The Gloomy and Timid Princess Heads to the Academy

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“…So, let’s say you’re completely right. Back then, we made a move in that pesky kids’ neighborhood, and the Princess took her medicine properly. And after all that, the Princess confirmed the medicine worked just fine before, so she let her guard down and forgot to get checked… and somehow, against all odds, she got pregnant?”

After kneeling alongside Dokan before Brother Black Wolf and finishing my answer to his question, it seemed he had a rough idea of what had happened.

“Yes. The Captain of the Guard’s guess is correct. I’m truly sorry…”

“…Hah, what do you have to apologize for? It happens with couples sometimes. Getting pregnant is a whole different story, though… Never mind. It’s Ho-yeon’s fault for getting all caught up with someone like you…”

I wanted to tell him not to speak so carelessly about Dokan, but the atmosphere wasn’t right for that, so I just glared at him, protesting with my eyes.

“Even if you look at me like that, Princess, you should’ve been more careful with yourself. This puts us in a difficult position, you know? Hah, what should I even report to the Emperor?”

“…I didn’t make this happen on purpose, you know? Just last time, you said it was natural for people to roll around when they fall in love…”

It’s not that I dislike the idea of having a child… but I’d never thought about it, so it’s hard to say how I feel about it clearly.

Besides, is falling in love a crime? Feeling wronged, I reflected on something Brother had once said.

Was it when I was 18? Brother had come back from rolling around with some random girl off the street, and when I asked where he’d been, he said something like this.

“That sort of thing only applies to people like me who can have children without a problem. It’s different for you, Princess. And you know how Father is. You should have at least waited until you had a proper wedding.”

“Uh… But…”

Mentioning Father made my head drop automatically. Without a place for my swishing tail, I tucked it between my legs.

“So… you’re not thinking about getting an abortion?”

“Absolutely not!!!”

Earlier, I had thought about it out of panic, but now I had no intention of doing that. Even if I got scolded by Father, I wouldn’t go that far.

“Then disguising this will be difficult. Do you have a good idea? I mean, your words can be so convincing that even the gods acknowledged you.”

Indeed, if it’s Dokan, the gods probably would’ve called him a great storyteller. However, even that excellent Dokan was only silent this time like a mute who had eaten honey.

“…I do have an idea, but it seems a bit too shameless.”

After a long silence, Dokan finally spoke, but it seemed like he’d decided it was too ridiculous to say aloud. What on earth could it be?

“No, go ahead and say it. The one thing I can guarantee is that if you keep quiet, a knife will surely come flying towards you. That’s the kind of man I know.”

Seeing Dokan speaking as if he was slightly horrified, Brother watched him intently, clearly interested.

“…Do you want your grandchild to be born a bastard?”

And what came out of his mouth was so shocking that even I momentarily froze. But Dokan didn’t stop there and continued.

“Do you want your daughter to become a widow? Besides, your daughter will hate you for the rest of her life. Are you ready for that? If so, then go ahead. But do it in front of your daughter.”

For a while, silence filled the carriage. I didn’t even know how to respond. It didn’t seem like something a man who had just seduced a girl studying abroad would say.

And then to kill her? That was something I couldn’t even imagine. In front of me? Father?

Dokan was starting to look a bit scary. Brother Black Wolf remained expressionless, staring intently at Dokan.

“No matter how I think about it, this seems a bit over the line…?”

And suddenly, Brother Black Wolf burst into loud laughter, nearly tearing his ears off.

“…Hah, ha! I thought you’d whine like a weakling, but at least you’ve got guts, huh!”

For some reason, it seemed like Dokan’s frightening words struck a chord with Brother Black Wolf. He even started to grin, looking forward to seeing that fool’s blank expression.

What’s so funny about that…? I couldn’t understand why he laughed so hard at something that was clearly serious.

“Haha… right. With that kind of guts, Jeongho won’t kill you. As long as you don’t go too far, you should be safe from immediate death. Instead of overthinking, hitting hard like this isn’t so bad.”

After that, they continued their disturbing conversation, trying to formulate a response. Meanwhile, I noticed the guards outside perked up, listening in closely to our dialogue inside the carriage.

Seeing that, I unconsciously placed a hand on my belly. I felt nothing. But inside, my child with Dokan was definitely there.

…So, what should I name it? Ho-yeon? Dokan? With just those two names, I couldn’t think of anything pretty.

Or rather, it’s too soon to even know if it’s a daughter or a son, right? Realizing that made me feel like an idiot. I hadn’t even persuaded my parents yet.

“Yeah, that sounds good. A bit contrived, but… in the end, how shocking it is matters. You’ve got a sharp mind there.”

While I was being foolish alone, Brother and Dokan seemed to have finished their discussion. Then Brother turned to me, asking something I had forgotten.

“…So, Princess. Can we move the carriage again now?”

Ah, right. We originally stopped to get checked. It had been over two hours since we started talking, so we really should get going.

We couldn’t just stay stopped indefinitely; besides, we were already losing. I absentmindedly agreed, and Brother Black Wolf stretched and looked outside.

“I see I misjudged. Princess, it seems you’ve truly chosen well. I thought he was cowardly and gentle, but after talking, he’s got some sharp teeth, alright.”

Saying that to me, he actually went outside. As I was lost in thought about my baby’s name and not paying attention to their conversation, from Brother’s words, it seemed they had shared something quite chilling.

…I was curious, yet on another level, I didn’t want to know.

– – – –

“…Dokan, uh. There’s something I need to ask you…”

After some time of only the sound of rattling could be heard, Ho-yeon broke the silence by speaking first. If she hadn’t asked, I might have completely lost it.

With the pressure of needing to tell Jeongho about this.

“Uh, uh. What is it? Ask me anything.”

“…What should we name the baby?”

Her totally unexpected question made my posture sway. However, her question wasn’t strange at all for someone about to become a mother. The only problem was…

“First… shouldn’t we find out if it’s a boy or a girl?”

“Y-yeah, I guess that makes sense?”

Ho-yeon looked a bit awkward, turning her head away, showing signs of embarrassment. Just seeing her react like that made me feel like maybe it wouldn’t be too bad…

It couldn’t possibly be okay, right? I was in front of one of the strongest beings in this world, after all, and I was expected to say something like that.

Honestly, I feared that if I didn’t say it right, I might be executed normally instead of just being beheaded. I’d rather die peacefully than suffer so terribly, right?

“Ho-yeon. Does your father, um. Yeah. Does he have a concubine or something?”

Even knowing wouldn’t help much. But if he did, it might help me to blame him a little, so I asked Ho-yeon.

“…Uh, no. At least as far as I know, Father is devoted to my mother.”

And just like that, even my small effort to gain a slight advantage was crushed by Ho-yeon’s calm statement. Just standing next to Ho-yeon was like getting blasted; now that I’d gotten her pregnant, it would be even worse.

Ahhhh, I’m definitely going to die a horrible death.

As despair washed over me, Ho-yeon embraced me warmly. It didn’t help at all, but just that comfort was somehow soothing.

“…Thank you. That helps.”

“Don’t try to handle everything alone… I’m here for you. So please tell me. What do you plan to say to Dad… to Father?”

But that was really quite difficult. I didn’t even have the strength to say that right now. Under Brother Black Wolf’s subtle pressure, I was thoroughly exhausted from trying to find a way out.

“Sorry, I’ll definitely tell you later. Right now, I just want to collapse and sleep. Is that okay?”

The pressure of knowing that if I didn’t give a satisfactory answer, he would come at me with a sword was a different fear entirely from Ho-yeon’s gentle urges.

Ho-yeon didn’t mean to scare me, but Black Wolf’s palpable intent clearly overflowed, intensifying that fear.

“Alright…? So, make sure you tell me later?”

Ho-yeon observed my expression and thankfully gave me a little slack. I tried to close my eyes and relax, but no matter how hard I closed them, sleep just wouldn’t come.

“…Ho-yeon. I can’t sleep, can you just tell me anything?”

“M-me? But I’m not good at that kind of thing…?”

“It’s okay. What matters is just hearing the voice of someone you care about.”

“Really? Then…”