Editing/Standardisation: Medicine Melancholy
Original Translation: Medicine Melancholy
Iris
Two days had passed since Nii-sama’s visit.
My daily studies and other routines had been cancelled for the past few days, considering my condition.
…I suppose my highest priority as a princess was to stay healthy so that I could one day give birth safely.
In addition to Lenny-san, there were several other maids supporting me, and I wasn’t allowed to do most things myself.
It was depressing to see how overprotective of me they are, but since I couldn’t do anything about it, I might as well make good use of their kindness and spend my time as slovenly as I can.
Yesterday… the bleeding and other symptoms were so severe that I couldn’t get up properly and spent the day in my room.
Today, after a night’s rest, I was feeling a little better, but I felt uncomfortable staying in my room, so I went for a walk outside for some light exercise.
Thus, I was now strolling around the well-kept garden surrounding the vast Rolandia Castle.
“……?”
Suddenly, I thought I heard something nearby.
“Is something wrong?”
“Not really… Did you hear an animal’s cry from over there too?”
It might have been my imagination, but for some reason, I was drawn to it, and walked toward it.
Beyond that was a corner of the neatly maintained garden, a rose garden on the edge of a cliff. I stepped into the well-maintained and neatly arranged area, and following my intuition, I quickly rushed through the maze-like place. And there, I saw…
“…A puppy?”
In the most secluded place, on the edge of the cliff, a white, fluffy, dog-like creature was lying down.
I said “dog-like” because unlike a normal dog… it had wings on its back, its fur was sticking out like blades, and it was glowing a pale golden color.
“No, it can’t be…”
Lenny-san, who seemed to recognize the creature, audibly gasped.
“Do you know it?”
“Yes… Please stay away from it, Iris-sama. It may be a cub, but it’s still the beast Sirius.”
“…Sirius?”
“It’s a Phantasmal Beast said to be a harbinger of misfortune… And its eyes contain the power of instant death.”
Phantasmal Beast Sirius… From what I’d read of it, its fur turns gold in the sunlight, silver in the moonlight, and jet back in the darkness. It also becomes soft in front of those it trusts, and sharp like a blade in front of those it opposes.
I’d never seen one before, but for some reason, I felt some familiarity with it, like I’d seen it in a dream… Yes, I’d definitely seen one such creature together with that person in my dream.
While I was deep in thought, I suddenly noticed a red patch amidst the glowing fur of the Sirius cub.
It’s hard to see because of the light it’s emitting, but if I looked closely, the cub was covered in wounds all over, and its wings were hanging strangely.
…Did it just fall down a cliff?
I looked up at the cliff towering behind it. It’s definitely a possibility.
“…This child’s injured. We can’t leave it here.”
“You can’t go, Iris-sama!”
Lenny-san tried to stop me in a hurry, but I assured her that it’d be okay.
I squatted down so as not to scare the little one, who noticed me and growled, and gently reached out my hand from a low position so as not to obstruct his vision. The Sirius sub, at first wary, began to sniff my finger.
“Don’t be scared, come here…”
I quietly called out to it and waited, eventually, the sharpness disappeared from the cub’s fur, and it returned to something resembling a fluffy puppy.
At the same time, the tension must have eased. I caught the cub’s small body that’s about to fall over and hugged it.
There was no resistance. On the contrary, I couldn’t help but smile when I saw the way it rubbed its face against my chest in a way that seemed to be begging for affection.
“See, it’d be alright.”
“…You surprised me. Even if it’s still a cub, for a Phantasmal Beast to become that attached in such a short time… How could you be so sure about that?”
“I don’t think I did much. I just thought, from the first time I saw it, that this child was just scared, and that it didn’t have any hostile intentions.”
I wondered if the tame success rate increase effect of my subclass “Princess” back in the game still applied… but I kept that to myself.
And so, I reached out to heal the wounds of the now completely unwary Sirius cub… then I remembered that I couldn’t use healing magic right now.
“What do we do, I can’t use healing magic at the moment…”
“…You should take this.”
Lenny-san handed me a towel from her handbag.
It was probably intended for my use, in the case of a leaking accident. I gratefully accepted it and wrapped it around the cub’s injured area as carefully as possible. I thought it might resist, but it was surprisingly docile, so I took a sigh of relief and turned around.
“Iris-sama, where are you going?”
“I wanted to say Aini-san’s place but… Do you think it’s okay to let it inside the castle?”
For now, we needed to get out of this rose garden… but we didn’t know where to take the cub.
“If that’s the case, why don’t you take it to Gantz-san? He lives in the garden.”
“Ah, that might be a good idea. Thank you, Lenny-san.”
“You’re welcome…”
Lenny-san glanced at the dog-like Phantasmal Beast sleeping in my arms. Could it be that she actually likes small animal like this?
Gantz-san was probably staying in a cabin at the edge of the garden, where the gardener lives. He might be willing to take care of it for a little while, until that monthly thing of mine ended and my healing magic returned. We headed over to his place.
“Gantz-san, thank goodness you’re here, and…”
In front of the gardener’s cabin was a stone table, where a few people were sitting and chatting. Not only Gantz-san, but also…
“Reiji-san? Nii-sama?”
“What’s up? How’s your health looking?”
“I still feel a little… But anyway, why are both of you here?”
“Well… I just came here after some practice swinging. I’ve been studying too much and neglecting my training lately, so I thought I need a change of pace.”
“I’m here for the same reason, actually. Some training is just what I needed after being stuck in etiquette class for so long.”
Reiji-san, with a guilty look on his face, smiled bitterly, while Nii-sama was wiping the sweat off his forehead with a towel, looking somehow satisfied.
“These young ones, seem tired. I treated them, tea.”
“Haha… That was some good tea.”
“Thank you for your generosity.”
Next to Reiji-san and the others, I noticed a slender glass pot on the table, half-filled with a brown liquid that seems to be well-chilled.
It looked like… barley tea?
“So what brings you here? If you’re still unwell, shouldn’t you stay in bed?”
“Well, here’s the thing…”
“…Oh?”
“…Hmm?”
When I slightly pulled back the towel that had wrapped the Sirius cub, the two of them exclaimed in surprise and peered in curiously.
“I just found it lying in the garden. And, I can’t use healing magic right now… Gantz-san, can you lend this a place where it can rest for two or three days?”
“I see… Storage room, unused. A bed, I can prepare.”
“Thank you very much…!”
I thanked Gantz-san for kindly accepting my request.
He merely replied, “Don’t mind it”, and went inside to prepare.
“I’m going to get Aini-san, then.”
“I’m going to the kitchen to see if I can get something for this lil’ twerp.”
“Guess I’ll go get a blanket or something.”
With that, everyone scattered in different directions.
“Um, I can help too…”
I tried to offer my help, but…
“You stay with the twerp. It’s attached to only you right now, what if it gets scared again without you nearby?”
Such was Reiji-san’s reply.
Thus, I was left alone, holding the Sirius cub.
“…I guess that makes sense. Let’s just stay put until everyone comes back, shall we?”
I hugged the Sirius cub again and sat down on a bench nearby.
And then… I started singing a song that suddenly came to mind.
“……Was yea …… mea …… en fwal. Ma …… ga k…………a yor syec…………”
That was the lullaby belonging to “her” in the dream, which I had come to understand a little more than before.
There were still a lot of things I didn’t understand, so I was just humming the melody… But still, I hoped this child, who’s breathing slightly in pain, could find some peace of mind…
APM - Translation 