“Betty asked me to tell you to rebuild his enclosure with gold as well.”

“Why.”

Today I’m going to thoroughly scrape this annoying emperor’s nerves!

“Betty said that the being she cherishes and loves most in this imperial palace is not Your Majesty but Bono—”

“Servant. Remove this woman. Immediately!”

“……!”

I didn’t even get to scrape properly before being dragged out again.

Slam!

“Aaaargh!”

Bestia’s scream echoed loudly through the corridor.

* * *

“Your Majesty.”

“I’ll issue a restraining order.”

“But today I came because Your Majesty called for me.”

“Then don’t open your mouth before being asked. That’s an order.”

At his razor-sharp firmness, Bestia’s fists trembled. Caenian smirked.

There’s fun in teasing her.

“How about writing another agreement?”

“Didn’t I tell you not to open your mouth before being asked?”

It had been like this for some time. At first, he hated the woman who came to see him at all hours. Just seeing her golden hair made his heart drop, and if her eyes were blue, her voice would automatically ring in his ears.

But somehow, at some point, things changed. The words that this sixteen-year-old woman blurted out no longer bothered him. Caenian glanced at Bestia. The trembling woman quickly flashed a bright smile at the emperor’s gaze.

Cute.

As soon as the thought occurred to him, Caenian quickly turned his gaze away. As time passed, he found himself being swayed, even controlled.

By whom? By that woman!

Why on earth?

Why was it so much more uncomfortable to deal with this young girl than with the cunning old ministers?

“Ugh. But you didn’t say the order started right now.”

“Right this instant……!”

Caenian deliberately pretended to be annoyed. He pretended to ignore Bestia while looking at the documents in his hand.

“Ugh.”

He heard a small, trembling voice. Caenian bit his lip to suppress a smile. He felt like an older brother teasing his little sister.

‘Your Highness the Crown Prince! I have a little sister now! She’s so cute I want to bite her!’

He finally understood what Potters had said long ago.

Cute. Yes, that was it.

He wasn’t sure about wanting to bite her, but…

Just as Betty flapped her small white wings and quacked, this woman’s flashing golden hair and sharp retorts seemed cute.

Like his duck glaring when offered a worm. It was also amusing how her blue eyes would moisten, then blaze.

“Since I asked first, I would be honored if Your Majesty would just answer this one thing.”

“Hah… What’s the reason for rewriting the agreement?”

Shall I listen to what she has to say at this point?

Caenian put down the stack of documents he had been holding for five hours.

“Because while there’s a clause about having meetings, there’s no clause stating when those meetings end, Your Majesty.”

“Is that important?”

“Of course, Your Majesty. Because Betty has a family.”

“So? I’ve told you repeatedly. I permit them to live together in the imperial palace garden.”

“That’s… different.”

Asking us to abandon our hometown is no different from forced relocation.

Today’s Bestia was different from yesterday. Her lips were turned up, but her eyes weren’t smiling.

Today’s the day. Academy reopening day.

Shushu and Potters must already be in their seats.

While I’m standing in the wrong place wearing clothes that don’t match my status…

Though she tried not to dwell on it, she kept thinking about what day it was.

“Your Majesty may not know, but Betty has a family and friends. That’s why she left your side.”

Her heavy voice carried her gloomy emotions. Caenian said nothing in response to Bestia’s dejected appearance. He merely twitched his eyebrows.

Why isn’t he saying anything?

Bestia slightly raised her head at the unfamiliar silence.

‘Do you dare point out the absence of my predecessors in front of me, the emperor?’

‘An orphan emperor like me has no friends?’

The words he might normally have said existed only in her imagination. Bestia tilted her head to the side.

‘Remove this woman from my presence at once!’

Usually, he would thoroughly mock her and then chase her away, but…

“So she quacked so cutely by my side but behind my back, she constantly wanted to leave.”

“……!?”

The words that came out of Caenian’s mouth were different from usual. Surprised, Bestia opened her eyes wide.

“Very well. Bring a new agreement specifying the period Betty desires.”

“…What?”

She was speechless at the calm, dark eyes that had settled on her.

He’s agreeing so readily?

His resistance-free response was greatly bewildering. She just blinked at this unfamiliar behavior.

“Leave.”

“I… I am deeply honored, Your Majesty.”

For the first time since she began acting as the docile Betty, Bestia walked out the door on her own without being chased away.

「The enforced right to meet four times a week has been removed.」

「According to Betty’s request, the maximum period of stay within the imperial palace is one hundred days.」

「The above period shall be counted from the day each party to the new agreement affixes their seal.」

The third agreement was drawn up. Bestia cherished it even more than the previous ones.

“Perhaps I can return to school next semester.”

Taking a half-year leave instead of a full year wasn’t bad. Hope rose again.

“Come to think of it, this is the imperial palace, isn’t it?”

A new plan also came to mind. Bestia’s eyes sparkled. What if she reclaimed the top spot as soon as she returned to school?

How wonderful would that be!

Just thinking about it made her heart race.

Hehehe.

“I didn’t become the academy’s top student for nothing.”

A person, no, a duck beastman may not have family or money. But does that mean I lack academic passion?!

Bestia immediately stood up. She had somewhere to go. It was clear she would be spending a lot of time there from now on.

Where?

Grandpa Chancellor had said!

“I’ve arranged for you to be a research assistant, so you can freely access the imperial library!”

Hehehe.

Bestia asked and answered herself. In her lonely imperial palace life, she didn’t realize her habit of talking to herself was growing.

“How wonderful that the imperial library is open 24 hours!”

It was now 7 PM. Right after dinner, the perfect time to study.

Clench! Great! I’ll show the power of human determination!

“Oh? Wait, I’m… a beastman, right.”

Just as she clenched her fist with revived academic passion, Bestia remembered something she had completely forgotten.

Right. I’m the last remaining duck beastman in the empire. An orphan who knows nothing about her parents, let alone her family.

“…I wonder if there are any records?”

As the emperor’s duck, as a lady from a fallen family, she had completely forgotten to search for her roots while living such a busy life. Though she wondered how she could have forgotten, she also thought it was understandable given that there had been a knife at her throat.

“Back then I was the crazy woman of this district, so I couldn’t just ask about duck beastman records.”

If I had, I might have become morning dew on the execution ground rather than being imprisoned?

Nod.

It was a reasonable excuse. Bestia attached excuses and justifications to her actions. She felt guilty even though no one was criticizing her. The reason was simple: responsibility.

“They say history repeats itself, and you need to know the past to understand the future.”

She hoped other beastmen wouldn’t suffer extinction. She hoped that through the new emperor’s beastman-friendly policies, beastmen who had left their homeland would return.

* * *

“How can there be absolutely no information!”

Six hours after settling in a corner of the imperial library. Someone shouted loudly among the piles of books.

“Aaaargh! They must have erased all the records.”

It was, of course, Bestia. Fortunately, no one else was around at this late hour.

“Be quiet!”

“Ah, yes. I’m sorry.”

There was a librarian?

Bestia immediately lowered her voice. She had been so absorbed in the books that she hadn’t noticed the librarian was different from before. The kindly-looking man named Popo was no longer there.

“This is both the imperial palace and a library!”

“Ah, I know. I’ll be quiet.”

“You who show no respect to books! Don’t read a single letter!”

“What? Ah, I understand.”

“What do you understand? I am Famil. I’ve been working as an imperial librarian for 18 years! I’ll personally teach you library etiquette!”

Instead, there was only this man named Famil, skinny with black-rimmed glasses!

“What? Ah, no. There’s no need—”

“Consider it an honor! It’s not like I’m speaking to you because I have too much time on my hands!”

…You look like you have plenty of time.

Bestia looked at Famil who had seated himself in front of her uninvited. While she stood there with a dumbfounded expression, he was already explaining the library rules.

Since it’s open 24 hours, I guess the librarians are here 24 hours too. Is he the night librarian?

His words came so quickly and abundantly that her head hurt even though she was only half-listening.

“This is the internal map of the library! You can freely use up to the second basement floor!”

Moreover, Famil’s voice had a tapping quality, and his woodpecker-like explanations made her ears sting.

“But here! The third basement floor requires His Majesty’s approval to…!”

Jump!

“Librarian Famil, what time do you get off work?”

“Why do you ask?”

So I can come when you’re not here.

“You must be very tired from the night shift, so I wanted to offer you some tea good for fatigue at your quitting time.”