The Day After the Festival
“・・・Mmm…”
I rubbed my eyes and sat up between Mom and Dad.
“Are they all still sleeping?”
Yuri and Emila were even drooling in their sleep.
They must have been really tired from following me around all day yesterday.
I found their sleeping faces a little funny, so I giggled and hopped off the bed.
“Being able to walk is a good thing.”
Some people might take it for granted, but if you had to stay in bed for ten years, you’d love walking too.
With steady steps, I made my way to the balcony.
Sniff sniff.
“~~”
The lingering chill of dawn greeted me.
The crisp morning air, mingling with the coolness of autumn, brought a sense of peace to my heart.
Whoooosh—
“Whoaahhh!”
A sudden gust of wind startled me, instantly shaking off the last traces of sleep.
It hit my soft cheeks like a blade of ice.
Of course, it didn’t actually affect me.
Because I’m an awesome dragon.
Laughing as I enjoyed the wind, I suddenly thought of my family behind me.
“Oh no! What if they wake up?”
Worried that the cold breeze might disturb them, I quickly stepped back inside and shut the window.
“They’re still asleep, right?”
Peeking through the small gap in the window, I checked on my family.
Thankfully, no one had woken up.
Unlike me, they weren’t immune to the cold, so I had to be mindful of them.
“Last time, when I practiced flying for the first time, Mom and Yuri were shivering so much…”
I recalled the two of them clinging to each other, trembling at the mountaintop while I soared around excitedly.
I couldn’t let my family catch a cold.
If a dragon got sick, wouldn’t they breathe fire every time they coughed?
That thought made me chuckle.
Smiling, I looked up at the sky.
“…Mom, Dad, thank you. I’m doing well, so don’t worry about me.”
I whispered a little prayer and gazed at the sky, still touched by the lingering hues of dawn.
The stars, scattered faintly across the heavens, were slowly fading as the sky brightened.
I lost myself in the moment.
“…Wow…”
I wasn’t sure how much time had passed when, beside me, the sun began to rise.
“Whoa—!”
The brightening sun chased away the stars, painting the sky a brilliant blue as morning arrived.
The sight was breathtaking, like a sunset in reverse.
“Hehe…”
I had only come outside because my room was a little warm, but I ended up witnessing something amazing.
Satisfied, I smiled and went back inside.
“Ungh—!”
With a playful grin, I climbed onto the bed.
“Phew, that was tough.”
With my short arms and legs, it was a bit of a struggle, but I felt proud of myself for managing it on my own.
“…Hehe.”
And right before me was the perfect target for some mischief.
“Don’t… take my blood…”
Emila was peacefully smiling in her sleep—while muttering something quite terrifying in her dream.
“Found you.”
“My toy…!”
I quickly scooted over next to her, ready to play a little prank.
“…Heh, Hemi… thanks…”
“Hmm, seems like she’s having a good dream.”
She was mumbling my name in her sleep. It had to be a good one.
I really wanted to prank Mom and Dad instead, but they’d worked so hard during the festival that they looked way too peaceful in their sleep.
I just couldn’t bring myself to disturb them.
“Alright, Emila, here we go…”
I brought my mouth close to her ear.
“…Hooooooo~”
“Uugh… tickles…”
I blew softly, making her scrunch up her face and squirm even in her sleep.
Watching her flinch and try to escape the sensation made me giggle.
I couldn’t laugh too loudly, though, or I might wake up everyone else.
Five Minutes Later
“Huh, she’s still not waking up.”
Even after all that, Emila didn’t open her eyes.
I tried the same trick on Yuri, but she barely reacted. Not fun at all.
“Ugh, now I’ve lost interest.”
I glanced outside.
The sun hadn’t fully risen yet—the sky was still caught between blue and gold.
That meant I still had some time before the head maid arrived.
I decided to wash up first.
Dragging a step stool over to the sink, I climbed up and checked my reflection in the mirror.
“Still cute today.”
I puffed up my cheeks and poked them with my finger.
“…So embarrassing.”
Feeling a little shy, I quickly turned my head toward my sleeping family.
Luckily, no one had seen that.
I hurriedly shut the bathroom door.
“Time to wash up and brush my teeth!”
Today, I was going to wash my face by myself for the first time since being reborn.
I mean, come on.
I’m not a baby.
I can handle this much!
“First, toothpaste.”
Grabbing the toothbrush and toothpaste, I squeezed the tube carefully.
—Squeeze.
“Wait, huh?”
Why is it on my hand instead of the toothbrush?
“…Weird. Did I do something wrong?”
Maybe I was still too sleepy.
I tried again, and this time, the toothpaste landed perfectly on the brush.
“Okay, much better.”
I started brushing, humming to myself.
“Chika chika~”
Without realizing it, I made a little sound while brushing.
When I was done, my teeth felt smooth and squeaky clean.
“Ahh, so refreshing!”
I took deep breaths in and out, enjoying the cool, minty sensation.
You know that feeling—when your mouth is all fresh, and breathing makes it even cooler?
“Now, time to wash my face.”
Giggling to myself, I started splashing water on my face.
“Agh—!”
“Mmph! Agh! Ack!”
It was a bit chaotic, but I managed to finish without drowning.
“…Whoa, look at this glow.”
My skin was practically sparkling!
After admiring myself for a moment, I patted my messy hair with a bit of water to smooth it down.
“I’m still a bit scared to wash my own hair…”
Not that it mattered much.
I didn’t sweat a lot, so I probably didn’t smell.
…Probably?
Anyway, now that I was all freshened up, it was time to go play!
But before that—
“I should leave a note.”
I needed to tell my family before going out.
Last time, I’d just wandered off to Emila’s room, and the entire palace had gone into a frenzy looking for me.
I could still remember the panic on everyone’s faces.
I had to prevent that from happening again.
“…I’m an elite who knows how to write, after all!”
Proud of my literacy skills, I grabbed a pencil, flopped onto the floor, and started writing.
My tail wagged side to side, making my little butt wiggle, but my handwriting remained steady.
“Hehe, done!”
Placing the note neatly on the desk, I skipped toward the door, ready for my next adventure.
Minho’s Adventure Begins!
“…I’m off! Mom, Dad, and sisters!”
I gave a small bow before opening the door and stepping outside.
The early morning in the castle was still shrouded in the quiet remnants of dawn.
It was never particularly noisy, but right now, the silence was almost eerie.
And in that stillness—
“Hehe.”
The soft pat-pat of my bare feet and my cheerful giggles echoed through the halls.
I walked without stopping and soon reached the castle’s main entrance.
Along the way, I passed by maid dragons carrying laundry and soldier dragons training diligently without rest.
When I greeted them with a bright smile, they all returned my greeting warmly.
Some soldiers even paused their running drills to wave at me, grinning from ear to ear.
It seemed like their commander was about to scold them for slacking off, but when I politely bowed my head, he, too, seemed flustered and quickly lowered his head in return.
That was when I realized—oh right, I’m a princess.
Feeling guilty for interrupting their training, I hurriedly apologized.
But that only made things more awkward.
The commander practically begged me to stop apologizing.
Then I felt bad for making him feel bad, so I apologized again.
And again.
And again.
It was a mess.
To make up for it, I playfully winked at the soldiers before continuing on my way.
“…I’m leaving now! Please don’t come looking for me!”
“Princess!”
“Yes!”
Wearing my little backpack, I spoke with determination, and the soldiers all saluted me in return.
Seeing them do that, I nearly just walked away—but then I panicked.
Wait, wasn’t there some military rule about superiors needing to acknowledge salutes?
So, flustered, I quickly returned their salute before dashing off toward the castle gates.
As I left, I could hear the soldiers talking behind me.
“…She’s so cute.”
“Hehe, this feels nice.”
Praise always feels good, no matter what.
Feeling pleased, I pulled out my map.
The reason I came outside today!
I was going to meet my dear friend, Ramir!
‘There it is!’
With confident steps, I began my journey.
…Without realizing I was holding the map upside down.
It took quite a long time before I figured that out.
Meanwhile, Back at the Castle
“…Huff!! Minho!!”
Emila, the Saintess of the Moon, woke up with a start after dreaming of her younger sister—Minho, the Apostle of the Moon—disappearing.
Her scream was so loud that it startled not only Yuri, who was sleeping beside her, but also their parents, Erses and Albinus.
“…Emila? What’s wrong?”
“U-Umm, Mom… I had a dream where Minho disappeared…”
“Really?”
Erses, still groggy from sleep, approached Emila and hugged her tightly.
“It was just a bad dream.”
As she comforted her daughter, something on the bedside table caught her eye—a piece of paper with writing on it.
“Hm?”
Erses picked it up and, after reading it, gasped in horror.
“Gasp!!”
Her reaction drew Yuri, Albinus, and even Emila closer, all of them staring at her anxiously.
“…Mom?”
“Are you okay?”
“Erses?”
They all looked at her expectantly as she stammered before finally revealing the note for everyone to see.
“Our… our Minho!”
The note read:
“Thank you so much for yesterday. I’m leaving.”
—Minho.
“She ran away from home!!”
She has no fucking common sense