Chapter 15 - Bragging

“You…” the Crown Prince tried to say something, but I quickly bowed, trying to mend the situation in a hurry.

“I apologize, your highness. I hadn’t seen that you were…”

But I couldn’t speak further as the Crown Prince began watching me closely. That look made me feel desperate and made my throat dry up. I swallowed my saliva and continued, “I apologize for bumping into you unknowingly, your highness. Please forgive me.”

Hearing my apology, he then wore a smug expression, then coldly asked me, “Your name?”

I almost frowned at his rudeness, but he was still the crown prince. Besides, I was the one who made a mistake, so I calmly answered his question, “It’s Marina von Harrant, your highness.”

The moment he heard my name, it felt like a light shined upon his purple eyes. They felt almost chilly and appeared to glimmer. But he was standing under the sun, so that was understandable. He then wore a distorted smile on his beautiful face as he responded, “I accept your apology, Marina von Harrant. Are you here for the exam?”

“Yes, your highness.”

“Is that so?”

“If you’ll excuse me now…”

I tried to escape the scene to put an end to this ordeal when I heard him mumbling over my back,“…will pass.”  

That could’ve been a disaster. Who would’ve thought I would bump into the Crown Prince? My bad luck there. At least he forgave me easily. The whole incident made me even more exhausted after the exam. Well, at least I wouldn’t bump into him unless I work at internal affairs, so I had nothing to worry about.

***

When I got out of the gate, my mother greeted me. She suggested that we stay at the uncle’s place until we see the results. But I didn’t want to stay as a guest in that mansion when I wasn’t so sure of myself. 

It took three days for us to return home. Harris immediately scurried over, asking the results of my exam while my maids massaged my body, trying to let me relax. But what I needed was the rest that I didn’t get for the past two months.

“I’m sorry, but can you leave me alone?”

Disappointed, Harris then got off of me, and the maids also left. After I was left alone, I dove into a deep sleep. I think I unknowingly slept for days.

“Hmmm…”  

My body felt heavy, and I couldn’t open my eyes. Oh, I felt so tired. What day is it today? I did wake up a few times in between, but I couldn’t remember when. I ate when I woke up, then slept again, and repeated this. Because of that, my sense of time became dull.

As I barely opened my eyes, I saw a familiar face.

“My lady! Are you awake?! Do you recognize me?” 

“…Daisy.”

I could barely answer, to which Daisy brightened and began to scream, “My lord! My lady! She’s awake!”

Daisy’s shouting made my head ring and hurt. My throat felt extremely dry, and I felt a heavy thirst. With a hoarse voice, I said, “Water… Give me some water.”

She then quickly poured water into a glass and handed it over to me. Because the water had suddenly entered my dried throat, I coughed. Daisy, who saw me coughing, gave me a worried look and asked, “Are you alright, my lady?”

“Yeah,” I replied.

Daisy then seemed relieved and began chattering, “Whew! I was so scared watching you the past few days! My gosh, how can a human not speak and only do what is absolutely necessary to survive?” 

‘I wasn’t doing it consciously, so I’m not sure either.’

“Anyway, you’re awake right on time! Today’s the day the results are coming out!”

Surprised, I asked, “What? The results?”

“Yes! Lord Harrant is reading the results as we speak!”

I felt my senses return as I was shocked by what she said. As I began to guess the outcome of the exam, the door burst opened, and my father asked, “Marina, oh dear baby. Are you alright?”

“My beautiful daughter who’s just like me! Are you okay?” questioned Mother.

It was my parents. The way they quickly came over and caressed me made me guess the results. I was so happy that I began to laugh until I choked, “Ugh, ugh. So… did I get in?”

“Get in? You did more than that! You got first place! First place! Oh, and the Chancellor thinks highly of you. He announced that he’s going to appoint you as the Director-General for Policy Planning, the Chancellor’s cabinet!” said Mother

It felt like I was dreaming, but my aching body was telling me otherwise. Then my mother continued, “You are to report to the palace in three days, so we should get going now. Come on, get ready! At least your skin looks refreshed from your sleep.”

I was then readied by my mother and quickly packed a formal dress and a few other things. Then my parents, my knight Rey, my servant Daisy, and I headed for the city of Constantia again. After three days of passing through various estates and continuous travel, we finally arrived at the capital.

“We can finally enter the capital again! We’ll be back to our glory once you get promoted to the Secretary-General of the Chancellor!” declared Mother.

That was very true. But where will I reside once I get there? As if expecting my questions, my mother began to explain one thing after another, “You’ll live at my brother’s place until you buy your own house. I’m sure you were good with my brother’s kids, remember?”

I almost replied, ‘Oh, you mean servants number one, two, and three?’ out loud, but I managed not to. As expected, I was going to stay at my uncle’s place. I smiled and answered, “They always respect what I have to say. They’re good kids.”

“Is that so? That’s good to hear. You should be proud just like the central government officials from now on.”