Chapter 4.2

That phrase was probably something he had heard from his nursemaid a long time ago. The prince raised his arms and sniffed himself. Then, when our eyes met, he shrugged his shoulders as if admitting his mistake, like a child caught doing something wrong. It wasn’t much of a shrug, considering his big frame.

“Anyway, can’t you stay here for the time being? If you don’t like it, I’ll clean the room next to mine. The top floor is just too spacious… Honestly, cleaning it all up in a day is impossible.”

“No, I can’t. I don’t want to… Why did you bring me to a place like this? Just leave me alone like the other maids.”

“That’s not possible anymore. If other maids saw the prince’s bedroom, they wouldn’t just leave it as is.”

“My room isn’t that dirty, is it? B-but the nursemaid said…”

“The nursemaid said what?”

“I-if it’s our kind of room, suitable for beasts, then it doesn’t matter.”

“That nursemaid, I really want to give her a piece of my mind.”

The attendants who take care of the royal family are at least of the noble class. Originally, as a commoner, I should have bowed my head to them as well.

However, I know that the Verberat Kingdom is on the verge of destruction. Since everyone except Princess Lethis will be annihilated, I might as well deal with the nasty nursemaid before that.

“A piece of your mind?”

“Prince, you’re not so much of a beast since you are an adorable and lovely puppy.”

“…Me? Ah, no. I’m a wicked beast born to beg for food from humans…”

Even though he had the appearance of a 17-year-old boy, the prince’s self-esteem plummeted to the ground. This is why gaslighting is terrifying.

I couldn’t bear to hear the prince belittling himself incessantly. Before I entered the Nameless Castle, I had worked as a maid for a certain Marquis. I had seen many noblemen visiting, and I had seen footmen working alongside me. However, not one of their looks could rival those of Asheradren, the prince.

In a romance novel, I had assumed that everyone around me would be beautiful men and women, but that turned out to be a misconception. This place was, after all, where all sorts of human lived.

I’d rather not say anything if he was really ugly, or if he had an ugly body. However, the prince even had a bone structure that was perfect, like that of a professional swimmer. Despite being confined to the top floor and only being able to run around as a puppy, he looked splendid.

“Oh, yes. Mr. Wicked Beast. Have you ever heard of the legend of King Giris, who founded the country?”

“I… I don’t know. And don’t call me that way. It… it doesn’t feel good.”

The wicked beast pouted and puffed up his cheeks. I found myself wanting to embrace the prince, who turned red from being teased just once, and console him; The man who had escaped from the nameless castle, who had came out to save a mere maid like me.

If we were to meet again, even if the prince didn’t know much, I wanted to hug him tightly and whisper to him that I was grateful. But when I thought about it seriously, realistically, I knew I shouldn’t do that. Moreover, even though he had fallen into ruin, he was still a genuine royal.

Furthermore, he was currently in a state of nakedness, with only the apron barely covering him. Even though his body had matured, his mind was still that of a young child.

I took a deep breath and started explaining.

“This happened a thousand years ago from now. King Giris, the son of a god, appeared in the Verberat Kingdom, which was divided into five nations at the time. He transformed into a giant wolf and conquered the battlefield in order to unify the five nations, which were constantly at war…”

The prince’s eyes began to sparkle, just like when he caught the stocking ball. As he focused on a topic he didn’t know he would encounter, he was staring intently at my lips.

I felt a sense of duty to explain in more detail, since he looked at me with such expectant eyes, even though he wasn’t very talkative. I cleared my throat and started again. Then, the knock on the door interrupted us.

“…Miss Daphne? Are you here?”

“Whoa!”

I hadn’t even had the chance to answer, but the prince got scared and jumped up. Then, he started looking around for a place to hide. I looked at his pitiful actions, which were far from looking naive, and shouted towards the door.

“Yes, Sir Janiche? What’s the matter?”

“It’s already lunchtime, but I can’t find Miss Daphne anywhere. I was wondering if you’d like to have lunch together if you’re available.”

“Ah, I see. Please wait a moment. I’m changing my clothes right now…”

“…I apologize for the intrusion. I’ll be waiting in the dining room, so please come out at your own pace.”

Sir Janiche hesitated as he spoke. Since he had suddenly shown up, I thought there might be something going on, but as always in the nameless castle, there was nothing special happening.

By the way, this was the first time Sir Janiche had invited me to have lunch together. Finally, the day had come when he would boil tea, ask about my well-being, and try to get closer to me.

But if I were to have lunch with him, I would have to leave the prince alone here. I pondered this and turned around, but despite the room not being particularly large, I couldn’t see the prince anywhere.

In his place, the blanket on my bed was slightly raised. And beneath it, a pitifully trembling white tail fur protruded.