Chapter 2
Determined to live, Erne walked on the small bridge.
At night when monsters appeared, she hid deep and did not move, and walked toward the east direction when the sun rose during the day.
Luck was on her side for a while.
But it didn’t last long. At that time, I didn’t know that the notorious Mistia forest was full of monsters who were active during the day, not at night.
Oh, my God!
Even nowadays, a giant spider monster that often appears in her dreams came over her.
Finally, this difficult life is over.
She wanted to live, but she was glad if she died in the meantime. Unless even a miracle did happen,I don’t think that I will live happily.
But a miracle happened.
Kiehg!
When she was holding her breath in the spider-made cocoon looking forward to her upcoming death, the monster head was cut off.
She opened her eyes only after hearing the sound of footsteps of a human.
She did not think how long it had been since she heard the sound of human beings and thought that he was a bandit with a good heart.
‘Eugh!’
Erne was desperate to announce that she was trapped in a cocoon.
I tried so hard because I didn’t want to live a miserable life.
Fortunately, her efforts worked, and a man tore the cocoon with his hand.
It was a middle-aged man with silver hair and blue eyes who was seen in the sun with a high degree of eye piercing.
The man looked the same age as the emperor who abandoned her, but he had a gentle look that was incomparable to the emperor.
‘A young kid? I thought I saw it wrong… ‘
The first human voice that I didn’t hear in a fews days was more sweet than a drop of dew from suffering from extreme thirst.
The man reassured Erne with his sweet voice.
‘Relax, the monster that attacked you has just been destroyed. And I’m not a bandit, so you can trust me.‘
‘Then you’re…‘
‘Im Branson Herley from the Empire of Brithion. And the house of the Marquis of Herley.’
‘Bri, Brithion?‘
At the time, I was more clear where he came from than who he was. Brithion was the place she wanted to go.
After saving Erne, the Marquis asked many questions.
‘Where’d you get hurt? Can you get up? I wonder how a kid was wandering alone in the woods.’
The emperor that abandoned her immediately slapped Erne if she answered even a little late. Recalling the fear at that time, she tried to answer quickly, but she was so surprised that she could not speak easily.
As she just kept her mouth open, this time a boy who looked about thirteen years old appeared behind the Marquis.
‘Father, I’m confused, how can you ask questions like that? Even those who know this place well will get lost in a place like this.’
It was Leighton, who is now Erne’s brother.
He grabbed Erne and quickly raised her up. Then he hand-picked the spider webs from her body.
The kind treatment she received for the first time in her life made it difficult for her to come to her senses.
It was the first time she met someone who did not hate her and treated her as a normal child.
After removing all the webs, Leighton stared at her with the same clear blue eyes as his own father.
‘Are you all right?‘
‘Th, thank you. Actually… I’m lost.’
‘What about your family?’
I couldn’t answer honestly. I thought if they knew that her mother was a maid, and she didn’t know who her father was, they would be disgusted like I used to be.
If such warm people suddenly changed their attitudes and looked at her like a bug, the torn heart would be cut into smaller pieces.
‘………both of my parents died a long time ago. I don’t have any brothers. So I came in here without knowing it was a dangerous place, and…‘
In conflict, Erne suddenly spat out a lie.
When I saw them with sympathetic eyes, guilt from the corner of my heart bit her.
‘Oh, my God…‘
‘I guess you are wandering around alone. It’s pitiful, then come with us. Okay?‘
Fortunately, they were deceived by Erne’s sloppy lies. Leighton even told his father to take the poor Erne.
Even so, Marquis, who had already felt sorry for her, also had the same opinion as his son.
‘Yeah, come with us for now.‘
That was my first meeting with my current family.
Bringing Erne with the Marquis, they say they will find her a new home.
Leighton, who was particularly affectionate, wanted to make her his younger sister, but the Marquis objected.
After the Marquis’ wife died in a wrong way while giving birth, he became alone, and he said he did not want to make Erne a child without a mother.
Then a married couple, who had just lost their daughter, offered to adopt her. Both couples were caring and had a good family that didn’t have difficult finances.
However, as the time approached to let Erne go, the Marquis changed his words.
‘If… if you don’t want to go, you don’t have to go. I know you need a new mother, but it’s hard for me to let you go.‘
He took care of her for a few days and attached his affection to her, and before he knew it, he changed his mind.
Nevertheless, Erne, who wanted to stay there, replied, ‘Of course I won’t go,’ and she became the adopted daughter of the Marquis.
Her warm memory soon gave her a comfortable smile.
“Yes, I was so lucky to meet my current father.”
They really took care of Erne with great care because she didn’t have a mother or a sister.
The misfortune that bothered her so much in her childhood was probably for the happiness of this time.
‘I wasn’t actually lost. I was abandoned.’
Loved enough, she eventually revealed the secret of her birth when she turned 15.
It all said that she was the maid’s daughter, that she did not know who her father was, and that she had been dumped in the Mistia forest because of the emperor’s anger.
When they heard the story, they took care of her, saying that she was pitiful, and they didn’t dislike her.
“Anna, as you said, I feel a little relieved thinking about that time. Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.”
Anna brought a towel and wiped the sweat from Erne’s forehead.
“Wicked people are punished. I heard that the Guardian(TN: they’re talking about the dragon) of Zermania still hasn’t woken up from the egg. Perhaps the Guardian is angry? The guardian deity must be turning a blind eye to them because they are the ones who bullied you like that.”
“I hope so.”
It’s only for a moment, but Anna’s words made me feel better.
I didn’t talk about it openly, but actually I secretly hoped for it. The guardian of the imperial family did not wake up from the eggs forever, so they shed tears and hoped to reflect on their actions.
“But she (dragon) will wake up soon. If Rozanna is there, she’ll have to wake up even if she doesn’t want to.”
Anna poked out her lips. She didn’t want to admit it.
She couldn’t help it even though she hated it. Erne herself knew well that the guardian god was about to wake up as long as Rozanna, the real Princess born between the real Empress and the Emperor, was present.
Rozanna inherited the blood and abilities of the imperial family more clearly than anyone else, so it was clear that the guardian deity would feel the energy of his master and open his eyes soon.
‘Now I shouldn’t care about the imperial affairs.’
The guardian deity, the emperor, and now that time has passed, it has become completely another’s business. Only her head would hurt if she had to pay attention.
“DId you tie your hair well? Don’t let it untie”
“Yes, I tied it up so that it wouldn’t come out during the fight like last time.”
“Okay. Now bring me the sword.”
It was a morning routine of aristocratic women of her age after dress-up to call a friend over to have tea or go to see a dress.
However, as Marquis Herley’s adopted daughter, the first sword of the kingdom, had a slightly different routine than others.
“I’ve to go now. My father will be waiting.”
“Oh, don’t forget the helmet!”
With her helmet on, Erne finished her final outfit.
It was not a dress shop or a friend’s tea party place, where Erne was headed to, is a training field where knights were rolling around covered in dirt.
***
“Hasn’t the guardian hatched yet?”
The Emperor asked again today. The question was asked every single day over the past 10 years.
But the answer was always the same.
Rozanna, who came to greet him in the morning, hesitated and answered the same as always.
“……yes, I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you good news.”
The Emperor sighed deeply. This was also the same answer as usual.
It’s already been over 10 years. The guardian of the royal family, Dragon, who should have been awakened, did not wake up from the egg.
The first Emperor who founded the empire was a man of special ability to communicate with the dragon with the soul.
This ability was inherited by the previous emperors, which allowed the empire to be protected by a Dragon.
And this has been the driving force that has made the empire prosperous. The Zermania tribes have taken advantage of their abilities to easily dominate the continent.
The neighboring empire, Brithion, was unable to conquer because of another special ability of their royal family.
Most of the other countries that bordered Zermania were sending tributes with their heads down.
However, it was a story that only happens when there is the dragon.
“That’s a big deal. It’ll be dangerous at this rate. Why on earth that still doesn’t hatch…?.”