NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 5
Chapter 5
Seere wandered around with a training journal that Nahun had handed to her, along with her teddy bear. This was for her practical assignment in imperial studies assigned by Nahun.
“Oh my, Your Majesty.”
Cecili, a maid from the Demon King Castle, greeted her warmly when she spotted Seere. Having served as a maid from the previous generation, Cecili’s fluffy fox tail with its shiny fur was impressive as always.
Seere, who usually inclined her head in greeting, remembered the assignment given by Nahun and raised her head straight. Cecili smiled kindly and asked Seere,
“What brings you here alone today?”
Today, Nahun and Cain were not with her. In response to Cecili’s question, Seere showed her the training journal in her hand. After looking it over for a moment, Cecili said as if she understood,
“Oh, that’s the homework assigned by the teacher who just arrived?”
Nodding.
Seere decided to put into practice the ‘Practical Assignment in Imperial Studies’ that Nahun had given her. With an adorable gesture, she put her hands on her hips and commanded Cecili.
“Start cleaning right now, Cecili!”
Though Seere usually spoke with honorifics, this was different, as she spoke in a casual tone. It wasn’t her original thought, but rather she was reciting exactly what Nahun had instructed.
Knowing how to suitably command subordinates as a superior. Despite learning about imperial studies, Seere hadn’t yet absorbed the demeanor of a sovereign, and this was an assignment aimed at training her. By forcing herself to command, she would eventually become accustomed to it.
Cecili tilted her head at Seere’s command.
“Your Majesty, I was already cleaning, you know?”
“Ah!”
Seere opened her mouth slightly, realizing something, and Cecili let out a light laugh. Glancing at the training journal once more, she quickly acted.
“Since you commanded it, I’ll pay extra attention. I will follow your order.”
“Uh, mmm!”
Hearing the response, Seere zipped past Cecili. Watching her adorable figure with white hair bouncing as she ran, Cecili smiled happily.
“Hehe, so cute.”
Rushing through the hallway down the staircase, Seere headed for her next destination: the kitchen. Standing in front of the kitchen door, Seere looked at the doorknob with wide eyes and reached out.
“Ugh….”
She couldn’t reach it. Although she was seven years old, her growth was slow, and she was shorter than her peers. Perhaps that’s why, the kitchen door knob was just out of her reach.
In fact, it wasn’t entirely Seere’s height that was the problem; rather, the doorknob in the kitchen was situated at a relatively high position. It was likely to prevent an accident in which a young child like Seere could wander in uninvited and get hurt by the fire.
Seere could make that distinction now, but the kitchen doorknob still did not permit her entry.
After struggling for a while, Seere muttered sulkily.
“I can’t reach….”
“Your Majesty?”
At that moment, someone came to rescue Seere. A demon from the Lizard race, with sturdy-looking blue scales and a face resembling a lizard, alongside a long tail, made a strong impression.
“Uncle Mark!”
“Well, what brings you here?”
His name was Mark, a skilled chef responsible for the kitchen at the Demon King Castle, who often prepared Seere’s favorite pudding and cake.
He seemed to have just returned from the food storage with both hands full of ingredient boxes.
Seere reflexively bowed her head to greet him and then, realizing her behavior, let out a startled sound. Mark tilted his head and asked her,
“What’s wrong, Your Majesty?”
Shaking her head as if to say it was nothing, Seere prompted Mark not to probe further. He showcased a skillful maneuver by shifting the box in his left hand to hold it with his tail, and opened the door for Seere.
“Please come in, Your Majesty.”
Following Mark into the kitchen, Seere looked around. The kitchen always maintained the same scenery. The fact that the cooking place kept the same appearance indicated how much the head chef cared for cleanliness.
“It seems like you wanted something to eat.”
“Uh, yes!”
Seeing Seere respond in a casual tone unlike usual, Mark tilted his head in wonder. However, he didn’t make a big deal out of it. Seere had been unusually formal previously, but this was how things should naturally be.
“Just tell me what you want; I’ll make it for you.”
Seere gulped as she looked at Mark. It was quite challenging for her to speak casually to someone she always called Uncle.
But since Nahun had insisted that she wouldn’t be allowed to eat pudding unless she did this, she had no choice. Seere raised her index finger, trying to sound as authoritative as possible.
“Bring, bring me pudding!”
“As you wish, Your Majesty.”
Mark readily accepted the command. He began preparing the ingredients and started the innumerable repetitive tasks he had performed many times before. Seere watched him with big, twinkling eyes.
The gradual process of the pudding coming together under Mark’s hands felt almost like magic. Without realizing it, Seere found herself with her mouth agape, focusing intently on his cooking.
Pudding takes longer to prepare than one would think. It requires time to bake and then to cool, after all. However, they were demons capable of using magic.
[Cooling]
With a gesture from Mark, the baked pudding rapidly cooled down. The bouncy pudding was placed on a plate and put in front of Seere.
“Enjoy your meal, Your Majesty.”
“Yay~!”
Seere, having forgotten all about her assignment by now, sparkled with joy like a child. Mark smiled warmly as he watched her. Seere scooped up a large helping of pudding with her spoon.
“Yum!”
The moment she put the pudding in her mouth, it felt like heaven opened before her.
“Mmm~!”
“Is it delicious?”
“Yes, yes!”
Mark felt a sense of satisfaction watching Seere nod eagerly in response. A chef’s greatest satisfaction comes from seeing someone enjoy their food.
“It’s delicious~♪”
Though she was still not used to commanding others, Seere felt that sometimes it wasn’t so bad to do so.
##
Three days had passed since Nahun entered the Demon King Castle. During that time, Seere had been listening to various theoretical classes in the morning and practicing what she learned in the afternoons with Nahun.
“Good, Seere. Try to move your magic power just a bit more.”
“Yes, yes!”
Now, Seere was training to draw out her magical power. This training involved pulling the magic that was trapped in her mana heart outward continuously, thereby expanding her circuits.
‘Impressive…’
Nahun was amazed by the amount of magic emanating from her small body. Despite still having few circuits formed, an unimaginable amount of magical power was pouring out.
‘Is this the Demon King?’
The depiction of players being surprised at training Seere in the game wasn’t without reason. Even based on memories that surfaced after reincarnating, Seere’s magical power was extraordinary.
This was potential that could not simply be viewed as that of the 72nd floor, the lowest tier of the Demon Kings.
‘With this much, I can be a bit more ambitious.’
It seemed like it would be alright to advance the training further. Of course, not right now. There was a reason why Nahun could not have her focus solely on magic training at this moment.
“Alright, Seere. That’s enough for now.”
“Yes.”
As Nahun declared that they were done, Seere, who had retracted her magical power, breathed heavily. This was the reason.
‘Her stamina is way too low.’
Perhaps because she had grown pampered living her life in the Demon King Castle, she lacked stamina for her age. If anything, at her young age, she should be bursting with energy. Where could you find children who wouldn’t tire after running around for hours?
“Let’s take a break and then move on to stamina training.”
Thus, Nahun made sure to include stamina training in their daily schedule. He of course noted it in the training journal as well.
“Yes.”
Seere replied obediently. Nahun nodded to himself, feeling grateful that she was following along. After all, children who refuse to listen are often the hardest to deal with. Nahun felt really fortunate that it hadn’t been that way with her.
After a sufficient rest, Seere followed Cain into the castle and changed from her usual cute dress into clothes more suitable for activities. Although her outfit had changed, she still held onto her teddy bear.
“Are you going to run around with your teddy bear again today?”
Nodding vigorously.
Nahun tilted his head. No matter how fond she was of her doll, this was in a whole different realm of obsession. Seere was particularly attached to her bear.
‘Is there a reason for it?’
Nahun kindly inquired.
“But Seere, if you fall while running, won’t your teddy bear get hurt? Is that alright?”
“Ah, I won’t fall.”
“But just in case. You never know how things will go in life.”
“…….”
Despite Nahun’s advice, Seere not only didn’t let go of her teddy bear but hugged it even tighter. Seeing this, Nahun decided it was better to let her do as she wished rather than forcibly take the doll from her.
“Alright, if that’s what you want, then go ahead.”
“Yes.”
“We’ll run just as much as we did yesterday. Are you ready?”
“Yes!”
Seere began to run energetically. Although it was quite unstable to run with both hands full of her bear, to Nahun’s surprise, she managed to run well without falling.
“Her sense of balance is quite good…”
Nahun wanted to know the reason for Seere’s obsession with her teddy bear. So he asked Cain, who was waiting nearby.
“Cain.”
“Yes, Nahun.”
“Is there a reason Seere is so attached to her teddy bear?”
“Oh, I hadn’t mentioned it.”
Cain watched Seere running with a concerned expression.
“That was a gift from the previous Demon King, Seihr, for Seere’s fifth birthday.”
Upon hearing Cain’s story, Nahun immediately understood the reason behind Seere’s attachment to her teddy bear.
Her fifth birthday. It was the last birthday that Seere had celebrated with her father, Seihr von Debata.
The teddy bear was the last birthday gift left by her father. Nahun hadn’t known this context. It was not a story revealed in the game. It was likely a setting created during the development phase but never disclosed.
“So that’s it…”
Nahun narrowed his eyes slightly. Seihr von Debata. He knew the full story behind his death. This was a significant part of the game’s narrative, and naturally, Nahun knew all the details.
‘Now isn’t the time to…’
It wasn’t yet time to disclose such things. Nahun was not so cold-hearted as to tell a child who hadn’t yet forgotten her father about this.
‘When the time comes to share the story, to help this child get her revenge…’
Indeed, education was the priority.