CH 3

Chapter 3/77│Read translated stories and daily updates at: Awebstories.com

“Huh?!”

I awoke the moment I was decapitated.

This ceiling appears to be familiar to me… it reminds me of my room…

“Haa…haa…w-was that a dream…?”

I clutch my brow and try to keep my heavy breathing under control.

My back is completely drenched in cold sweat.

It was far too vivid and long to be a dream.

“…In any case, let’s get up first…”

I get out of bed and sit up… Hmm? Was the bed always this high off the ground?

Surprised that my feet were farther from the floor than I expected, I got out of bed and felt dizzy…

?!

“What… is this…?”

The mirror reflected my entire body.

It was exactly how I used to look when I was a boy.

In a panic, I ring the bell, and a maid enters.

“Would you like to see me, Your Highness Dietrich?”

“…can you tell me what year it is today?”

“Eh…what?”

“I asked you what day of the year it is!”

With a puzzled expression on her face, I raised my voice to the maid.

“Please excuse me. Today is May 12th, Estline 148.”

“What?!”

When the maid told me the date, I gasped.

Marguerite will be introduced as my fiance on May 12th, Estline 148…!

To put it another way, I am now thirteen years old…

“Ha…ha…”

“Your…highness?”

The maid is worried when she sees me laughing dryly and calls out to me, but I don’t pay attention to her.

I’m not sure what this means, and I’m not sure if I’ve gone back in time or if everything that happened was just a dream.

But there is one thing I am certain of…

“I… I can start from scratch…!”

I muttered this while stroking my neck, which was supposed to be severed at the time.

—○█○—

“This is what you will be wearing today, Your Highness Dietrich.”

My clothes are being changed by the maids.

Of course, the clothes were identical to those I wore the first time I met Marguerite… no, the second time I met her.

…I went back to when I was thirteen…

And now I understand.

Above all, the arrangement is unmistakably identical.

“And how would you like your breakfast, Your Highness?”

“Ah, uh… bring it with you because I’ll be eating in this room today.

“Eh!? R-Right away…”

Because I said something unexpected, the maid was taken aback for a moment before bowing reverently and exiting the room.

Because she works for the royal palace, the fact that she quickly regained her composure demonstrates that she is an excellent maid.

The old me would have had breakfast in the dining room with Oscar and Josephine…unfortunately, I am unable to confront them. No way, I’m not going to do it.

Especially for that Oscar.

Aside from that, I need to get my head around the situation.

First and foremost, it is May 12, Estline 148. Marguerite is named my fiancee on this day, and I meet her.

A month later, Marguerite will move into the palace and begin her formal training to become a queen.

“…first and foremost, I need to confirm her intentions…”

In a previous life, I was mean to Marguerite.

I don’t want to compel her to marry me.

So I must respect her wishes, and if she refuses to be my fiancée, I must do everything possible to make it happen.

But… if she says she’ll be my fiancee again…

“…Then I promise I’ll make her happy.”

That is the only atonement I can offer.

“Your Highness, your breakfast has arrived.”

Breakfast is brought to my room and prepared by the maids.

…I’ll consider the rest after breakfast.

As I was about to sit down…

“How are you today, Elder Brother?”

“Dietrich-oniisama…”

Oscar and Josephine had entered the room for some reason.

“…what’s the problem?”

“Nothing, you usually eat with us, but they said you were eating in your room today, so we were concerned.”

“Dietrich-oniisama…are you feeling ill?”

Oscar explained in a matter-of-fact tone that suggested he was unconcerned.

Josephine’s voice, on the other hand, suggests that she is concerned about me—I am impressed by her ability to do so much with her acting.

“Don’t be concerned. Today I just wanted to eat in my room. So, both of you, go back.”

“Wahaha, I’m glad to hear that.”

“…I’m going to miss eating with you…”

I eat in silence, not looking at either of them.

Josephine looked as if she wanted to say something, but Oscar drew her hand and exited the room.

“…Hmph.”

After they’re gone, I snort.

Why would I want to be in the company of my adversary?

“…I need to figure out how to get rid of them.”

I mumble in a low enough voice that the maids can’t hear me and continue eating my breakfast.