tea leaves available here.”
“…Uh, this might sound really strange to you, but…”
“I pride myself on having a very open mind, so don’t worry,” she assured.
“Well… I’m a noble, but I haven’t really tried many types of tea. So, to be honest, I don’t know much about the varieties.”
“Is that all? I thought it was something more serious,” she replied.
This was another irksome thing. It wasn’t for no reason that tea culture had developed in the so-called gentleman’s country of England, a nation that didn’t even produce tea leaves.
Even in this era, tea and coffee were still considered luxury items, if not necessities. In other words, they were the exclusive domain of nobles who had no worries about making ends meet, not commoners whose immediate concern was survival.
And I was a proud descendant of the Weiss County.
I just drank whatever seemed like black tea or coffee, but how was I supposed to know the specific types of tea leaves used and how they were roasted, like the central nobles did?
Such knowledge was considered a form of refinement among nobles, but it had somehow become an embarrassing matter for me, a noble who lacked that knowledge.
Fortunately, instead of mocking my ignorance of tea varieties, Princess Elena joked as she placed a kettle on the stove and heated it with a fire stone.
“Not knowing doesn’t hinder your life in any way, does it? Then that’s all that matters,” she said.
“…”
Apart from the slight sense of injustice I felt in this situation, I was aware that it was considered embarrassing in this world.
Still, I couldn’t help feeling wronged.
Anyway, I received the teacup personally brewed by the 2nd Princess, which was no small matter, and bowed my head in gratitude. Princess Elena smiled.
“Well then, shall we get to the main point?” she suggested.
“…The main point?”
“You didn’t think I summoned you this early in the morning just to enjoy tea time alone with you, did you? I’m quite busy with official duties.”
Princess Elena’s gaze, with her fingers interlocked, turned towards me. Her red eyes stared at me intently.
…Did I do something wrong?
There were a few things that made me feel uneasy, so I sat still like a guilty criminal, avoiding her gaze. It was a bit burdensome to make direct eye contact.
Although it was a brief silence, it felt like dozens of minutes had passed.
“Let me ask you directly,” she said.
“…Yes.”
“You must have heard about political marriages, right?”
“Political marriages…? I’ve heard of them, but…”
“As long as you know, that’s enough,” she nodded.
Then, Princess Elena dropped a bombshell.
“Have you considered it?”
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