I looked at him in the back with anxiety. Ferdel tried to follow him and looked back at us for a moment.

  “Silvia.”


  “Yes?”


  Ferdel’s face crumpled at the reply of Silvia. He looked as if he was sorry and pitiable.

  “I’m sorry. Please take good care of the princess.”


  Silvia nodded silently. Ferdel smiled. He soon left the palace.

  “What’s going on here all of a sudden……”


  Her voice mixed with sighs. Yeah, what the hell was going on here? By the way, poor Silvia. Today should be their first day as a married couple. I grabbed hold of Silvia’s clothes and rubbed my cheek. She hugged me and touched my back.

  “Don’t worry princess. Everything will settle down in a bit.”


  I was not worried about that, I was worried about her.

  Still, the warmth on my cheek was indeed hot. I rubbed her cheek against mine with a worried face. Silvia made moaning sound. Was she all right, huh?

  “Ah.”


  Huh? Why? When I looked up at her, Silvia took my finger out of my mouth and smiled small.

  “Princess, how about we visit the garden?”


  The garden? Wait, suddenly?

  I was not pleased, but Silvia got excited like a child and wiped my wet hands with my bib. I wanted something in my mouth to keep me from biting my fingers.

  “You love the garden as well, don’t you? Let’s call Serira to join as well.”


  “Gaden!”


  The garden was not the matter. If Serra came, she would bring my toys, too, right? I had been crazy about balls these days. I wish she could bring my rabbit too! Cito! I wanted to play with my chubby Cito! As I laughed and clapped, Silvia laughed.

  “Princess, jamjam.”


  “Jamjam!”


  I liked jamjam. I was good at it.

  Silvia kissed me on the forehead for doing a good job. Silvia came out with me in her outer clothes. After her, the maids of Verita palace followed her as attendants.

  Wow, it was winter. The winter in the imperial palace was not so cold. No, it may be because winter was not over yet, but it wasn’t very cold. At least it was warmer than the winter in Incheon where I lived. I had to wear thick clothes from the moment the fall came. I didn’t want to compare, but I was comparing them because that knowledge I knew was all I had ever had. There was a time when reincarnation in another world was something I could never have dreamed of……

  “Huh?”


  What? Silvia, why?

  A sudden stop. Silvia stared at something.

  Why? I turned my head towards Silvia’s gaze and there was a man standing there. A man standing not so close but not so far.

  He’s like winter. It was a strange idea, but I thought of it at the moment. I could not see his face because it was covered in a black mask, but his hair caught my eye. Silver hair? No, I think it’s a bit bluish.

  “.……we should go.”


  Huh? Weren’t we just leaving? Didn’t she have to say hello, at least? Wasn’t he someone she knew?

  Why was he turned away with such a cold expression? Was he her ex-boyfriend or something? Was that what it was? I was embarrassed, but I was only a baby so no one noticed my embarrassment.

  I turned my head in the arms of Silvia to see that man again while she was walking to the garden. However, the man was gone the moment I looked again.

  I felt like I was dreaming. Was I dreaming?

  However, if there was an impression of him left in me, it was only that he looked ‘cold’.

  The season had already jumped beyond spring and was heading for summer. The scenery of the garden was as beautiful as it always was. It might be because of the winter tree that made the Spirit of Winter asleep. Strangely, the garden maintained the same temperature all the time even though it was an outdoor garden. Whether if it was winter or summer.

  Serira said the tree was warm in the winter because it absorbs cold air, and cool in the summer. Moreover, it was colder in summer near the trees than in winter. Maybe it’s because this tree spouts cold air. In winter, it’s warmer near the trees. The white leaves that didn’t lose all year were exceptionally pretty.

  “Princess, please don’t run!”


  Did she think I would stop!

  Yeah, I would stop because I was a nice, cute little girl.

  “Serira!”


  It’s been 18 months since I was born, which was only one and a half year, but I could do a lot of things in that long and short time period. Now, I could walk on my own, and I could run by myself. I could also stand alone for a long time! Most of all!

  “Serira!”


  Now, I could pronounce everything properly!

  Hahaha! This was glorious! Even if we started talking around the same time, my pronunciation was much better than my peers! Oh, I guessed I was a genius. What should I do to hide my genius? My talent shined like a jewel, even though it was mixed in a great deal of sand. Of course, it was all my bullshit.

  “Come on, ah.”


  These days Serira checked my teeth whenever she had a chance. I opened my mouth again, and Serira, who had been looking at my mouth seriously, smiled brightly.

  “All of your molars should grow out soon. Does it tickle at all?”


  “No!”


  It hurt rather than tickled, but it was okay. I nodded and Serira laughed again.

  Ha, Mom, did she knew she had been laughing a lot lately? I really liked it when Serira laughed. I opened my arms and buried my face in Serira’s leg. Soon, a familiar touch fell over my head.

  “You’re pretty, princess.”


  “Yes. I’m pretty.”


  I nodded my head. Serira laughed again as I nodded my head seriously. What was that? Was she laughing at me? I really was pretty. What was I supposed to do? They’re laughing at me because I said I was pretty. How dare they. Could I still call her my mother!?

  “My princess, you can talk so well now!”


  Elene sat beside me and talked to me. I looked back at her. Last year, when I was a baby she was just a little girl. Now she was a pretty good lady. I felt weird. I meant, should I say I felt the futility of time? Oh, what was I saying? I was just 2 years old now.

  “Yeah, I’m better than you.”


  “…”


  Elene lowered her head without a word. Her dark expression was quite serious. Then she told me seriously.

  “Princess, you are so mean.”


  She shouldn’t be so serious to a 2-year-old! I just wanted to ignore her, but I had seen her since I was a kid, so I couldn’t turn around easily. Oh, seriously. I grabbed Elene’s cloth and stared up at her. Elene, I didn’t know anything.

  “Really? You don’t like me?”


  You didn’t like me? Really? Could she still stop liking me when she saw my face?

  “Oh, my God, princess, you’re too cute!”


  Elene was crushed at once. Ha, this cuteness. With my cuteness, conquering the Earth didn’t seem impossible. It’s possible!

  Oh, but Elene, please, could she just stop hugging me so hard? I felt squeezed! I was going to die!