Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Chapter 16
“Please tell me.”
“Erica, move.”
I couldn’t move even when I saw Declan turning his head towards me. ‘Can I really show the doll moving to a person in that state of mind?’
Meanwhile, Noah was even more anxious because he did not know where this was going.
“Erica.”
Declan comforted me through a look of ‘it’s all right.’ Because of that, I was forced to get up.
“Good morning.”
Saying so, I placed my hands on my stomach and bowed politely to Noah.
“Heup!”
As Noah stepped back, he tripped over and fell to his feet. I knew it would be surprising for him, but I guess this was to be expected, in a way.
“If I hear a voice, I will vomit.”
“Noah, you are very consistent.”
Declan rested his chin and stared at Noah pathetically.
“No, no. How can I not be surprised to see th-th-that?” Noah said, pointing his finger at me and stuttered his words.
“Th, that must have been cursed!”
“Did you say that our Chloe is cursed now?”
As Declan lowered his voice and spoke with a stern expression on his face, an earthquake struck Noah’s pupils.
“What? How dare I say to Her Highness the Princess! Bu, but Your Majesty, that is definitely strange.”
Still, he continued to speak like a man out of his mind.
“Get up.”
Noah flinched at the low-pitched voice, then quickly got up and adjusted his posture. “I’m, I’m sorry. For showing you the ugliness…”
At that, he forced himself to come to his senses, though his eyes were trembling anxiously.
“There’s not much I can explain.”
Declan, who started talking like that, calmly explained what had happened since the first time I met him.
Throughout the story, Noah seemed to be barely holding his mind, with his eyes wide open.
‘Yes, it’s hard to believe. Even if he is like me, if he hears such a story, you will start to doubt the other person’s mental state…’
I looked at Noah’s face, which changed from moment to moment, nervously.
“Your, Your Majesty. What should I say?”
Noah took a deep breath.
“The soul, Erica, is invisible to you, so I know it will be hard to accept.”
He glanced at Declan with trembling eyes.
“If it had been possessed by something, I would have only seen the doll move. Isn’t it?”
“That’s right.”
“So, Erica has nothing to do with curses or black magic.”
Seeing Noah’s complicated expression on his face, I prayed earnestly in my heart.
‘Will you believe me? Please, you should.’
Unless Declan persuades Noah, his closest confidant, our next move will not be smooth.
“As a Sword Master, there’s no way I can’t feel the impure energy. Isn’t it?”
Declan waited patiently for Noah, who buried his face in his hands. After some time passed and he had organized his thoughts, Noah slowly raised his head.
“I believe it. Since you saved me, I have dedicated everything to you.”
“Thank you.” Declan smiled faintly.
‘Does he really believe me?’
I was so nervous that I couldn’t feel it right away.
“But, if there is anything that threatens the safety of His Majesty, I will deal with it mercilessly to protect His Majesty.”
“Yes, I know.”
The description of a few words in the original story did not capture all of their deep loyalty.
“Still, that’s not going to happen. You can tell just from saving me from the threat of poisoning.”
“It’s hard to believe that dolls have souls, but I have to admit that about the poison.”
“Yes. It was dangerous.”
Declan turned his head towards me and smiled faintly. As he lifted his chin up with pride, his smile deepened.
“Thank you, Miss Erica. For saving His Majesty.”
Noah walked over to me and bowed his head.
‘At that time, it was just for me to live…’
When I waved my hand to tell him not to, Noah flinched, but he didn’t step back or be afraid.
“That’s enough. Erica is feeling uncomfortable.”
At that moment, Noah withdrew a little from me. “Your Majesty, what should we do for those who witnessed it?”
Declan tapped his finger on the table without a word.
“…There’s no way this fact should leak out. No word about ‘I’m weak, or I’m seeing things’.”
“Understood. So, shall we prepare a meal?”
As he nodded his head, Noah left the room.
“I’m glad. The Chief Attendant believed in me.”
I walked over and stood next to Declan.
“It’s my words, of course, he should believe it.”
“It must be possible because of his strong trust and loyalty to His Majesty. Otherwise, he would have taken me to investigate right away?”
Just thinking about it made my body tremble.
“I’m here. How would he dare?”
Declan raised one corner of his mouth with an arrogant expression. Of course, he wouldn’t have been able to touch me.
“I will do my best to protect Your Majesty.”
“Good.”
Did he just think it’s a word I say to just look good myself?
Declan took my words lightly.
“As I said last time, I will definitely protect Your Majesty!”
Hearing my remark, he smiled faintly.
It felt as if there was something missing in that smile, though I couldn’t say anything.
***
After a while, Noah came in with a tray and set a meal on the table. He carefully laid out the children’s plates and cutlery in front of me.
“Enjoy, the two of you.”
Declan, as usual, gave me small pieces of food and started eating.
‘If I can move freely like this, wouldn’t it be possible to grab things?’ Thinking so, I slowly grabbed the fork, luckily it was clumsy, but I was able to grab it.
“Your Majesty, I can hold that fork, too.”
When I shouted excitedly, he seemed startled for a moment, then smiled.
“You can’t even reach the food, so don’t bother trying.”
“I could.”
I was furious at the disrespectful tone and shouted confidently. And so, I struggled to bring the fork to the steak, and then carefully aimed for the meat.
“Pfftt.”
Against Declan’s ridicule, I stared at the steak.
‘It’s the first time, so it’s like that. Aim properly and give it power again.’ The more I moved, the louder his laughter grew. So, I just ended up staring blankly at the steak.
“It’s strange. The meat is just tender.”
Declan spoke as he put the steak in his mouth with ease.
“Are you kidding me now?”
“I’m just telling the truth, so why do you look at me with those eyes? It melts without even chewing it a few times.”
So detestable.
Anger and irritation crept up from within.
‘Is it because my hands are weak? Or is it because I can’t move precisely?
I narrowed my brow and stared at my hand.
“I don’t think there will be a way to do that.”
Ignoring those words, I continued to fight the steak. Then came the teasing about breaking the plate, but it did not break my fortitude.
“Hahaha!”
After dozens of trials and errors, I finally got a result. I giggled out loud at the steak on the fork.
“I admire your perseverance. So, all that’s left is to lift?”
“Ah.”
Lifting the steak eventually failed—
Meanwhile, after Declan finished his meal, tea and macarons were served for dessert.
‘It should be light enough that I can lift it with my bare hands.’ I quickly picked up the macarons. It slipped a few times, but fortunately, I managed to catch it.
“I can hold it properly.”
Declan grinned as I smiled triumphantly with the macaron in hand.
“You don’t have to try it that much.”
He picked up the macaron as if purring, and lightly floated it up and held it.
“…You can’t play with food.”
Seeing his arrogant action, I got somewhat annoyed, and without realizing it, I put strength into my hands.
Pong.
All of a sudden, there was the sound of something flying and falling into the water. I blankly followed the trajectory, and the macaron was floating in Declan’s tea.
Declan stared at it in amazement.
“Oh my gosh, it must be so delicious! It’s my gift.”
He narrowed his brow slightly and picked up another macaron.
“Then, I’ll have to pay you back.”
Pong.
I looked at the macaron in my teacup with an absurd expression and smiled.
‘Now, is he saying he wanted to have a match with me?’ At that, I grabbed both my hands full of macarons and aimed at Declan.
Pong.
The macaron flew across the air and settled into an uncooled teacup. Occasionally, those that flew to his body were lightly slashed by Declan with his knife.
“Wow, how do you do it?”
“It’s nothing.”
He laughed out loud at the triumphant appearance, which was both ridiculous and funny. In the end, the macaron showdown ended when Noah, who came in to clean up, scolded him.
“I told Mason to find the doll master.”
‘Doll master.’
Won’t they be the only one who can explain all of this that’s happened to me?
“It will take some time. Nothing much is known about the person. They said they cleaned up the store altogether a few years ago.”
“What if we can’t find it?”
If we can’t find the doll master, it would be difficult to find the reason why I was possessed and how to become a person.
“It won’t. Would you like a little walk in the garden before going to the office?”
Declan asked as he got up from his chair.
“Aren’t you going to the office right away?”
“You asked me to show you the Imperial Palace? I think it’s time to look around the entrance to the garden.”
I thought he had forgotten about it, although he remembers it. At first glance, he seemed to be a pretty attentive person.
“I’d love to. Could you please hold me?”
Declan’s lips crept up as I raised my arms for a hug.
“I will.”
As he carried me out of the room, the servants and some of the knights glared at me with fear.
Even if Noah had told them to keep their mouths shut, it seemed that the fear could not be easily shaken off.
‘We shouldn’t be spreading strange rumors like this…’
The fearful gaze on me was felt until I reached the garden. But, until then, I didn’t move at all, so it seemed a bit reassuring.
No, on the contrary, the tension moved to this side.
It was because of the person I met in the garden.