Volume 4 Chapter 16 – Princess of the Blooming Sacred Tree | Ellen Karen

| Ellen Karen

“Aaah!! Ugh, I messed up again!”

“Haaah. Princess, you really are hopelessly clumsy…”

Sitting comfortably in a chair, I was trying to make a bow—something I’ve always struggled with since I was little. And, once again, I failed…

As usual, Merlos was mocking me, sighing dramatically. I’ve hated it ever since we were kids…

“Shut up!”

“Isn’t it just Ellen’s personality?”

“It’s been like this forever,” chimed in LaraNoah, joining the teasing.

Honestly, it’s your fault! You two always jump on me whenever I mess up! I’m terrible at these little, tedious things! And whenever I actually manage to finish something quickly, you two just get in my way. Gahhh.

“Why are both of you teaming up against me, huh? LaraNoah, Merlos… Oh, I get it. You’re jealous! You’re jealous, aren’t you? Haha, how sad! How unbecoming for Guardians of the Blooming Sacred Tree. Don’t be like that, alright, Tauro?”

I patted my stomach as I spoke. Ah, he kicked! My irritated heart softened immediately.

Ehehehe.

“No, that’s not it! It’s because you won’t behave properly!”

“Clumsy, careless, unplanned, and hopelessly unskilled! Haaah, how did the Hero’s child end up in… you?”

There it is again. Ever since I got pregnant, they’ve been piling on the pressure. And pregnancy is already so long! They’re so naggy… but I won’t give in! Because I’m a mother now!

“Ah, alright, alright. Jealous much! What’s the big deal? It was just that one night, wasn’t it? You two can be with whomever you want, however much you want, whenever you want. Go ahead and make all the babies you want!”

“I don’t want to anymore! It only reminded me of things I’d rather forget and left me with nothing but regret!”

“Wait, you… tried it?”

Oh, so LaraNoah gave it a shot… I wonder who it was with. Was it Fioros? They were close. Heh. Somehow that seems fitting.

“Shut it! Keep your voice down, it’s not good for the baby! If anything happened, I’d feel terrible for the Hero!”

“Sorry.”

“My apologies.”

That’s right! What would you do if something happened?! Honestly! I’m actually a bit worried, you know!

But I guess they’re acting like this to ease my anxiety in their own way.

They’re never straightforward. Good friends, though.

“But really, why do you think it turned out this way?”

“We calculated everything properly.”

“We planned it all out precisely.”

“…Wait, you did all that?”

“We’re not as thoughtless as you! We aimed carefully and certainly…”

“And somehow the most clueless princess of all was the one to get it right. What kind of punishment is this?”

Oh, that does it! I won’t forgive these two!

“Clueless? How dare you! I am a princess of the Sacred Tree, the Guardian of its Bloom!”

“Don’t start acting all royal now! Especially when it’s clear you can’t make a bow to save your life! This one has three notches! A child could do that better!”

“All your life you’ve just let others do things for you, haven’t you?”

These two! Always mocking me! But fine. Hmph! Go ahead and be bitter.

“Oh, it must be because of the pregnancy. Haven’t you ever experienced this? No? None of that, huh? Oh, sorry! Let me explain. It’s like you just can’t concentrate… the baby kicks, and it just makes me all warm and fuzzy, you know?”

“Ugh, so irritating! You asked me to teach you how to make a bow so you could teach your child yourself, didn’t you?!”

“Ugh, this one’s too much… Just you wait until after you give birth… Seriously, what did you even do? This is beyond strange!”

Persistent, aren’t they? Maybe it’s because LaraNoah and Merlos aren’t as straightforward and good-hearted as I am. Yes, that’s it! It’s definitely because they’re mean-spirited!

“Hmm? Same as everyone else? After that banquet, I slipped away… sneaked into the Hero’s chambers… and when he woke up, I made my request, that’s all~.”

“Details, please.”

“You’re being so vague.”

I can remember that night as if it were yesterday. It was the most significant moment of my life. Under the moonlight, I cleansed myself with sacred leaves from the Sacred Tree, letting the forest embrace me. I wore a veil of Arachne silk—translucent and barely enough to signify marriage. My heart pounded so hard it felt like it would jump out of my chest as I begged Kyosuke-sama for mercy. Oh, Kyosuke-sama… he was so intense… ehehehe.

“Details? Hmm… alright, alright. Ahem!

…In the heart of the Hanumatt Great Forest, in the Sacred Woods where we Aglarian guardians reside, within one of its hollows, a man and a woman, bound by fate, were about to consummate their bond. The air was filled with the scent of the night forest, and on the soft feathers of the Simurgh, they embraced, gazing into each other’s eyes. The cooling moonlight draped their skin in a pale blue veil, as though…”

“Hey, something’s started.”

“I mean, I can understand the sentiment. As annoying as it is.”

“…And in that moment, the Hero whispered, ‘Your presence is like the legendary Goho-Lorie, of another land…’”

“Are we seriously going to listen to this?”

“Well, it’s technically part of the details…”

“…The Hero’s wet eyes reflected my blushing cheeks as I, trying to hide my shyness, offered him a bite of… huh?”

“Hey, what did you eat?”

“Ellen, what exactly did you eat?”

“Uh… nothing? Just… a little? Maybe… a bit of Alagraa fruit? You know, just to lift the mood? Haha…”

“She… she gave the Hero an aphrodisiac.”

“That’s the worst!”

“But I was so nervous that he wouldn’t go for someone like me, so I had to do something!”

“Oh, come on! Giving an aphrodisiac to the Hero, the one who saved the world?! What were you thinking? That stuff was banned in our village!”

“Alagraa fruit…?”

“It’s fine! I ate some too!”

“That’s even worse! Don’t double down on your sins!”

“…Wait. That fruit also has disruptive magic properties, which is why it’s banned outside rituals… It could have disturbed his magical control. The Hero was adept at manipulating magic, but the forest’s plant resistances aren’t that… Oh, this is definitely it!!”

“But he seemed fine after, didn’t he?”

“That’s because you ate it too!”

“Because you both went out of control! Maybe if we’d done that…”

“Oh, but you couldn’t have.”

“And why’s that?”

“Didn’t you notice the supply was already gone?”

“Well, I gave the Shrine Maiden all of it as a gift.”