Chapter 27: How to keep a nanny
“…She will resign from her job as our nanny? Do you mean you will leave?
“Yes, what are we going to do? Leah loves Ashel. “I don’t want Ashelle to leave!”
Edwin's face looked surprised, then he turned his head with a stiff face.
“Do whatever you want.”
"What? Why—! Are you glad that Ashelle is leaving?
“If she says she doesn't want to stay, what can we do? Let her go.” He muttered from under the blanket and whispered: “…A woman like this, go or not go, it makes no difference.”
Edwin clenched his hands, thinking of the nanny.
That cold, razor-sharp voice that pointed out his flaws mercilessly.
Just thinking about her now stirred something deep in his chest.
«Oof! You're stupid, brother!
Emilia was disappointed by his coldness, and threw a pillow at him.
“Ash is kind to us! You feed us delicious things, you hug us every day, you protect Leah—!”
The princess began beating Edwin's chest with her small fists.
"I hate you! I hate you! I hate you!"
After stroking him a little, she huffed and pulled herself off the bed.
“You're a fool, brother!”
She shouted firmly, then grabbed the doorknob, pausing to give him one last look.
Since the day they met the Second Prince in the garden, Edwin had been like this.
He only leaves his bed at mealtime, and is always silent.
Even if he sees Emilia, he only gives her a faint smile and is no longer as warm as he used to be.
In fact, his features were in pain whenever he looked at her.
Usually, as soon as his only sister got angry, he would rush after her to please her.
But not today.
Emilia's face drooped, then she pursed her lips tightly and walked out.
“We'll see.” “Leah won’t let Ashelle go.”
Determination sparkled in the princess's little blue eyes.
"…What is this?"
“This is for Ashal!”
"for me?"
I looked at the gold jewelry Emilia had given me.
A gold bracelet delicately studded with opals—clearly intended for a baby girl.
“Yes, it was Leah's, but I'll give it to Ashel.”
“No, I can't take anything of yours.”
"no! Take him!”
When I tried to put the bracelet back, Emilia tapped her foot on the ground and shook her head.
She received it reluctantly, and her face lit up.
Then she suddenly ran to the corner of the room and dragged a box almost as big as her.
Inside were all her toys that she usually treasured.
“I will give all of these to Ashal too!”
“All of these?”
"Yes! "These are Leah's favorites, but I'll give them all to you."
Emilia took the dolls out of the box and stacked them around me.
Within a few moments, I found myself surrounded by precious princess dolls.
“Your Highness, I'm fine. Then these are things that are dear to you.”
"decent! Leah loves Ashel more!”
She climbed up the wall of dolls, crawled onto my lap and wrapped her arms around my neck.
“Ashelle likes Leah too, doesn't she?”
The princess blinked her big eyes slowly.
Even I had to admit—she looks so cute.
With this much magic already in place, the princess's future husband will have a hard time.
“Asheel, why don't you answer?”
“…Yes, I love Her Highness too.”
"So you're going to be with Leah forever, right?"
If I had known it would come here, I wouldn't have let her eavesdrop on my conversation with Katherine.
I sighed.
“Your Highness, no one in this world can stay with anyone forever.”
«No! Leah will stay with Ashel until I become a grandmother!”
This is annoying.
It's not been a month since we met, so why are you so attached to me?
“I didn't do anything to her at all.”
This is why you should not get involved with children.
You show them a little kindness, and they become attached to you.
I gently lifted Emilia off my lap and sat her on the floor.
“Your Highness, when you become a grandmother, I will be a skeleton.”
"skeleton? What is this?"
“…I mean, I will be much older than the grandmothers.”
«Hmm? But Ashel is already older than Leah. decent!"
No, the skeleton is not “okay.”
I couldn't explain further and left it vague, but that didn't help.
“Asheel, I gave you all the things I love, so you'll stay with me forever, right?”
«……»
«Hurry up! Hurry! My promise!”
Emilia scribbled something on my palm with her finger.
"Leia wrote her name down, so that's a promise, right?"
“Princess Emilia.”
"a promise! a promise! "If you don't, Leah will cry all day!"
The princess fell to the ground and waved her arms madly.
“And Adi—!”
“Your Highness, I do not make promises I cannot keep.”
And I picked Emilia up off the ground.
“So I can't give you an answer. sorry."
My refusal must have shocked her greatly.
She stared at me blankly for a moment, then burst into tears.
“Waah—!” "Asheel, I hate you!"
“Your Highness, don’t cry—”
“Waaah—!”
At that moment, the door opened and Catherine entered, eyes wide with astonishment.
“Your Highness? Nanny, what happened?
“Catherine, the matter is that...”
There was no time for excuses.
Emilia ran to Catherine and threw herself into her arms.
“Catherine, Asheel, Asheel—!”
“Yes, Your Highness. Tell me what's wrong.”
Catherine gently wiped away the princess's tears and calmed her down.
“What made our dear princess cry so sadly?”
At the sound of her soft voice, Emilia gasped in tears: “Ashelle said she wouldn’t stay with Leah—!” She said she was leaving—! Even though I gave her all the things I love—!”
"What? “This is not possible.”
Catherine patted the princess on the back, then looked at me.
And in her eyes there was a gnashing question: Why don't you calm her down now?
“The governess will remain at the palace. Isn't it, Nanny?'
Catherine was hoping that I would tell even a white lie to reassure her.
"nanny?"
“…It's true that I'm leaving this place, isn't it?”
“M-Nanny!”
I stood, walking past the circle of dolls that Emilia had arranged like a magic circle.
“I'll say it again—I don't make promises I can't keep.”
I addressed Emilia firmly, still clinging to the hem of Catherine's dress.
“I'm leaving. So...”
“I hate you, Ashel! I hate you all!”
Emilia stormed out of the room, her face red with anger.
“Your Highness—! Nanny, why did you say that to make things worse?!”
“Would it be better to say what is not true?”
“Princess Emilia is only a child! Did you have to be so cruel to a child?
“Precisely because she was a child, I had to be firm.”
"What?"
I collected the dolls scattered on the floor.
“Children believe every promise adults make.”
They don't know it might be a lie—and they believe it with their whole hearts.
“And I have no desire to tell lies that benefit no one.”
I picked up the last rag doll.
Her golden threadlike hair resembled her owner's hair.
I stared at it for a moment, then threw it in the box.
Her collapse inside him seemed particularly miserable.
“Asheel, I hate you.”
Emilia wiped away her tears as she hid behind a pillar.
“Ashyl, stupid, stupid.”
The princess started listing all the harsh words she knew.
“Dog poo, dog poo, dog poo, ant, seaweed—!”
Because of her limited vocabulary, the problem turned into a word chain game.
“Leah doesn't need Asheel either, hmph!”
She breathed out with a high nose and turned her back.
“Leah has a brother!”
The little princess walked with confident steps towards the third prince's suite.
“Brother, Leah is here!”
Without knocking, she pushed open the door and ran to the bed.
As I expected, Edwin was still lying down.
“Brother, Leah is here!”
The bed, made for the prince, was high on the little princess.
She stood on her tiptoes to look at his face.
“Brother, I said Leah is here!”
“Mmm...”
But the color of Edwin's face was not natural.
"my brother?"
She felt something was wrong, so she called him again, but received no answer.
“Huh... huh...”
Prince Edwin was red-faced and out of breath.
“What should we do?”
Catherine anxiously placed a wet cloth on the prince's forehead.
“It looks like a cold, but the fever is very high. "We have to call a doctor."
Hearing this, Emilia turned to me with teary eyes: “Asheel, is my brother going to die?”
“…Humans don’t die that easily. Don't worry."
At my word, Catherine gave me a frightened look, then gently stroked Emilia’s hair: “Don’t worry, Your Highness. "He is sick now, but he will recover soon."
"truly?"
"naturally. Nanny, I'll go call the doctor. Please stay with His Highness in the meantime—”
As soon as Catherine was about to leave—
Until Edwin grabbed the edge of her sleeve.
“No…”
He mumbled in a hoarse voice.
“No doctor...no.”
“Your Highness, but—”
“They won't come anyway... cough, cough!”
Before he could finish, he had a coughing fit and then fainted.
“Your Highness!” Prince Edwin! What do we do?! Please wake up!”
“Ahhh—!” Don't die! Leah was wrong—! Leah doesn't hate you!
The two of them were in such a state of panic that it was difficult to concentrate.
I calmly reassured Emilia first: “Princess Emilia, Prince Edwin is not dead yet. "Don't cry."
As I patted her back, I turned to Catherine: “Do you know why His Highness refused to call the doctor?”