Can You Please Keep the Original Setting?

“Celina! I missed you so much!”

A pretty woman with ebony hair and a flowing red dress, like a well-made doll, ran to me and bumped her forehead right against my neck.

I tried hard to swallow the grunt that was coming from my throat and awkwardly hugged the short woman for a moment. Judging from the strong floral scent that poked my nose, the Princess must have even taken a bath with perfume just before coming here.

“How are you feeling these days?”

With a worried face, Ingrit put her hands together and brought them gently to her lips. From her blinking eyes, an aristocratic feeling fluttered like petals during spring.

“I’m fine. Thank you for your concern, Princess.”

Quickly clearing my throat, I grabbed my skirt for a moment and let go. Honestly, I was very worried about coming to this place. I had to be careful not to get caught.

It turned out like this in the end. I couldn’t wake up and ended up coming here.

[I will also help you today.]

The chat window popped up for a moment and disappeared. Yeah, you can do that. Let’s just see Cain’s face and get out of here.

I decided my escape route would be by the bathhouse. I was going to jump into the water. I made the final decision.

“Hey, come on. What do you mean, princess. Feel free to call me Ingrit as usual! Ah! Speaking of which…”

She slowly looked at the people around her, her dark olive-colored eyes glowing with excitement.

“Welcome. Everyone in the imperial palace was waiting for the honorable guests.”

Ingrit was the only princess of the imperial family. The imperial family was overflowing with sons, and their daughter was precious. It was the result of no magic being involved.

Aside from this birth, the princess was good-hearted to the very depths of her bones, smart, and compassionate.

So, the current emperor loved her very much. He even said that it was unfortunate that she was not the first to inherit the throne.

The imperial family did not like wizards who had the potential to pose a threat to power. And the wizards also didn’t like the imperial family for keeping them in check.  However, even if it’s difficult, the world can’t be ostracized just because they don’t like each other.

They were willing to hold hands for each other’s well-being. And one of the puppets they used to maintain this ridiculous pretense was Celina, who could not use magic.

And the next one would be Mikael. A man who would be friendly with many people without being closed off like Elijah. But, of course, he was a strong person who would take that place in the future.

“It’s been a while, Princess. Have you been well?”

Following Elijah’s gentle greeting, the others greeted her in turn.

“Long time no see, Archmage. I’m also glad to meet your rumored disciple.”

Ingrit made eye contact with each and every one of the guests.

“Father will come to the reception room. Let us go. I will personally guide you today.”

The princess lifted her skirt gracefully, greeted me, and took the lead, holding my hand tightly. I was half dragged by her, who was very enthusiastic, and matched her pace.

“Celina, did you get the letter from the High Priest?”

Ingrit stood beside me and began to whisper.

“Yes. I got it.”

“When do you plan to go to the temple?”

“I will adjust to the Princess’ schedule. Please let me know after you speak with His Eminence.”

“Thank you! I’m very reassured. I won’t make a mistake if you are next to me, right?”

This time, she wrapped her arms around me. The Princess, who was raised while being loved, looked like a female protagonist in a manhwa about pure love. She was overly bright and cheerful. It’s not that I didn’t like it, but for some reason, it felt like my energy was being sucked out of me.

“I will try my best so that I don’t trouble the Princess.”

Throughout the splendid halls of the imperial palace, paintings and insignia commemorating the achievements of the imperial family were hung like Christmas tree decorations. The high sun during noon shone over the carpet.

Unlike in Elijah’s castle, the season outside was a perfect spring. It was the real season of this world. The cherry blossom trees that decorated the wide path leading to the imperial palace were like a moving pink sea.

Floating in the air, it was the place where I and the developer worked the most in terms of design, in addition to Elijah’s castle. And in addition to these two places, one more can be counted. The underground city.

It was the right flow to have an incident related to that place today, but I didn’t know what would happen.

“How can I comfortably address the disciple of the Archmage?”

Ingrit crossed her arms at me, turned around, and slowly began to step back. Just from looking at these actions, I could see how freely she had grown up.