7. Hoping for More Would Be Shameless
In the meantime, Lucius continued speaking.
“Yes. Since the imperial family is born with divine powers, they tend to grow slower in their early years.”
His tone was quite meaningful, but Anette, who was still coming to terms with the fact that she had truly become a child, couldn’t fully grasp what he meant.
Besides, to think that her ten-year-old body was about the same size as the eight-year-old crown prince—how frustrating…
Anette swiped her small hand across her face with a troubled expression, regretting that she had boldly claimed to be ten years old.
Seeing this, Lucius barely stifled a chuckle and then, as if remembering something, rummaged through his robe.
“Come to think of it, I had something to give the princess. I nearly forgot.”
“…Is it a purification stone?”
Anette immediately recognized the small white stone emanating sacred energy and asked.
“Yes. Since you got blood from the magical beast on you, you need to be purified. But in your current state, going to the temple might be difficult. Of course, we could ensure discretion, but still… this isn’t the imperial palace.”
“I’m fine. It’s probably safer if fewer people know about my current condition. And… it’s better this way—I don’t need a priest to purify me.”
It was less troublesome, and frankly, more convenient.
Feeling a little embarrassed at having blurted out her honest thoughts, Anette added in a small voice.
But deep down, she was genuinely relieved that she didn’t have to visit the temple.
Not just because she didn’t want to reveal her condition. Every time she visited the temple in the Kingdom of Heyworth after subjugating magical beasts, she’d been met with discomforting stares from the priests—memories that remained vivid in her mind.
She had always sensed their true thoughts as they reluctantly performed the purification rituals.
‘Purifying the spawn of a magical beast… what a waste of sacred power,’ their eyes seemed to say.
That’s why she had always desperately wished for a purification stone—sold only at the High Temple of the Alkan Empire.
It was said to be the masterpiece of Emperor Lucius himself, created by mobilizing both temple and mage tower resources, and reportedly made for his younger brother, the Grand Duke of Harzent.
‘Apparently, the Grand Duke missed the window for purification after a beast subjugation and became hideous in appearance.’
Though far more expensive than the donation typically required for priest-led purification, the stone’s convenience made it highly popular. Knights and mercenaries heading out for long campaigns always made a stop in the capital to purchase one.
Except for the Heyworth Royal Knights. With a limited budget and no royal approval to travel to the Alkan Empire to purchase one, they had been left out.
They were uncooperative purely because she was the commander. That made Anette feel even more responsible, pushing her to fight on the front lines. But now that she could no longer do that, she found herself worried about her remaining subordinates.
‘I wonder if I could request for purification stones to be sold in Heyworth’s temples…’
If that were possible, the royal court would have no more excuses.
Even with that thought in mind, Anette hesitated to speak.
As part of this political marriage, the Alkan Empire had promised military support in the event of an invasion by Bayendor.
Though she hadn’t seen the gift list herself, she had heard the delegation chatter about how the Empire was sending an extravagant amount of gifts to the kingdom.
‘I couldn’t even prepare a proper dowry…’
Of course, the Empire had explicitly said she didn’t need to bring one.
Still, as a princess being married off, she had at least expected Heyworth to provide the basics out of courtesy to the Empire.
But the King of Heyworth had sent Anette to the Empire completely empty-handed.
Anyone who knew how Heyworth’s royal treasury was managed would have been dumbfounded.
But unaware of all this, Anette simply thought to herself:
‘Right. The Empire offering an alliance in the first place was already an act of generosity. Hoping for more would be shameless.’
And now that the knight order had been reorganized, perhaps the royal family would stop being so stingy.
Brushing aside her regrets with that belief, Anette reached out to receive the purification stone from the Emperor.
Zing.
A sharp jolt ran through her hand, like a static shock.
Startled, she looked up at the Emperor, but Lucius only smiled gently, unaffected.
Instead, with a curious look—as though he’d been wondering this ever since she identified the purification stone—he asked,
“The Heyworth Royal Knights have no record of purchasing purification stones… Do you also know how to use it?”
“…Yes, I received one as a gift once.”
Receiving a gift was rare enough to be memorable, and the recollection made her nod slowly.
Lucius and Charlotte looked curious, but Anette kept her lips sealed and avoided their eyes.
For some reason, she didn’t want to talk about that memory.
It was then that a lady-in-waiting from the Empress entered the banquet hall, bearing a message from the Empress Dowager.
“Her Majesty the Dowager has requested to have tea this afternoon.”
“Did she specifically ask for the guest to attend?”
“Yes, she insisted the special guest must come with you.”
Lucius frowned slightly at the words.
“You already told her?”
“Yes, we had no choice… We had to urgently—”
“Ah, I suppose the palace doesn’t…”
Lucius and Charlotte turned to Anette and, after asking for her understanding, began a hushed and serious conversation.
“If we leave things as is… she might be too shocked…”
“But it’s unavoidable…”
Anette politely turned her head to avoid eavesdropping, but the Empress Dowager’s message—and the furtive glances from the Emperor and Empress—were making her ears perk up.
Then, Charlotte carefully broached the subject, as if it were difficult to bring up.
“Lady Heyworth, it seems you’ll have to accompany me to meet the Empress Dowager this afternoon.”
“Pardon? But in my current condition…”
“She’s already been informed, so you needn’t worry.”
Anette’s heart sank.
Even though she’d somewhat anticipated this situation, the Emperor and Empress had accepted her condition far too naturally—it was beginning to worry her.
How would the highest elder of the imperial family react?
She recalled Lucius and Charlotte whispering and her anxiety grew.
‘Maybe… they’ll suggest replacing the bride.’
Anette let out a silent sigh, thinking of Bridget crying and saying she didn’t want to get married.
But she steeled herself.
There would be problems down the line, sure—but first, she had to face what was in front of her.
“Are you that nervous?”
“…Sorry?”
“You just seem really tense, Lady Heyworth.”
At Charlotte’s words, Anette nodded.
Truthfully, she couldn’t recall a time she’d been this nervous.
‘Even my first beast subjugation was less stressful than this.’
Before visiting the Dowager’s palace, even after breaking the purification stone and undergoing the ritual, even while getting dressed again with the help of the maids—her heart was racing.
What if her body didn’t return to normal? What if Bridget refused to yield? What if the alliance broke apart?
Her unease must have been obvious. One of the maids who had cut her hair in the morning joked that it seemed her hair had already grown a bit, trying to cheer her up.
Anette was touched by the kindness, but she didn’t notice any real change in her body.
Sigh.
Seeing her exhale deeply, Charlotte let out a small laugh.
“Her Majesty the Dowager is a good person. She’s much warmer than she appears. But…”
But what?
Anette looked nervously at Charlotte, who trailed off mid-sentence.
“In any case, there’s no need to worry too much. I know it’s not easy meeting the woman who’ll be your mother-in-law for the first time…”
“…What?”
Anette’s eyes widened in shock.
Mother-in-law? Mother-in-law??
That’s right—she really was her mother-in-law!
Anette had been so focused on whether the alliance would collapse that she’d completely forgotten she was here to greet the Empress Dowager—the mother of her future husband.
Her scalp tingled, and she felt even more overwhelmed.
“The Dowager will see you now.”
The doors to the drawing room of the Empress Dowager’s palace swung open.
Thump-thump-thump. Her heart pounded fiercely.
She had come to the Empire for a political marriage, and yet like a fool, she had only just realized that the Empress Dowager would be her mother-in-law!
Barely suppressing her nerves, Anette entered the drawing room, determined not to make a mistake this time.
She had rehearsed it countless times in her head. Left foot back, slightly lift the hem, and bend the knee.
As a princess.
…As a future daughter-in-law.
“Princess Anette of Heyworth greets Her Majesty the Empress Dowager of the Alkan Empire.”
She felt relieved that she had managed the greeting without major mistakes—but that relief was short-lived.
The reception room was silent.
Startled by the utter lack of response, Anette kept her head lowered and endured the heavy silence.
Then—