Chapter 84 - A Small Change

“Princess!” While Luciana was watching Achillios, someone else came up to me. It was that young lady again. Why were these ladies here again? Weren’t they restricted from entering the palace? I quickly turned to Luciana, “Why are they here?” 

“They are only restricted from entering, but we cannot ban them completely.” But what about my peace and my dad’s safety? Achillios blocked the young ladies from coming up to me, “Ahem, please form a line.” 

“Oh my, Your Grace?” 

“I have the privilege of witnessing Her Highness’s adorableness before anyone else,” he informed them. What was this man saying? “You young ladies don’t, so take a number and come back at a different time.” Achillios smiled kindly as he shooed the ladies away. The young ladies quietly retreated because they were up against a formidable enemy, even though he wasn’t making any sense. But they did look back at me longingly. 

Oddly enough, he was being of help. It wasn’t a bad idea to have him as a shield. I made a plan to use Achillios to my advantage just in case. He looked at me and smiled, which made me flinch again. It seemed as if he could read my thoughts. “I heard that our cute princess has the lofty goal of taking over the world.”

“… And?” Why was he suddenly talking about this? I looked at him warily. “Don’t you think you’ll find me useful in your conquest?” he asked, smiling sweetly at me. I blinked in confusion at his words for a while, then realized what he was getting at, “Do you want to become my subordinate?”

“Yes!” Really? The Achillios? “Why?” I was obviously happy to have such a talented individual on my side, but I was still suspicious. Was this a new kind of joke? 

Achillios blushed at my question, “You’re just too cute!” That was his reason? I knew that he was difficult to understand, but this man was a lot more complicated than I had imagined. What kind of person was he? “And you’re entertaining.”

“Huh? How so?” 

“You have so many different sides to you,” Achillios’s eyes sparkled as he blabbered on, “Sometimes you talk like an adult. Your tone is cold, but you’re still adorable. And we have one thing in common.”

“What is it?” 

“We both like His Majesty.” As he said this, I could see the sincerity in his eyes. He was a loyal subordinate of my dad’s… 

“Will you accept me as your subordinate?”

“Nope!” Achillios’ challenge suddenly aroused the dormant pride of my inner fangirl. “You’re my rival from today!” 

“Pardon?”

“I love my dad the most!” He was mine! 

*** 

From that day onwards, there was a strange scene in the palace. 

“What’s that?”

“How surprising.” 

It was such a strange sight that the maids would stop what they were doing and watch everything unfold before their eyes: the mighty Duke Achillios chasing after the tiny Princess Amelia. “Princess!”

“Get lost!” 

“Please make me your subordinate!” 

“Luci, send him away!” 

Achillios was neglecting his duties to follow Amelia to the point of causing a huge stir in the palace. Meanwhile, Miltiades quietly watched Achillios and Amelia play tag with a smile on his face and his sword in his hand. “I’m going to kill him.”

“Your Majesty, please calm down! You shouldn’t kill in front of the princess!” Thanks to Callian’s attempts to stop Miltiades with all his might, Achillios was able to live another day. Miltiades watched the petite child scurrying away from Achillios. The arrogant little kid had the power to make anyone sigh in contentment as she ran around with her small feet. 

She seemed to have recovered, just as the doctors had said, and she was playing well. When he saw her small body on the floor, he felt as if his heart had stopped. It was the first time he had felt such emotion. All he could remember was running towards her like a madman. He knew he had to send her away, but not right now. Especially not in that state. It was still too early. Miltiades sheathed his sword. He didn’t want to teach her about death today. How strange; he wasn’t one to worry about such things. 

“Your Majesty…?” Callian looked at the emperor in shock. Miltiades’s sword, which drew blood whenever it was unsheathed, was being put away! Was this a dream? His Majesty was a changed man. It was a tiny change, but it didn’t escape Callian’s eyes. He had been watching Miltiades for a long time. 

“The princess is changing His Majesty,” Berrict had said enigmatically a few days ago. Callian didn’t know if this change was for good or for evil. But he didn’t think it was bad for Miltiades, who had always been alone, to have someone who would smile and hug him. It was a lovely sight to behold. 

Miltiades was still watching Amelia try to get away from Achillios. Callian smiled to himself as he saw the emperor try to express his emotions towards his daughter. “Your Majesty, what should we do with Achillios?”

“Bury him.” 

“Your wish is my command,” Callian smiled and bowed. Then he walked over and dragged Achillios to the garden, where he buried the prime minister neck-deep in the ground.