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336 Happily ever after

Once upon a time, there was a sickly prince trapped in a huge castle. The prince was often lonely, having no one to rely on but the old queen.

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One day, the sickly prince overheard the old queen talking with her noble family. The noble family offered to keep the sickly prince safe, for his existence was a threat to some bad members of the royal family. However, no one could protect the sickly prince better than the old queen regardless of her safety.

Therefore, the sickly prince thought he should run away… and so he did.

On his venture out of the castle, the prince heard a stray cat. He followed it, only for the cat to lead him to an unused area in the deeper part of the castle. In that part of the castle resided a terrifying monster no one had ever known about.

The prince gazed at the huge shadow that stretched near his feet.

In fear of ending up inside the monster’s stomach, the prince tried to run away. However, because he was sick, he didn’t get far. The only thing he could do was look back as he listened to the echoes of the monster approaching.

“I’m scared,” whispered the prince, shutting his eyes and accepting his fate.

“Huh?”

Suddenly, instead of a scary monster, the person who came out of the darkness was a plump servant girl. The prince peeked through his eyes, only to see that the big shadow stretching over his feet previously was simply the shadow of a… frog, leaping right beside her. (3)

And that was how the sickly prince and the little servant’s friendship started, along with her animal kingdom.

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Penny read the children’s book, which she found questionable in many points. She wondered how this could be a children’s book when some parts of it were honestly brutal. But then again, she didn’t focus on that. Instead, she focused on the fact that this book reminded her of a person’s story.

To be precise, her and Zoren’s story.

The setting was different, but the description was vivid.

“I didn’t know he was running away that day,” she whispered, assuming the premise originated from reality. “No wonder, even as a child, he never thought he would survive.”

Zoren’s childhood truly seemed lonely.

It was also the first time she heard that Chunchun had rescued him that day, not the other way around. It placed a smile on her face. © 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.

Reading more, the story continued with the prince and the servant girl parting ways because the prince needed to see a witch who could cure him.

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336 Happily ever after

This was where the real story got distorted because, unlike reality, in the book, when the prince returned, the peasant girl was still there. However, instead of being a peasant girl, she was actually a fairy who had looked after the sickly prince.

After the revelation, the prince lived a long life and ruled the kingdom with the fairy by his side.

“They all lived happily ever after,” she whispered as she slowly closed the book, checking the writings on

he back. “I should’ve checked this first.”

But then again, even if she had, she wouldn’t have known the author. (2)

*Knock Knock*

Amid the silence in the room, a faint knock on the door reached her ears. Penny slowly turned to the door, giving whoever was outside permission to come in.

The door slowly opened, the

calming look on Hugo’s face.

“Second Brother?” she called, watching

everything okay?”

Mam stride inside and sit on the chair near her desk. “Is

Hugo snapped his eyes to her and sighed. “I’m sorry.”

“Huh?” Deep lines appeared between her brows, confused. “Sorry for what?”

“Penny, I’m sorry for mentioning them,” he clarified apologetically. “You seemed very happy today, and I… I ruined it.”

“Oh.”

Hugo sighed for the third time and looked at her with puppy eyes. “I didn’t mean to ruin your mood. I know you don’t want to talk about them for now, but it’s just… I was careless and didn’t think before speaking.”

Hugo went on and on, acknowledging what he believed was wrong. The more he spoke, the more her lips curled up. Before he could finish, Penny couldn’t hold it back any longer and burst out in laughter.

He frowned. “Penny, why are you laughing at me? Did I say something wrong again?”

“Haha! Second Brother, it’s not like that–pfft!” She laughed until she was tearing up. “I’m sorry, Second Brother. It’s just that you look so cute. I can’t believe you’ve become a lieutenant.”

This was not how she imagined Hugo as an adult. Although she had already seen him while he was on duty, he was far different in his uniform than when they were in the comfort of their

home.

“Penny…” His frown deepened a little. “I came here because I thought I made you sad. Although I already planned to follow you, I got an earful from everyone–even from Butler Jen.”

“Hehe. Second Brother, I’m alright now,” she reassured, smiling. “Yes, I miss Tiana and Mouse, and even now, I won’t deny that I am still hurt that they passed. They will always take up a huge portion of my heart. However, I want to remember them with our happy moments together instead of remembering how incomplete I felt when they reunited in heaven.”

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336 Happily ever after

they’ll always be in my heart.”

Hearing her say these things put Hugo’s heart at ease. He still observed her, trying to figure out if she was simply saying this just to make him feel better. Only when he was certain she wasn’t lying did he heave a sigh of relief.

“Then why did you leave when I mentioned them?” Hugo inquired out of pure curiosity. “We all thought your mood dropped when I mentioned Tiana and Mouse.”

Penny pressed her lips together and smiled. “I just wanted to know something,” she said before smacking her lips. “Second Brother, can you help me?”

“Hmm?”

“I need help,” she said, making his brows raise in surprise. “I just want to confirm something tonight. It can’t wait until tomorrow.” (1

“Sure.” Hugo nodded, smiling in satisfaction. “It’s the first time my sister asked for my help with such decisiveness. So, you don’t have to say more. I’m in.” 3

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