I Became the Narrow-Eyed Character in the Little Prince Game-Chapter 158: The Little Prince (2)

It has already been a week since I stayed in the Imperial Palace.

A story both short and long.

As if to prove the steps taken in the past.

The scent of spring that has arrived erases the remaining winter of the season.

From the window, the scent of fresh grass brushes past.

The completely melted snow, the pure white world, the cloudy sky—all of it blends with the footprints left behind.

Like the scene where paint, moistened by a brush, disperses, the world becomes soft and fuzzy.

We spend our days quietly and calmly.

‘It’s peaceful.’

Leisure.

Perhaps the value of reconsidering a life that had once been full of turmoil.

The air in the palace was calm beyond measure.

‘Of course.’

But it wasn’t just leisure.

There was a reason I had stayed in the palace for a while after the treatment was finished.

It was for Rose.

"It’s strange not to feel pain.""It’s a bit confusing.""It’s hard to really believe I’ve been cured, and I still don’t understand His Majesty... I think I still need time."

Literally.

Elize needed time to adjust.

There had been a gap of ten years.

Now that her body had recovered, and she was no longer confined to a wheelchair, she needed to get used to walking on her own.

This process was essential for a girl about to face a new world and story.

Once she returned to the academy, she would take many more steps.

Perhaps thinking of it as a postponement for tomorrow would make it easier to bear.

‘Moreover.’

I also wanted to give time to the family.

Valcaros, Charlotte, and Elize.

After passing through the tangled threads of the past, they had finally begun to understand each other.

I hoped they would talk to each other, even if only while they stayed in the palace.

Perhaps it was a small act of consideration that was almost intrusive.

‘The atmosphere doesn’t seem bad either.’

Perhaps it was because of how much of a doting father Valcaros was.

He had made an active effort to bridge the gap with his daughters.

Of course, ten years was not a short time, and the road ahead was still long.

However, the fact that hope was slowly budding was what mattered.

No matter what path they walked, it would be incomparable to the past.

I believed that tomorrow would shine a little brighter.

"Yuda."

Anyway.

We lived each day in a flurry.

Even though it wasn’t a long leisure, that is.

“Phew... It’s still exhausting.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

Rose collapsed into the prepared wheelchair.

Her clothes were soaked with sweat.

It was right after the usual physical training session had finished.

In fact, the training itself had only been a walk around the garden, but for Elize, who hadn’t had many chances to move, even this was a significant challenge.

“Your physical condition has improved a lot. You moved for nearly half a day today.”

“My whole body aches...”

“You’re using muscles that had been neglected.”

“It was more comfortable when I could just sit in the wheelchair.”

“You always complain, but when you actually start, you give it your all.”

“I can’t stay a cripple forever.”

“That’s truly admirable.”

The girl always gave her best.

Whenever she stood up from the wheelchair, she kept walking until she was utterly exhausted.

In her eyes, no longer dark, there was only a determined will shining.

It seemed as though she would reach a recovered tomorrow by stepping on the present.

“I didn’t expect you to be so passionate.”

“Well, I promised.”

Pok-.

A finger pokes my cheek.

At the end where our eyes meet, a meaningful smile blooms like waves.

The beautifully curved corners of her eyes felt dangerously captivating.

Rose says:

“I’ll always be by your side.”

“...”

“If I’m going to, I should at least be healthy.”

“Your Majesty, you’re truly wonderful.”

“No need for flattery.”

Elize shrugs as if to say it was unnecessary.

I gently pat the girl’s head.

Her hair, damp with moisture, resembles a flower petal in the morning dew.

Even simply touching her frozen hand brought a warm heat from the exhausted breath.

Still, it wasn’t uncomfortable at all.

Maybe because of her natural scent, a fragrance akin to spring flowers wafted through.

It almost made me wonder if the royal family were a different species, given how they didn’t even smell of sweat.

I shake off the stray thoughts.

“There will be good news soon.”

“I hope so.”

It wasn’t just empty words.

Although it would still be too much to do intense activities, her recovery was steadily progressing.

I was confident that, in the not-too-distant future, she would be able to stand on her own.

When that happens, maybe I won’t be needed as a personal doctor anymore.

On the other hand, I felt a little sad.

We had built up quite a lot of memories together.

“I greet the second star of the Empire.”“I am Yuda Snakeus, now assigned as Your Majesty’s personal physician.”

It had already been five months since then.

It was a moment where I could distinctly feel the passage of the seasons.

We walked in silence, each lost in our thoughts.

Thud, thud-.

The wheels of the chair and footsteps leave the garden.

As I pushed the wheelchair in the brief silence, suddenly, the girl opened her mouth, which had been closed up until then.

The next sound was a soft call.

“Hey... Yuda.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Was it just my imagination?

Rose’s voice sounded rather calm.

“I have something I want to ask.”

“Hm?”

Something to ask.

I show interest in this sudden topic.

It’s rare for Elize to express herself so directly.

Elize hesitates, unable to continue speaking.

‘What is it?’

Rose, with a stiff expression.

She had seemed to be thinking a lot since a while ago, but now I wondered what she wanted to say that made her hesitate so much.

I became curious. I look down into her green eyes, as though asking for a reason.

She slowly averts her gaze.

Then, she drops her lips and begins to speak.

“I’ve been thinking about this a lot.”

“You’re being unusually hesitant.”

“Because it’s that important to me.”

“Well, go ahead.”

“Is it possible... for you to continue being my personal physician?”

“Do you mean the Imperial Palace’s personal physician...?”

“More precisely, my personal physician.”

I was always temporary.

I had temporarily taken on the role of the physician upon Charlotte’s request, so now that the issue was resolved, it would be proper for me to step down.

From the beginning, I had never gone through proper channels, so my position was ambiguous.

I had already been drafting the related paperwork for a few days.

And in the midst of all this, came the proposal—or rather, the request.

“An official appointment, then?”

“The position of personal physician isn’t needed just when someone is ill, right?”

That was true.

The role of a personal physician included more than just examinations, consultations, and care, so it was a broader duty.

Elize seemed to add that as if to make me aware of this.

“His Majesty has already given permission. There’s no one who would object to that decision.”

Of course.

To her, I came first.

“If you don’t want to, I won’t force you. I’ve already received a lot from you. Just being by my side is enough.”

I paused for a moment.

What should I say?

Would it be right to call this straightforward or considerate?

If she were in the position of a princess, it would be acceptable for her to be more coercive.

The girl murmurs, almost inaudibly.

“I don’t want to do something that would make me hated.”

“Even if you had, I doubt anyone would hate you.”

I chuckle softly.

There’s no sharp, pricking atmosphere today, only a delicate flower blooming.

The authoritative princess becomes a pitiful girl in front of the boy.

This side of her is shown only to me, no one else.

Neither Valcaros, Tanya, nor even Charlotte would know.

The fact that Rose, famous for her sharpness, could become so gentle.

Our gazes cross, mixing and intertwining.

“You’re quite cute like this.”

“...Will you answer me?”

Her cheek flushed with heat.

Her pupils, like leaves, reflected only my golden hair.

Everything else was as if it had no interest.

A strange sense of betrayal tickles my heart.

I swallow the smile that escapes, gently caressing her pale cheek.

Then, her affection is fully conveyed into the palm of my hand.

The lukewarm warmth that spreads is chillingly hot.

I finally speak.

“Would there be any reason to refuse?”

“...”

“I never thought about being anyone else’s personal physician.”

“Then...?”

“I’ll gladly accept.”

Her expression relaxes for a moment.

A small sigh of relief.

Then, she regains her usual composure and adds.

This request started from being my personal physician and extends further.

“And one more thing.”

“What is it?”

“The treatment I’ve been receiving... I’d like to continue it.”

“But I thought your Mana Stone Consumption Disease was already cured?”

“I just want to keep receiving it. Is that not possible...?”

“There’s no reason it can’t be done. It’s actually very effective for mana circulation. If you want to continue, it will likely be more in the form of a massage from now on.”

“Alright. Do that for me.”

Elize nods.

For some reason, she seems to be in a strangely good mood.

“Have you ever given this treatment to anyone else?”

“No? Not really, why...?”

“Don’t do it for anyone else. Especially not for other women.”

“That’s not a difficult request, is it?”

“...It’s important to me.”

“I’m someone who keeps my promises.”

“Okay, I’ll trust you.”

I laugh softly.

Suddenly, Rose grabs my sleeve and pulls me closer.

I bend down without resistance and match her height.

Our lips are only an inch apart.

Her delicate arms wrap around my neck.

The girl hugs me, almost like she’s clinging.

In my ear, accompanied by a seductive whisper:

“You’ll always be my personal physician.”

“Such a pleasant thing to hear.”

“I won’t let you leave.”

“I wasn’t planning on leaving anyway.”

“Always remember.”

Her voice stretches out like threads.

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The words are threaded and, in the end, unfold into meaningful sentences.

The corners of her eyes curve.

“You are the most precious person to me.”

Chup...

Elize kisses my nape.

Just like the night before, leaving a reddish mark on the boy.

The texture of her skin, the heat of her tongue, the roughened breath.

When she pulls away, there’s a shining strand of saliva between our lips.

The girl smiles wickedly.

“Got it?”

There’s a clear marking on my nape.

Has she been having fun with this recently?

Since the first night she left a mark, Rose had been renewing it every day.

Thanks to that, the embarrassing marks showed no sign of fading.

I mutter with a troublesome smile.

“This mark... His Majesty scolded me about it two days ago.”

“It won’t be erased. I plan to keep leaving it.”

“I hope you can bear with it.”

“I want to return to the academy soon. I want to show this to that vixen.”

“I’d appreciate it if you could avoid conflicts with Irene.”

“The one being rude first is the beastkin side.”

Voices exchange as we continue.

We walked through the long corridor, talking, and at the end of it, the next appointment awaited.

‘Dinner.’

Valcaros.

Recently, the Emperor, who ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ had been constantly proposing foreign affairs, would be dining with me tonight.

I walked with a smile that was worried about being tormented again.