I Was Just Having Fun With The Time Limit – Chapter 81

Chapter 81

Amidst a massive crowd.

There was a pair of man and woman who concealed their bodies and faces with thick robes.

The two silently observed Rahella and Isabel.

Upon closer inspection, the two were exuding a far greater presence than the crowd gathered there, yet no one noticed their presence.

Just like one cannot hear a sound if its frequency is too high.

Their presence was too immense and grand for ordinary people to perceive.

The woman’s name was Rovena. The Duke of the North, she opened her mouth.

“Your Majesty, I heard you hate things like this? You said media battles are despicable and vulgar, didn’t you?”

“……”

It had been 10 years since Rovena had last seen Ron.

The Ron she met after 10 years had changed so much.

“You said swordsmen should only focus on swordsmanship, didn’t you?”

“……”

“You said it’s enough to prove yourself with strength, didn’t you?”

“……”

“You said shows are only for weaklings, didn’t you?”

“……”

Ron frowned slightly and then opened his mouth.

“I wondered where Viaton learned to be so cheeky, but now I understand a little.”

Rovena’s eyes curved into crescents.

She found this situation very amusing.

That Ron, the genius swordsman who only knew swordsmanship, was now orchestrating this kind of show himself.

This show was organized by Ron himself, manipulating Rahella.

‘For his only daughter?’

Of course, there were parts that made sense to some extent.

Even she, who was wary of ‘cuteness,’ almost fell for Isabel’s loveliness.

“But Your Majesty.”

“What is it?”

“Aren’t you busy?”

“……”

“Why are you still stuck here?”

The Ron that Rovena knew was an extremely busy man.

It was somewhat funny that the Emperor, who was second to none in terms of busyness in this world, was spending days and nights here.

“I’m the only one who can stop the Duke’s futile attempts.”

“Are you saying you’re stuck here because you can’t help but worry that I might actually steal five years of the Princess’s life?”

“That’s right.”

“But you were constantly hovering around the Princess even before I appeared.”

“……”

Ron was at a loss for words.

Rovena was needlessly sharp.

“And you had that kind of out-of-place obsession with cleanliness, didn’t you? Sleeping in clean places, eating clean things, even on the battlefield, you were like that, and Viaton talked behind your back a lot.”

“He talked behind my back?”

Rovena, who had told him everything with a smiling face, felt relieved as if she had done her part and continued speaking.

“Anyway, is that obsession with cleanliness gone?”

“No, it’s still the same.”

“But you’re living with beggars under a bridge so as not to get your identity revealed?”

“……”

Rovena chuckled.

“Oh my, the man who seemed like he wouldn’t shed a tear if it wasn’t for the Empress has changed like this. I even feel a subtle sense of betrayal. How is it? The feeling of loving your child?”

Ron flinched.

He had never specifically thought about loving Isabel.

Until now, for Ron, children were merely successors to the throne of Bilotian.

His face, hidden under the robe, flushed slightly.

“I don’t engage in such trivial emotional games.”

“Really?”

“I’m just slightly, very slightly, microscopically concerned about whether she’s eating well, if her condition is good today, if anyone is bothering her, if she’s sick somewhere, if she’s acting too mature, if she’s faking happiness, if she’s truly happy, or if she’s lacking something, and if she is, what I can do for her, just like I would be worried about a child left by the water.”

Ravina, the Dragon of Wisdom, also known as Duke Rovena, put a period at the end of her sentence.

“You completely love her.”

“Not at all.”

“You absolutely love her.”

“……”

Throughout their conversation, Ron’s gaze never left Isabel.

News related to Isabel flooded the news outlets.

『Princess, Beyond the Olympiad to Alphea.』

『Demonstrating the Power of the Bilotian Imperial Family.』

Most news outlets did cover content related to the Magic Federation and the Magic Tower, but they couldn’t help but fill their articles with favorable content about Isabel.

There were too many eyes and ears to incite with cleverly manipulated lies.

Starting with the people of the Linta region, the citizens of the Alphea Kingdom, and numerous volunteers spared no praise for Isabel.

『Holy King Personally Sees Off the Princess.』

An epithet of respect.

Even Rahella, praised as the ‘Holy King,’ had welcomed Isabel at the Triumphal Arch and personally acknowledged her contributions.

Even LeSalin of Whisper couldn’t help but publish a favorable article about Isabel.

Not only was the public’s favor towards Isabel too high to touch carelessly at the moment, but Viaton’s warning was excessively frightening.

LeSalin was severely reprimanded by her superiors.

‘Just you wait.’

Viaton’s actions were excessively over the line.

She would let it slide for now, but as a reporter involved in the media, she had no intention of letting it go easily.

‘This fleeting popularity will fade quickly.’

Several stars are born every day. And most disappear without a trace.

The Princess would be no different.

‘When the public’s interest fades, I’ll weave a lot of things together and make it explode. How dare you insult the Chief Reporter of the free press Whisper like this?’

Meanwhile, Rahella, the King of Alphea, had a final dinner with Isabel.

“Does it suit your taste?”

“Wow.”

Isabel took a spoonful of the corn soup.

It was perfect for Isabel’s taste.

“It’s the best corn soup ever!”

A smile appeared on the face of the chef standing stiffly behind them.

There was a bit of corn soup on the corner of Isabel’s mouth, but it wasn’t vulgar and looked incredibly lovely.

“Yes, it seems the chef put in extra effort today.”

Isabel gave a thumbs-up.

“Chef-nim, I love you.”

Isabel’s body was currently seven years old.

When any emotion reached its peak, the reins of reason would snap, and her true feelings would burst out.

Sweet corn soup.

Sweet and savory garlic baguette as pre-dinner bread.

The heaven that Isabel had dreamed of again and again in the hospital room was here.

“This must be heaven.”

“Unlike a royal, the Princess has a very expressive face.”

Isabel suddenly thought, ‘Oops.’

There was a virtue that royalty should maintain composure at all times and not reveal their emotions.

That way, they could provide a sense of stable trust to the citizens of the empire.

But this couldn’t be helped.

“The baguette is just so delicious.”

She dipped it in condensed milk.

Munch munch.

The crispy-on-the-outside, soft-on-the-inside baguette melted in her mouth along with the condensed milk.

The sweet and not-too-greasy garlic flavor, combined with the savory and sweet taste of condensed milk and butter, richly filled her mouth.

Sweetness spread to the tips of her toes.

Intoxicated by that happiness, the seven-year-old body lost control of its reason once again.

“Mmm, it’s freaking delicious.”

“Freaking delicious?”

“It means it’s super delicious.”

Rahella burst out laughing.

She didn’t know where she learned to use such peculiar and strange words, but it was quite amusing that she understood what it meant as soon as she heard it.

“Yes, it’s freaking delicious.”

The dinner was over.

Isabel waved to the chef who was about to leave.

“Thank you. I enjoyed it. It was the best.”

Isabel felt genuinely grateful to the chef who had served her this delicious food.

She thought for a moment about how to accurately convey the heart of a seven-year-old, then smiled brightly and gave a thumbs-up.

“It was really freaking delicious!”

“It was truly an honor to prepare a meal for Your Highness.”

The chef, gauging the situation, also gave a thumbs-up.

It was awkward and embarrassing because it was his first time saying it, but since the Princess had initiated it, it was only polite to respond.

Although it was a little embarrassing, he responded with a straight face.

“Frea…… Freaking delicious!”

Hehe, hehehehe.

Laughter escaped his lips.

『Freaking delicious.』

This was now the family motto.

The chef, who had been falling into a slump, rediscovered his past passion today.

He was incredibly happy for the first time in a long time.

He returned home and excitedly told his wife.

“She was truly a tear-jerkingly beautiful person. I’ve never seen anyone like that!”

He wasn’t talking about her appearance.

She was someone who knew how to give pleasant happiness to others, and that was truly beautiful.

“I think I understand how the Princess’s maid could develop such freaking delicious desserts.”

“What’s freaking delicious?”

“It’s something like that, hehehe.”

“Honey, you don’t like children, do you?”

“That guy is dead.”

He had agreed with his wife not to have children.

They had decided to enjoy the world together, just the two of them.

He had always rejected his wife’s occasional suggestion, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice to have at least one child?’

“I’m sorry for changing my mind, but…… can we have just one daughter? I think a daughter is the answer, no matter how I think about it.”

He did get slapped hard on the back, but he was very happy today.

Isabel had changed a family’s life plan.

Unaware that she had completely changed the future of a family, Isabel silently listened to Rahella’s words.

“I don’t trust people, I trust situations.”

It was a mantra that Rahella cast on herself.

She, too, was being swayed by Isabel’s loveliness, but she rejected it with her head.

‘His Majesty the Emperor must have ordered all of this.’

Of course, Emperor Ron hadn’t ordered anything.

‘That means there’s a political calculation behind every action of the Princess.’

So Rahella decided not to trust the loveliness of the ‘person’ who was the Princess.

Instead, she believed in the ‘situation’ where the Emperor was doing this much for the Princess.

And she believed in the power of Isabel’s magic demonstrated at the volunteer site this time.

“And I only believe what I see and judge. I don’t think the Princess is plotting anything with her magic, specifically through the TeyIsabel Transfer Gate. I don’t think she can gain anything with false technology.”

Rather, she seemed to understand why the Magic Federation was desperately trying to slander the ‘TeyIsabel Transfer Gate.’

“In that sense……”

Rahella began to make a suggestion.