“Uh? Stella, what’s this?”

The drink she had absentmindedly sipped tasted alcoholic. It was refreshing and sweet, making it go down smoothly.

“Oh? Princess, did you drink that?”

Lianne, who was bringing out food, noticed the glass Stella was holding and asked with wide eyes, even catching her breath. The glass, which had been full to the brim, was now half empty.

“Yeah. Wasn’t it put here for drinking?”

“I’m sorry. Actually, it was a drink I intended to have before bed because I couldn’t sleep. I meant to put it away. It’s strong, are you okay?”

Lianne, looking a bit flustered, asked while closely observing Stella’s face. But Princess Stella was sipping it slowly, as if it were fruit juice.

Lianne didn’t know what to do, but Stella seemed perfectly fine. In fact, the refreshing and sweet drink made her feel all her fatigue melt away. The sweet taste lingering on her tongue was exquisite, and her appetite was whetted.

“Is there more of this?”

Stella, feeling one glass wasn’t enough, asked while smacking her lips.

“What? Really? Isn’t it too strong?”

“Yeah. It’s nothing. It’s sweet and tasty. Feels like it’s even relieving my fatigue.”

“Then I’ll bring you a little more. Even though it tastes sweet, it’s quite strong, so I’m worried it might upset your stomach.”

“Yes, please.”

After a moment’s hesitation, Lianne agreed and went to get more of the drink.

However, she worried about giving the princess the cheap alcohol usually drunk by the servants. It was a relief that Milla wasn’t at Verdura Castle today.

Lianne had met many maids while staying in the royal castle, but none were as strict in everything as Milla.

This made her more trustworthy, but sometimes Lianne worried if Milla was too hard on herself.

The empty glass was filled with a crimson liquid. Just looking at it lifted the mood. A sip, and the refreshing aroma was inhaled.

Feeling a bit guilty drinking alone, Stella offered the empty glass to Royce.

“Want to try? Do you have any evening training?”

Kai, initially intending to refuse, extended an empty glass after seeing how much Stella was enjoying it. He was curious about how good this highly praised drink really was.

“One glass, please.”

The barrel of alcohol Lianne brought was quite heavy.

“A little will do.”

“Yes, Princess. I’ll just pour a little into this decanter.”

Lianne placed a pretty glass bottle on the table and poured the fruit wine into it. It was enough for one person to have about two glasses when shared.

As soon as the wine was poured, the table was filled with a rich fruity aroma.

It tasted even better with meat. Stella nibbled on the meat while slowly sipping the fruit wine Lianne had made.

Seeing Stella enjoy it so much, the earth fairies, curious about the taste, sniffed the glass.

“Ugh! What’s this smell?”

“It’s weird! Why drink something like this?”

Ark and Esta exclaimed in disbelief. However, Oton tilted her head and dipped her finger into the glass, then lightly touched it to her tongue.

“This is actually quite tasty.”

Even though Oton said it was delicious, Ark and Esta didn’t like the smell and stayed away, while Iver, curious, approached.

“Is it really that good?”

“Yeah. Try it.”

Encouraged by Oton, Iver also dipped his finger into the drink to taste it. Finding it quite to his liking, Iver alternated with Oton in tasting it, but suddenly sprawled out on the table, snoring softly.

“Hey, why are you sleeping there?”

Oton scolded Iver, who had fallen asleep unexpectedly, but there was nothing to be done. Falling asleep had nothing to do with Iver’s will.

“Oh dear, this is a problem.”

In his dreams, Iver’s round cheeks twitched, and he smiled broadly.

“Oh dear, this is a problem. Come help me move Iver to his room!”

Oton clicked her tongue at the sight of the sleeping Iver. But neither Ark nor Esta moved.

“What are you doing? I said let’s move Iver.”

Oton said irritably, turning her head sharply towards Ark and Esta. But they both had the same dumbfounded expression, looking somewhere else.

Following their gaze, Oton sighed deeply.

“Oton, it seems like Iver isn’t the only one with a problem.”

Esta and Oton murmured, unable to take their eyes off Stella, looking dazed.

Stella, who was sipping the drink, claiming it was delicious, was visibly getting sleepy.

“Stella! Stella! You can’t sleep here!”

Ark waved his hand and shouted at Stella. But Stella, as if she couldn’t hear, blinked slowly and finished the remaining drink in her glass.

“I’m tired.”

After saying those words, Stella let her head fall onto the table with a thud and fell asleep. This happened after she had only finished two glasses of fruit wine.

“Oh dear, what should we do!”

Startled, Lianne gently shook Stella to wake her up, but Stella kept repeating that she was tired.

It wasn’t just the earth fairies who looked at Stella in disbelief.

Drinking more than she could handle!

Kai was on the verge of scolding Stella for her reckless behavior.

“Where is the princess’s bedroom?”

With no other choice, Kai asked, and Lianne visibly brightened.

“The fifth floor.”

Lianne pointed to the ceiling with an apologetic expression. Unfortunately, Darren wasn’t in the castle at that time. He had taken a rare day off and was staying at his house outside the castle until the next day.

“Sigh.”

Kai barely suppressed a sigh as he stood up. Since the dining room was on the second floor, he had quite a few stairs to climb to reach the fifth floor.

All this trouble after just two glasses.

Kai sighed in frustration at Stella, who always seemed to complicate things.

“Please take care of her. Our princess isn’t heavy at all.”

Lianne, seeing Kai’s displeased expression, reassured him. Reluctantly, Kai approached and lifted the sleeping Stella into his arms.

With no strength in her body, Stella’s frame sagged like a limp worm.

As she kept shifting in his arms, Kai had to adjust his hold on her several times. Each time, Lianne, who was walking ahead, stopped with an embarrassed face.

“We’re almost there.”

Liar.

They were just reaching the stairs to the third floor. Despite the significant number of stairs still ahead, Lianne repeatedly insisted they were almost there, perhaps out of guilt.

The unfamiliar warmth of the body in his arms made Kai tense up.

Before climbing the stairs, he had been thoroughly annoyed by the troublesome task. Yet, as the number of steps decreased, he oddly felt a sense of reluctance.

Is she cold?

Kai awkwardly rationalized his inexplicable feelings with that question.

Yeah, she must be cold.

Ignoring the sweet scent of alcohol, Kai resolutely climbed the remaining stairs. Despite the slow pace, it felt like Stella’s bedroom was approaching quickly.

“This way.”

When Lianne opened the door, Brynn, who was tidying up the bedroom, was startled.

“Oh my! What’s wrong with the princess?”

Worried that she might be unwell, Brynn approached, only to be greeted by the strong smell of alcohol. She smiled sheepishly and quickly pulled back the bedcovers.

“Just lay her down, and I’ll take care of the rest.”

Brynn pointed to the bed, and Kai gently laid Stella down. From his expression, it seemed like he would have thrown her down, but surprisingly, he didn’t.

“Ugh.”

Stella, who had been limp, curled up like a shrimp and groaned as her back touched the bed. The warmth that had been in his arms disappeared almost disappointingly fast.

“Then I’ll be going.”

It seemed she needed a change of clothes and perhaps a wash, so he turned to leave.

“Royce.”

Stella, lying in bed, called out to Kai, stopping him in his tracks. He turned back towards where Stella lay.

He thought she had woken up and was looking at him, but Stella still had her eyes tightly shut.

As Kai stood silently, Brynn glanced at him, wondering why he wasn’t responding. Even if it was sleep-talking, the princess had called him, and he hadn’t answered.

“Yes, Princess.”

“Weren’t you scared?”

Stella had somehow sat up from her position, leaning her head against the bedpost.

“What do you mean?”

Seeing they had something to discuss, Brynn hesitated but then decided to leave. She felt it wasn’t right to overhear the princess’s personal conversation.

“Could you stay with the princess while I prepare a warm towel? She shouldn’t sleep like this.”

Kai nodded with a stoic expression. Brynn, looking reluctant, glanced between the two before leaving the room when Stella called Kai again.

“Royce.”

Sitting with her eyes closed, leaning against the bedpost, Stella looked unusually small. Kai stood as far away as possible.

“Yes.”

“I was so scared.”

“…….”

“Voices that no one else could hear were speaking to me. I could see things that no one else could see.”

It was the same fear Kai had felt as a child. He wondered if young Stella had trembled under her covers, hearing unknown voices like he had.

“I thought I was going crazy. Everyone else said they couldn’t see them, but I could. They kept calling my name, over and over. Did you feel the same?”

Stella lifted her heavy eyelids to look at Kai as she asked. Somehow seeing a reflection of his younger self, Kai clenched his fists and stood firmly in place.