Your Regrets Are Late

“Your Royal Highness, a-are you hurt anywhere?”

“…

it’s okay. I’m not hurt.”

Charteron, who had been dazed by Martin’s question, came to her senses late and finally answered.

Luensir first opened the window to provide ventilation. “The magic that moves things isn’t ‘Bartero,’ but ‘Varadero’.”

“…Lur, what should I do?”

Looking at the book near Charteron, he found out what kind of magic she had used, and he corrected the formula. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t even do simple magic, but he memorized spells perfectly. He would tell Charteron when she was confused.

Even if they tried to fix it, the magic lab had already exploded, and behind the two was Charelize, sweating profusely.

“Babies, are you hurt anywhere?”

“Your Majesty Mother, I, t-the magic lab…”

“…It’s okay. As long as you don’t get hurt.”

Charelize gestured to the nearby servants to clear the area and left the magic lab holding her children’s hands.

“You have to go to piano class, right? Mom will tell Countess Hakan. You must have been very surprised today, so it would be best to rest in your room.”

“S-sorry…”

“It’s okay. Your father will come and restore it. So apologize to your father.”

Charelize gently smoothed Charteron’s cheek, which was very depressed. After dropping off her children in front of Isla Palace, she returned to her office.

“Charon, Your Majesty Mother has gone. So tell me why you did the magic to move things.” Luensir gently shook Charteron’s body, hidden under the blanket.

“…To move the keys.”

“Why the keys?”

“Then I don’t have to practice, and I can show it to Your Majesty Mother. So I did it…”

Charteron, overcome by her drowsiness, soon closed her eyes, making steady breathing noises.

“It would be faster to just play a song than use magic.” Even as he said that, Luensir took her book, turned the next page with his left hand, and patted Charteron with his right hand.

The sun slowly set.

* * *

It was three days later. Arensis, who received an agreement with the Kingdom Radita, has returned. Luensir, who had been pushed to one side by Charteron, who rolled about two and a half times, was sleeping in an uncomfortable position with his face frowning.

“Father. Charon… is… sorry.”

Arensis burst into laughter when he saw Luensir, who was about to fall, and Charteron, who suddenly said sorry in her sleep. He laid Luensir properly again and carefully covered him with a blanket.

Charteron must have fallen asleep while writing her diary, and the further she went, the more messed up her writing became. He took her diary carefully so as not to break it, placed it next to the table, and read the first page.

[March 17, 1528

Lur calls His Majesty Father and Her Majesty Mother, so I want to do the same, but I keep calling them Father and Mother.

Umm. Right. I woke up in the morning, and Lur was on the floor. He crouched down, so I asked him why, and he said I pushed him. Weird. I have no sleeping habits at all! So I wasn’t in a good mood this morning.]

Arensis imagined Charteron rolled half a circle and put her foot on Luensir whenever they went to sleep. To be honest, she has a bad sleeping habit. By the way, he wondered why they called him ‘Your Majesty Father’ as if drawing a line.

[April 11, 1528.

It’s too annoying to write. I’m hungry. I want to drink cocoa… I’m sleepy. Today’s diary ends here.]

There was no special content, and the content columns that were supposed to be for each date were empty. He considered this so cute, so he held back his laughter and continued to read.

[May 2, 1527.

Why should people write diaries? I got caught trying to copy something.

June 18,1528.

It’s been a long time since I wrote a diary. Ah. Before snacking, we played ‘Angel’s Spring’ with Her Majesty Mother. Countess Hakan’s expression was bad the whole time, but I wasn’t scolded, perhaps because I was with Her Majesty Mother. It was so funny that Countess Hakan’s mouth kept trembling that I almost laughed without realizing it, but Lur covered my mouth, so I barely held it in.]

He found it strange that Countess Hakan’s face in today’s diary looked unusual.  “Did something happen?”

What was waiting for Arensis, who came out after watching them sleeping for a while, was the task of restoring the magic lab that had been shattered. He immediately understood why Charteron was talking in her sleep like that.

He was tired after traveling a long way without a rest, but the smile didn’t leave his face. By the time the dawn light was fading, he had returned the magic lab to its original condition. He headed for the bedroom where Charelize was.

“Lize.”

“Aren? You said you’re coming back tomorrow?”

Charelize was sitting in bed reading a book.

“I missed you, so I returned early.”

Arensis sat her back up and kissed her on the forehead. His words meant he came alone, leaving the servants who accompanied him.

“Did I do well?”

“You must have returned because the agreement with Kingdom Radita has been resolved, but what about the mining rights?”

“Of course I got it. When Prince Irenen was playing with people, I almost confronted him, but I held back. He begged and said that he would soon hold an engagement with Princess Bertez. Thanks to that, I was able to easily obtain mining rights.”

“It’s fortunate that the taxes owed by the citizens of the empire will be reduced before the end of this month. Good job, Aren.”

After washing, Arensis half-dried his wet hair and lay down on the bed. “Right. Then, that… Angel’s Spring. I heard Charon play it today.”

As soon as Arensis brought it up, Charelize burst into laughter as she remembered what had happened in the afternoon.

“Did something happen? I heard Countess Hakan’s expression wasn’t good.”

“She played the piano with magic.”

“With magic? What do you mean?”

“She drew that complex formula and moved the keys using magic. It was so cute that she kept yawning, probably because she couldn’t sleep.”

“Is it…because she’s too lazy to press the keys?”

Charelize nodded. “The magic lab was damaged while she was memorizing it. I was trying to clean it up, but there were quite a few magic potions, so I just left them there… Is it okay?”

“I actually saw it earlier on the way, so I restored it.”

At Charelize’s concern, Arensis replied with a smile.

“You must be tired, I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay as long as you and the children aren’t hurt. Well, it’s not that hard to restore. Rather, I always think about it… It seems like our daughter is really having a hard time. ‘Angel’s Spring’ isn’t an easy song… I don’t know if I should call her smart for this…”

Arensis laughed so much that tears welled up in his eyes.

“But she came to me and confidently said that what she plays is no different from what I do.”

The image of Charteron, in front of Arensis, with both hands on her hips and her chest protruding, shamelessly saying these words, came to her mind.

* * *

It was one winter day. Luensir and Charteron were invited by Veloche to the Grand Duchy Rakiel to play. White snow had fallen since early morning as if they were welcoming the children. Every time they stepped in the thick snow, there was a dent in it.

At this time, Charteron, who resembled Charelize with a lot of heat in her body, rolled around excitedly. Then, she made a small snowball of her own and threw it at Luensir. She smiled innocently and ran away as the snow landed a solid hit on Luensir’s head.

Luensir, who didn’t mind the cool feel of the snow, also agreed to play. As the chase began, Charteron stumbled from a slightly sloping side and almost rolled over, but Luensir quickly grabbed her hand and pulled her up.

“Charon! Quickly, to Baron Alec…”

“This isn’t the imperial palace, you idiot.”

He hated Charteron for sticking out her tongue without even knowing how worried he was. Luensir collected the snowball and threw it gently to avoid hurting her.

“What! Why are you throwing it!”

“Because you’re ugly. Hide your face so I can’t see you.”

“What? You and I are twins!”

“We’re fraternal twins. We don’t look alike.”

Charteron, who had risen to catch the fleeing Luensir, shouted. After running for a while, she fell again. Her knees were bleeding profusely, but what was so exciting was that Charteron, riding on Luensir’s back, was shaking her feet and humming.

“You guys had f… Oh my gosh, Charon. What’s wrong with your knees?”

“I fell while running! But it doesn’t hurt!”

“Your body is as cold as ice… Hurry and bring blankets and light more firewood.”

“Yes, Your Excellency.” Veloche, who was taking turns warming the children’s cheeks, ordered the servant.

“You must be cold. Use this to warm your body.”

“The cake made by Haem is so delicious that I can confidently guarantee it.”

“Not to that extent… Vel is too much.”

Grand Duke Rakiel brought a homemade chocolate cake and two cups of cocoa.

“Thank you for the food.”

“I made a lot, so if you want more, just let me know.”

“Yes!”

“If it’s not enough for His Royal Highness, I’ll bring it to you.”

“…Thank you.”

The children sat down and ate snacks until their bellies were full, then went up to their rooms.

“Lur? Charon?”

A few hours later, just as it was time for dinner, Veloche knocked on the door.

“Are you sleeping? Tonight’s dinner…”

“Aunt… Charon is sick… Fever on her forehead…”

What Veloche saw was Charteron, whose body had grown larger with a blanket wrapped around her body, and Luensir, who was crying and anxious next to her. She was surprised because she had never seen Luensir cry, but it felt quite hot when she placed her hand on Charteron’s forehead.

The window was slightly open. A cold wind came in through it.

“You guys, the window was open.”

“Because Charon said it’s hot…”

Veloche urgently called in a doctor to examine Charteron.

“It looks like she caught a cold. It’s not serious, but I think she needs to rest in bed for a few days to fully recover.”

Charteron sniffed her nose. Her nose was blocked, making it difficult for her to breathe, so she was held by Luensir and started acting like a baby.

“His Royal Highness should also take medicine as a preventive measure. Just in case, you must not stay with Her Royal Highness for two days.”

“L-Lur, don’t leave me behind… I’m bored. Come play with me, okay?”

“If you cry, your fever rises even more. You need to get better soon.”

Veloche comforted Charteron, who cried.

“Lur!”

“Don’t worry, Aunty will be by your side. Lur could get sick too if he stays here.”

Luensir, who was worried about Charteron, turned around and left, saying he would return soon.