"There are many worlds in the universe. The worlds are separated from each other, so most of them are unaware of each other's existence, but very rarely, sometimes, there are those who cross the world... I know that."
So tell me how to travel back and forth between worlds.
This book was also a failure.
"Heave-ho."
I struggled to close the book the size of my body and looked up at the sky. This was a watchtower in the corner of our mansion- that's how it's named but I called it a small castle. I used it as a shelter today since this was the day the leech was coming, but I liked it quite a lot.
The unique coolness of the stone-built building, it was taller than the surroundings, and it felt as if you were close to the sky.
"If you cross that sky, will another world come out?"
Then it's a problem in it's way. Because there's no way to get through the atmosphere. Shall I read another book?
"Euseniel!"
I didn't hear anything.
"Gasp gasp, Euseniel! I'm here!"
Yes, I didn't hear anything.
"Hey Euseniel!"
But I had to lower my gaze from the book because of the bright blonde haired boy who flashed his greetings through the dark walls.
"… Hello, Crown Prince."
"No one is around!"
The boy whispered secretly, as if telling a very important story, and then I nodded.
"Hi, Tess."
When there were only the two of us, we should call each other's name and talk casually. This was my promise to him.
"Hehe. Hello Euseniel! I miss you!"
The boy, the Crown Prince of this country, Tessvalun, hugged me tight.
I failed to leave him out today.
Tess, unaware of my complicated feelings, muttered in a cute voice.
"Euseniel, I missed you. I missed you so much that I dreamed of Euseniel last night!"
Didn't we see each other yesterday too?
Tess pulled himself away from me and clasped his hands together and asked with twinkling eyes.
"It was really hard coming all the way here because I missed Euseniel. Euseniel, would you like to live with us?"
"No."
Your house is the Imperial Palace. If I, the only daughter of Duke Hardland, live in you, the Crown Prince's house, everyone will think that I am the future Empress. That's a no.
"Hngg… why? There are so many books that Euseniel likes in the Imperial Palace?"
… Well, it was a little tempting , but no.
"By the way, you came yesterday, why did you come again today?"
You said you would only come to my house three days a week. But if you count in today, it seems like the 5th day, oh God.
I knew the answer, but I asked just in case.
"I miss Euseniel!"
I knew it. Still, the twinkling boy with his blonde hair and blue eyes moved his shoulders more dazzlingly.
"Why don't you make friends other than me, Tess? You are the Crown Prince. A Crown Prince should know how to treat everyone equally."
"I don't know. I don't know!"
Tess hugged me tighter again.
"It hurts my eyes with other people."
… Did other people have more eyes and noses?
It's not the first time I've heard of this, so I've asked several times, but Tess never told me.
"My eyes hurt so much."
"… But you're saying it doesn't hurt to see me?"
"Yes!"
The child raised his head and smiled happily, revealing all of his teeth. I don't know why, but it's pretty hard to show hostility to someone who blindly trusts you.
In the end, I had no choice but to talk while stroking his fine blonde hair.
"Sit down, Tess. Should you be quiet while I read?"
"Yes! But can't you play with me for a little bit?"
The round eyes stared intently at me.
In my mind, the answer was already 'No,' but, as always, I was weak against Tess.
"Okay. I'll just read this book quickly."
I pointed to the thick book, and Tess smiled happily. So I grabbed one of the books I had piled up next to me, and Tess sat down next to me.
Maybe it's good to gaze at me from the side. I could pretend to not know the gaze, but I had to ask once in a while.
"Do you like looking at me that much?"
"Yes! I really like it. It's fascinating."
… What's fascinating about the number of eyes, nose and mouth that were properly adjusted?
"I really like Euseniel. So live with me. I heard from Father that I can marry a very nice person. Shall we get married?"
What on earth did His Majesty the Emperor say to this little boy?
"Tess, we are six years old. Marriage usually takes place beyond the age of adulthood. Do you understand?"
"Adulthood… Twenty? Oh my God!"
Tess, who was astonished and covered his mouth with his small hand, was pretty cute, but I held back my laughter. If I laughed here, Tess would say, 'Euseniel, do you like it? Let's live together!'. The probability of saying something like this would be 100 out of 100.
"Then, can't we get engaged before then? Engaged now and married later. Stamping that Euseniel and I belong to each other."
… I always thought, where did his vocabulary come from? He is only six years old now.
Tess' full name is Tessvalun Neussville. He was the only prince of the Empire, and he was more famous by his nickname.
'Coward'.
When he saw people, he would cry or run away with all his might and confined himself to the Crown Prince's Palace. A child of this age was unable to make the friendships that he should have, and was confined to the Imperial Palace.
Then it turned out that he did not cry when he saw me, so I was selected as the friend of the crybaby Prince.
"Uhh, Tess. No."
"Euseniel always says no!"
After all, there was a reason why I became the test subject.
The Northern Empire, where I was now, was a large country occupying half of a large continent. For reference, the country at the bottom was the Southern Empire, and in addition to it, there were several small principalities and kingdoms.
In the Northern Empire, there was the imperial family, which was the center of the Empire, and the four Grand Duchies, including the imperial family. All of them contributed to the founding of the country, and I, Euseniel, was the only daughter of the Hardland family among these four Grand Duchies.
I was famous even before I was born because of having a Duke father and an elf mother, and I became even more famous after birth.
The child who doesn't cry, Euseniel Hardland.
When you were born, you should cry, but instead of crying, I looked at my parents. Not only did I start to speak faster than my peers, I also excelled at learning.
Actually I remembered the moment I was born.
I tried to pretend I was a child, but I was rumored to be weird because of my calmness and my mental development much faster than my peers.
In a sense, Tess was also a strange child, so maybe the Emperor thought that I, another strange child, might be able to be his friend. So the Emperor gave me an access plate to the Imperial Palace and made me come to the Imperial Palace.
Since the first Emperor, the Imperial Palace has been shielded by the power of the Emperor from generation to generation. So, if you don't get an access plate with the Emperor's permission, you can't enter at all. Thanks to that, even thieves can't steal.
Anyway, the Emperor who invited me to the Imperial Palace like this and presented me to the apple of his eyes, and to his surprise, the Crown Prince....
Didn't cry.
"But Tess, why didn't you cry when you first saw me?"
"That-"
Tess smiled broadly, perhaps glad that I spoke to him, and grabbed my hand.
"Because it's Euseniel."
What, what kind of tone like talking about my destiny? In fact, it was a question that had already been asked hundreds of times, so I gave up Tess's hand and immersed myself in the book again.
After a while, my shoulders gradually get heavy. As expected, Tess leaned on my shoulder and fell asleep.
… Was it okay for a growing child to fall asleep anywhere, Tess?
"Sigh...."
If the child was left sitting on the cold floor for a long time, he would definitely catch a cold. I brought a cushion, so it was no problem, but this wasn't the case.
"You are disturbing me again today like this."
After carefully putting the book I was reading down on the floor, I pricked his white, puffy cheeks.
""Uh, ung…?"
"Get up, Tess, let's go to the main building to eat."
"Uhh...."
It was pretty cute to watch the angelic-looking kid chewing his mouth and raising his body. Pulling his messy hair over, I stood up.
Oh, my shoulder was numb.
"Let's go, Tess."
Tess, who looked at my outstretched hand, smiled softly and grabbed it.
"Yes!"
While eating, Tess made a bombshell declaration.
"Duchess, I will marry Euseniel."