IWBAACTWITOS Chapter 22

The branch that had been swaying collapsed at Yan's timid gesture.

I jumped up from my spot and spread both arms. Yan obediently knelt on one knee with his back turned to carry out his penalty, and I climbed on without hesitation.

"Let's go!"

Despite carrying me, Yan didn't show much strain. His cheek visible over his shoulder was dyed crimson.

'Hmm, we've been feeding him well lately—his cheeks got nicely plump.'

It had already been a month since Yan came here. A month since Roxana and Julian turned everything upside down after the tutors' abuse of Yan was revealed.

The tutor who'd struck Rayan was deported to the kingdom, judged to have exceeded disciplinary bounds. He'd face charges of royal disrespect in the kingdom, but the queen would protect him, so proper punishment was unlikely.

The other teachers received only reprimands and warnings to watch their words going forward.

A slap on the wrist, but we had to be satisfied they'd been separated from Rayan for now. This was a society with a class system—no child protection laws, not even a human rights charter.

'Well, South Korea wasn't far behind with slap-on-the-wrist punishments, but at least there were laws.'

Thanks to all the teachers being reprimanded, lessons were postponed entirely.

Matilda, Yan's nanny, fussed at first, but couldn't withstand the ducal household staff surrounding and monitoring Yan, so lately she hadn't emerged from the annex at all.

Thanks to that, Yan and I could play to our hearts' content for a month. Especially during mud play, Yan laughed so brightly he seemed truly happy.

'Right, kids go crazy for mud play originally.'

Today's game was flag toppling, and games like this needed penalties attached.

There was no way beginner Yan could match me, who'd rolled around playgrounds back in the day.

We'd already played ten times, and Yan had won only once. Even that was because I'd let him win out of pity.

'Should I let him win again soon?'

"Miss! Your Highness! Come have snacks!"

At the maid's call, I wriggled free from Yan's back. At the word "snacks," Yan seemed ready to dash off immediately.

"Hold on, wait."

I brushed dirt from Yan's clothes, then roughly brushed my own.

But dirt still clung here and there.

We'd bathe before eating snacks anyway, so I decided to be satisfied with this.

After washing up properly, we went to the nursery where Nanny greeted us warmly while peeling an apple.

"Did you have fun?"

"Yeah!"

Yan answered before I could. Yan, who'd grown bolder lately, no longer acted shy around the ducal household staff.

At Yan's answer, Nanny smiled brightly and placed the plate of apples in front of us. I speared an apple piece with a fork and put it in Yan's mouth.

"What did Royna do today?"

"Same as always."

Which meant eating, sleeping, and pooping. Baby time really was the sweet life.

"Boo-boo-boo."

Royna got tired of the toy in her hand and babbled while throwing it away.

Nanny laid Royna down properly and placed a doll in her hand. The soft doll's texture must have pleased her—Royna laughed merrily.

"Does Baby like the bunny doll too?"

"Wah-oo!"

When Royna shrieked, Yan and I jumped and looked toward her.

But babies suddenly shrieking was a common occurrence, so Yan quickly turned his head back.

Then he opened his mouth wide, as if telling me to hurry and feed him apple.

'He's cute, but...'

I'd been feeding him snacks lately because it was fun once or twice, but had he gotten into the habit? When I didn't give him apple and just watched, Yan prompted me.

"Tilly, ah."

"..."

When I stayed silent and still, Yan glanced at me, then started eating the apple himself.

'What? If you were going to eat it yourself anyway.'

I leaned back against the sofa and closed my eyes. The nursery's characteristic smell, Yan eating apple beside me—it was such a peaceful moment.

"Come to think of it, Miss, you haven't been carrying your bunny doll lately? I stuffed it nice and plump."

The bunny had returned clean with a plump belly as promised, but I didn't carry it around anymore.

I'd used it as a pillow substitute originally, but since I had no chance to nap when with Yan, I felt no need to carry it.

"I fired him."

At the word "fired" from Thaleia's mouth, Mia's eyes went round. Thaleia sometimes used difficult words for a young child. At first she'd doubted whether Thaleia knew what they meant, but surprisingly, Thaleia knew all their meanings and used them at appropriate times.

"Why?"

But Mia felt sad rather than proud. She'd given Royna a bunny doll to match Thaleia's attachment doll. Her grand plan to dress them identically and have them hold identical dolls once Royna grew a bit more was crumbling.

"Um... because I'm not sleepy anymore?"

Thaleia said this with an indifferent face while crunching on apple.

'Now that I think about it, she doesn't sleep much except for her two-hour nap after snacks.'

The doctor had said it was congenital in front of Thaleia, but later told Mia separately that excessive napping might just be psychological.

After she started spending time with Aegis, at least on days after visiting the imperial palace, she didn't whine about being sleepy, and once she spent all day with Rayan, her naps decreased to average levels.

'Maybe she needed peers after all?'

Playing so well like this. Mia looked at Rayan glancing sidelong at Thaleia and fell into thought.

A five-year-old hoping to be fed apple and a four-year-old looking like everything was too bothersome.

Mia brought up a topic that might interest the child to breathe some life into Thaleia.

"Miss, Miss."

"What?"

"It's your birthday in two more nights—what birthday present do you want?"

"Didn't you already finish preparing? You were looking for ribbon to wrap things a week ago."

"..."

'Of all things to be perceptive about.'

"Still, can't you tell me just a little what you want?"

"Hmm..."

Rayan seemed interested in Thaleia's birthday present too—he stopped eating apple and stared at her.

Crunch, crunch. Only the sound of Thaleia chewing apple filled the room.

"Dad promised to bring down snow."

Words that would make Julian's shoulders twitch if he heard them right now while working. Snow couldn't fall in autumn, so he'd prepared to scatter something like cotton instead. Whether Thaleia would be satisfied was unknown.

"Mom promised to read ten new storybooks that day. That's enough."

"That's enough?"

"Yeah, that's enough."

"Really?"

Mia had already prepared her gift, so she hoped Thaleia would say one more thing for Rayan's sake beside her.

But Thaleia scrunched her face as if Mia's persistent clinging annoyed her.

"Aren't gifts up to the giver anyway? Just give me something you think I'd like."

'Oh, God.'

Thaleia, usually annoyingly perceptive, seemed unable to see Rayan currently shoving apple into his mouth to hide his sadness.

Unable to laugh or cry at the situation, Mia swallowed her regret at raising the child too comfortably.

'As if a five-year-old's birthday present would really satisfy me.'

Dolls, toys, clothes, accessories. No present could greatly exceed my expectations. Gifts from people I didn't even know would pile into mountains. Just like last year's birthday.

'The bribes are too obvious, but it's awkward to refuse birthday presents for a young daughter.'

My mental age was already too worn and cynical for an adult—I knew the backstory, but ordinary young children would be thrilled just receiving birthday presents piled like mountains.

And some would throw tantrums saying nothing among those many presents pleased them. That's how rich brats got made.

"Aren't gifts up to the giver anyway? Just give me something you think I'd like."

I didn't care about gifts from people I didn't know, and gifts from people I knew were good. At my answer, Nanny smiled awkwardly.

Her persistent nagging today was strange, but I looked down at the plate to eat another apple piece without much thought.

'What? Why is it gone?'

There'd definitely been a lot. Realizing Yan had gobbled it all up, I was about to glare at him when I couldn't help being startled.

Yan's red eyes, mouth full of apple, looked wet as if tears might drip any moment.

'Why does he look ready to cry after eating all the snacks himself?'

I should be the one crying—but just as I was about to say that, belatedly realizing why Yan looked dejected, my mouth fell open.

While I'd been bitter about reality, I'd trampled a young child's dream. Yan had learned about my upcoming birthday just a week ago.

How could he have had the time or headspace to secretly prepare a birthday present while constantly stuck to me? With only two days left, he seemed to want to prepare something now, but I'd flat-out said I didn't need anything.

'What do I do?'

A present Yan could prepare within two days. I looked at Nanny pleadingly for help.

Nanny smiled slightly as if asking whether I'd just noticed. But the ship had already sailed. Nanny seemed to have no intention of helping further.

'A present, something a five-year-old can prepare. There's no such thing!'

Wasn't it mean-spirited to demand something from Yan, who didn't even have proper toys of his own?

After mentally crying "what do I do" about a hundred times, I reached one conclusion.

'Snacks should be obtainable from our kitchen somehow, right?'

Something easy to make too. I recalled what I could manage with my catastrophic baking skills.

"Cho—chocolate cookies!"

At the words "chocolate cookies," Yan looked at me.

"I want to eat chocolate cookies."

"Should I have the kitchen bring some?"

"N-no. I want to eat them on my birthday."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Okay. Then I'll ask the Gift Fairy to bring chocolate cookies on your birthday."

I wanted to say "Gift Fairy my ass," but seeing Rayan's happy face, I had no choice but to make a wish to the fairy.

"Y-yeah. The fairy will bring cookies. Right?"

"Of course."

"Ha, ha, ha, I'm so looking forward to my birthday."

"Really?"

"Really. It only comes once a year."

Nanny smiled brightly, raising his expectations by saying it would be the best birthday party ever.

"I need to use the bathroom."

"You can go by yourself, right?"

"Obviously."

Normally she'd have sent a maid, but knowing I wasn't really going to the bathroom, Nanny let me go alone.

As soon as I left the room, I let out a sigh.

"Whew..."

'Calm down. I'm four years old. Five in Korean age. Whether it's a Gift Fairy or an Embarrassment Fairy, I'm the perfect age to love fairies.'

I hadn't noticed when pretending to be a child alone. But with a genuinely innocent young child beside me, forgotten shame came flooding back.

I covered my mouth and steadied my breathing, struggling to regain my peace of mind.

"Life..."