Special Story 16

There wasn’t much one could do aboard a ship drifting over the vast ocean. It was said that the voyage to Gellang would take over a week. Having only spent two nights on the ship so far, it meant they still had five more nights to go before arriving in her aunt’s homeland.

For six-year-old Maria, the only thing she could really do was find ways to pass time with her mother, who was just as bored as she was. Today’s game was a word chain.

“Tansaeng (Birth).”

“Saengsan (Production).”

When her mother said “production,” Maria’s eyes sparkled. It was a word she had secretly hoped her mother would say. With great confidence, Maria proudly called out the next word.

“Sangiseuk (Mountain foot)!”

“Mountain foot?”

Her mother repeated the word in surprise, then protested in an aggrieved tone.

“Marie, when did you learn a word like that? Just last week, you didn’t even know it.”

It was true. Up until last week, she hadn’t known that word and would always lose when the chain ended in “m.” With a smug little air, Maria tossed her hair over her shoulder and replied haughtily.

“Grandmother taught me.”

“Mother did?”

Last week, when Maria had lost again and burst into tears, running out into the corridor, the Duchess had found her, brought her into her room, and comforted her with both hands full of candy. Then, she’d taught her this “secret weapon” of a word.

“Marie, do you even know what ‘mountain foot’ means?”

The meaning?

Maria was a bit startled by the unexpected attack, but she nodded firmly. At that, her mother gasped and asked again.

“Really? You know the meaning of such a terrible word?”

A terrible word? Why is it terrible? Does that mean Grandmother taught me a bad word? Should I say I know it, or not?

As Maria floundered in confusion, Armin let out a deep sigh and stepped in to clear things up for his daughter.

“Mommy’s just teasing, Marie. ‘Mountain foot’ means the part where the mountain ends.”

“Mom!”

“Armin! How could you just explain it like that?”

“Vivian, you shouldn’t tease a child, no matter how badly you hate losing.”

So close… I almost had her.

Now fully understanding the situation, Maria turned her eyes—sharp and indignant—on her mother. Of course, there was nothing scary about an adorable little girl with platinum hair glaring with all her might.

Vivian shrugged, as if to say “Fine, I get it,” and picked up the game once more.

“All right, all right. Then I’ll have to use my secret weapon too.”

With a cryptic smile, she pronounced each syllable slowly and clearly.

“Seuk. Gom. Bal. (Bearpaw).”

“Bearpaw??”

Maria had never heard of such a word in her life.

“What is that? Now you’re making things up!”

“It’s a real word. It means the paw of an enormous bear.”

“Liar.”

“It’s true!”

“Do you have proof?”

“P-proof?”

Vivian stammered under the sharp, completely distrustful gaze of her daughter. When did she grow up to be this smart?

Of course, she had no proof. The word didn’t exist. As Vivian hesitated, unable to answer, Armin stepped in quietly to make the final call.

“Maria wins.”

“Yay!”

Grandmother had been right—there really wasn’t any word that began with “mountain foot.” Ecstatic over her first-ever victory in a word chain against her mother, Maria rolled around the bed in glee. Vivian, who had briefly looked at Armin with a sulky expression, soon burst into laughter herself.

“When did our daughter grow up to be so clever?”

Vivian hugged the child and rolled around the bed with her. Maria, laughing gleefully in her arms, still smelled like a baby.

“What should we do now, Mari?”

“Hmm… Now Daddy should read us a book.”

“A book? That sounds great.”

Vivian told Maria to go pick one out.

Armin already knew that Maria, who took after her mother in loving books, had brought some with her on the trip. He assumed it would be one of those children’s books featuring bears that she liked so much. As he was organizing some papers, he glanced up—and was completely at a loss for words when he saw what book his daughter had brought.

“Mari.”

“Yes, Daddy?”

“You really brought this book?”

“Yes, Daddy. Why?”

Maria responded with her usual cheerful innocence. Vivian, curious about the odd exchange between the two, hurried over to see for herself—then doubled over in laughter, smacking Armin on the shoulder.

“Where did you find this, Mari?”

“In Grandma’s room. The cover was pretty, so I borrowed it. Grandma said it’s a book Daddy especially likes!”

Vivian’s laughter grew even louder at that.

“Oh my gosh. I can’t believe I’m seeing this book here, Armin. Read it to us—come on, I want to hear it too!”

“Sigh…”

Armin let out a deep sigh. But he had no choice—Maria kept pushing the book toward his chin, eagerly urging him to read. Eventually, he accepted the book.

<The Demon Duke Is Obsessed With Me>

This book had come out ages ago, and the reissued second edition featured an entirely different cover. It even included bonus chapters that hadn’t been in the original print.

Considering Maria’s love for the color pink, it was obvious how the vivid pink cover had appealed to her—and just as obvious that his mother had intentionally left it out in plain sight, perfectly positioned to catch Maria’s eye.

Lying cozily on the bed, Vivian and Maria were ready and waiting to hear the story. Seeing them like that, Armin finally let out a quiet laugh.

He opened the pink-covered book.

A woman who once compared herself to a stuffed popori doll, and a baby popori that looked just like her, were now looking at him with sparkling, expectant eyes.

With anticipation that pure, how could he possibly refuse?

***

“The Duke took out a ring from his coat and held it out to her. Then he said, ‘You. Be my girl.’”

“Wait! Armin, you have to put more feeling into it. I’m not feeling any of the Demon Duke’s desperate longing.”

“Daddy, what does ‘Be my girl’ mean? Was she not a girl before, and now she’s supposed to become one? Then if I tell someone ‘Be my boy,’ does that mean they turn into a boy from now on?”

“No, Mari. That’s something you say when you really like someone. It means, ‘Don’t be close to anyone else—just be close to me.’ That’s what it’s saying.”

“That’s kind of weird.”

“What’s weird about it?”

Maria puffed out her cheeks. No matter how she thought about it, she felt she couldn’t be friends with someone who went around saying “Be my girl.”

“If you want to be friends, you say something like, ‘Do you want to be friends?’ and give them candy or chocolate. Who likes someone who talks like they’re giving orders?”

“What?”

“That’s why I don’t like the Crown Prince.”

Maria shuddered visibly.

She was the precious jewel of House Grey, raised with only love and care. The only person who ever spoke to her in an ordering tone was the Crown Prince. And even though they weren’t close, he kept showing up wherever she went—that was annoying, too.

“The other day, he even tried to give me a bracelet!”

“What? A bracelet? Maria, tell me you didn’t accept it.”

Armin shot up with a serious face. Even though Maria was still just a child, accepting something like that too casually could tie them to the imperial family in all the wrong ways.

Maria responded with an indignant pout.

“Of course I didn’t. Why would I take that tiny little bracelet? I told him we have plenty of bracelets and rings at home. Hmph!”

She called it a bracelet, but it wasn’t even big enough to fit on her wrist. She had no idea why he was trying to give her such a useless thing. Maria, for the life of her, couldn’t understand the thoughts of a Crown Prince who was three years older than her.

“Grandfather said there’s no reason to put up with things you don’t like. So this time, I told him clearly: Why are you following me around all the time? You’re annoying, so stop it.”

Pink was her favorite color. But even though the Crown Prince had pink hair, he was still one of the most annoying people she’d ever met.

“Good attitude, Mari. Always say no firmly if you don’t like something.”

“Exactly. If he’s anything like his father, you’ll probably have to say it five times before he finally gets it.”

Scott, the Crown Prince, son of Crown Prince Zeta who had black hair, was born with the imperial family’s signature pink hair. That alone had put to rest all the rumors surrounding Zeta’s paternity.

The real problem was that Scott had been smitten the moment he saw Maria, who had entered the palace as a potential playmate for his younger sister Nelly.

Since then, Maria had to visit the palace a few more times. But because Nelly, unlike her brother, preferred girls who fawned over her rather than straightforward ones like Maria, those visits gradually decreased.

However, Scott, having inherited the tenacious streak of both his father and grandmother, continued to “coincidentally” show up in front of Maria, no matter how obviously annoyed she was.

They were still just children, so it could be brushed off as him simply wanting to be friends—but when it came to anything involving the Imperial family, the Grey family was fiercely cautious to the point of aversion.

“And also, tricking people and lying is a really bad thing—so why does the Demon Duke keep lying? I really don’t like that either.”

Watching his daughter, who was firm in her tastes, Armin nodded. She was still young, but her strong sense of conviction eased his worries a bit.

“Daddy, I don’t want to read that book anymore.”

“You don’t?”

Armin’s face lit up with relief. Vivian, on the other hand, looked wistfully at the book.

“But it gets more interesting later on. Mari, why don’t you hang in there just a bit longer?”

“No. But I brought another book instead.”

Maria hopped off the bed and chattered happily as she went. She said she liked Grandma’s room because it had so many pretty books—and that there were two books in her favorite color: pink.

Pink-colored books?

Vivian paused for a moment, and then suddenly gasped and rushed toward the child. But Maria had already taken the book out.

“Daddy, read this one next, please. Grandma said Mommy would really like it.”

Maria spoke in a voice full of pride. The title of the book she held up was <Twenty Creative Ways to Show Your Love>.