Chapter 98

As Calypse left his office, Knox, who had been waiting nearby, followed after him with a puzzled expression.

“Where are you going?”

“Aisha’s ice cave. It’s been an hour, so I should check on her.”

“There are still about five minutes before a full hour has passed since she went in, though?”

At Knox’s increasingly baffled question, Calypse pointed down at the floor beneath them.

“From here.”

Then his finger shifted toward the end of the corridor.

“It’ll take about five minutes to get from here to the first underground level. That’s why I’m leaving early.”

Knox followed the direction of Calypse’s finger with his eyes, then nodded.

“Meticulous as ever.”

“That’s parenting.”

With that, Calypse and Knox quickly made their way toward the ice cave.

Neither said it aloud, but both of them were worried about Aisha.

The ice cave was a space created through an ice power. Even northerners accustomed to low temperatures usually could not endure more than thirty minutes inside before fleeing.

And Aisha?

She was born in the comparatively warm Kingdom of Doctia, and she hasn’t been in the North for long. She must be even more vulnerable to the cold.

As they descended the stairs underground, Calypse’s lips, which had been pressed together as heavily as lead, slowly parted.

“There’s a good chance she failed. Tell Mai to have some warm water ready. If Aisha says she’s giving up, we’ll need to put her straight into a bath.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

Knox left to carry out the order, and Calypse descended the rest of the stairs alone before opening the door to the ice cave.

“Ai—”

His eyes slowly widened before he could finish calling her name.

“......?”

There was an enormous heap tucked away in one corner of the cave.

Looking more closely, it was not simply a heap.

It was a cluster of children gathered snugly around Aisha.

They were asleep, sharing their body heat with one another.

They even seemed fairly comfortable. Not one of them was shivering.

“...What in the world is this... Ha!”

Calypse, whose expression had remained dark with worry the entire way there, let out a hollow laugh as all the tension drained from him.

“Your Grace. The warm water is ready—”

“Shh.”

Knox entered a short while later, but Calypse raised one finger, signaling for him to be quiet.

“You’ll wake the children.”

“...Children?”

Knox instinctively lowered his voice, then spotted the children beyond Calypse’s shoulder and opened his eyes wide.

And then—

“...It seems we won’t be needing the bathwater.”

Once he understood the situation, Knox smiled faintly, much like Calypse had.

“Bring a blanket for Guide.”

Knox bowed and left the cave once more.

Calypse then used his power to lower the temperature inside again.

As the air grew colder, Aisha seemed to feel the chill and burrowed even deeper into the arms of the children around her.

At the adorable sight, Calypse gave a quiet chuckle.

Did she bring people in to help because she knew she wouldn’t be able to endure it alone?

Whatever her intention had been, she truly was no ordinary child.

Perhaps.

Perhaps she really could.

As Calypse watched the girl who somehow managed to overcome every challenge in ways that exceeded his expectations, the faint hope within him began to grow.

***

After that, my power training proceeded smoothly.

While Lucas and Kyle attended their morning lessons, Guide and Bibi clung tightly to me.

P-Princess. E-Ever since then, B-Bibi only stays r-right next to me. D-Do you think she’s s-satisfied because she g-got to go on such a long walk?

Kyuu? Kyuukyut! (A walk? What nonsense is that? From now on, this old lady is going to protect my baby and no one else!)

The two of them could not communicate directly, but it seemed like they would get along just fine even without me going out of my way to interpret for them.

Come to think of it, why can I understand Bibi in the first place? I should look into that later.

And then—

Dandelion, your big brother’s back— Hey, Guide! Get away from Dandelion!

Guide. Get away from Aisha.

Whenever Lucas returned from his morning lessons alongside Kyle, who had recently learned the phrase “get away,” the two would glare at Guide with narrowed eyes.

A terrified Guide would immediately scurry off, and my human heaters would be swapped out.

There were also often other visitors accompanying Father when he came to check on me once every hour.

“Princess, you must be having a difficult time trapped inside this cave. I made you a strawberry parfait. Please have some.”

There was the chef, who brought me mountains of desserts.

“Lady Aisha. You must maintain your dignity even while staying in the cave. The right side of your pigtails appears to have drooped slightly. Allow me to fix it for you.”

And Mai, who made sure my hairstyle remained impeccable at all times.

They said it took an entire village to raise a child.

With the help of the people of Kreutz, I managed to spend a warm week inside the ice cave.

“Lady Aisha. Are you comfortable in the cave?”

“No?”

“Yes. I thought that would be the case, which is why I asked.”

“?”

With the exception of Knox, who was no help whatsoever.

Worse, whenever Calypse came to visit once an hour, Knox always appeared with him just to annoy me.

I’m going to hit him. When training ends. Knox.

I glared daggers at Knox’s retreating back.

Once I got out of this cave, Knox would be the first person I tested my power on.

Anyway.

At long last, the eighth day arrived.

“You did well. A-Aisha!”

“Don’t stop me!”

I shoved past Father, who had come to welcome me out, dashed from the cave, and dropped to my knees beneath the warm sunlight pouring over the ducal castle.

Ah.

Sunlight.

Sweet vitamin D, wrapping me in its embrace.

“Hiiiyaaaaaah!”

The roar of a tiny hamster seeing sunlight for the first time in eight days echoed across the skies above the ducal castle.

And thus, my ice-cave training came to a successful end.

***

The next day.

The training grounds of the Kreutz ducal castle.

Father held my hand with a tense expression and nodded at me.

Today was the long-awaited day of the test.

In other words, the day we would find out whether the ice-cave training had actually worked.

When we entered the training grounds, the people who had arrived ahead of us welcomed me.

“Princess, you endured an entire week inside that freezing ice cave. I’m certain your power will manifest properly.”

“Lady Aisha! You can do it! Power is all about spirit!”

They were all people who had visited me inside the ice cave throughout the past week.

It’s definitely going to work.

“Thank you!”

I waved enthusiastically at everyone as Father led me to the center of the training grounds.

Lucas had also accompanied us in his capacity as the young lord of the family and stood beside us.

Inhale. Exhale.

So many people were watching only me.

Every gaze was encouraging, but I was still nervous enough to keep taking deep breaths when—

“Aisha.”

Before I knew it, a pair of red eyes identical to mine appeared directly in front of me.

Calypse had bent down on one knee so our eyes were level.

“There’s no need to be nervous. You were born with Kreutz blood. Using this power is natural for you.”

“Y-Yes!”

“Open your palm and imagine an ice crystal blooming above it.”

I nodded at Father’s reassuring advice.

Then I held my palm out into the air.

“Hiiiyah!”

I clenched with every ounce of strength I possessed, right down to the muscles I used to fart, and shouted with all my might.

“Ooh!”

“At last! Another member of the House of Kreutz with an awakened power!”

Everyone’s eyes sparkled with anticipation at the sight of me.

Flutter.

“......?”

Instead of a sharp spike of ice rising from my palm, something fell from the sky.

Snow.

And lots of it.

Which meant...

I had failed to use an ice power.

“Hmm. Was snow forecast for today?”

“I’m not certain. The weather in the North changes so unpredictably.”

When the corners of my mouth drooped miserably at the obvious failure, everyone hurriedly changed the subject.

“Hm.”

Lucas, who had been making a troubled noise beside me, placed a hand on my shoulder and offered advice.

“Dandelion. Don’t just tense your butt. Imagine an ice crystal appearing in your hand. You don’t have to force it.”

Oh.

So imagination was the important part, not clenching my butt.

I nodded and tried again.

“Hiyah!”

But—

“Yaaah!”

Why! Why won’t the ice power come out?!

“...That’s strange. It was easy for me. Why can’t you do it, Dandelion?”

Had he read my mind?

Lucas muttered exactly what I °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° was thinking, scratching the back of his neck as he tilted his head.

“Mine manifested right after I was born, so by the time I was two, I could just use it whenever I wanted.”

“.......”

“And Father’s ice looked so cool that I thought, I want to make that too, and then—bam! It just shot out. Why can’t you do it? That’s weird.”

Only then did I realize the truth.

Ice powers blossomed through talent and early education, not hard work.

It was not something I could suddenly acquire just because I spent several miserable days camping inside an ice cave.

I went through absolute hell in that ice cave for an entire week!

Thump.

In the end, I collapsed right where I stood.

“...It’s not fair....”

“Aisha....”

“It’s not fair!”

I did not care whether Lucas and Calypse were looking at me with pity.

I screamed at the top of my lungs and sat there letting the cold snow pelt my entire body.

Then—

“...Lady Aisha?”

At the sudden voice, everyone turned toward the entrance to the training grounds.

It was Mai, who had finished her work and arrived late.

“Lady Aisha, congratulations! You successfully manifested your power! I knew you would!”

...What?

My face filled with confusion at the emotion in her voice.

“What are you talking about? She failed! That’s why she’s sitting there devastated!”

Lucas immediately tried to correct her, but—

“But... didn’t Lady Aisha make this snow fall? It’s only snowing inside the training grounds.”

“Huh?”

Inside the training grounds?

What was falling where?

Only then, emerging from the depths of my despair, did I finally raise my head and look up at the sky.