Chapter 544 : Inside and Outside the Study

"Dorothy, what are you doing?!"

Lecia pulled up Dorothy, who had collapsed on the floor.

Dorothy's face was flushed, and the purple in her eyes was deepening.

Her knees were pressed tightly together, rubbing back and forth continuously.

Just now, after hearing Felyn call out her name, Dorothy's legs had gone weak, and she had bumped directly into the study door.

"Brother Felyn... chose..."

"Get a grip, Dorothy. It's just because he's more familiar with you. If he spent time with me, he might have chosen me."

Dorothy couldn't hear a word Lecia was saying at this moment.

All she knew was that she had won!

She saw Lecia's lips moving nonstop, but her mind was filled with the sound of Felyn calling her name.

---

Inside the study, the conversation between Felyn and the king continued.

"Is there a reason for choosing Dorothy?" the king asked.

"Her Highness's heroic performance in Varil Village left a deep impression on me. She appeared before me like a goddess. To me, she is like a savior."

In order not to let the king suspect his relationship with Dorothy, Felyn used the events of Varil Village as an explanation.

After saying this, he heard another faint "thump~" from outside the study door.

"But, do you know about Dorothy's peculiarity?"

"Peculiarity?"

"Mhm. Dorothy's constitution is very special. Since she was 15, her body and face have stopped growing. Some say she is not human but a magical beast, some say she is the curse of a demon lord, and some say she is an ominous sign."

In this world, magical beasts were a symbol of evil. Once a person exhibited the characteristics of a magical beast, they would naturally be regarded as evil as well.

"Your Majesty, what do you think?" Felyn looked up and asked the king.

The king paused for a moment, then turned away, no longer looking into Felyn's eyes.

A different emotion flashed in his eyes, and his gaze subconsciously shifted to a drawer in the study.

A corner of a portrait painted by a member of the Church of the Eternal Scroll was visible, revealing a strand of purplish-pink long hair.

"My opinion is not important." The king turned back to face Felyn. "To this day, many ministers still submit memorials, saying that Dorothy's status affects the royal family. You can take a look."

Outside the door, upon hearing this, Dorothy suddenly panicked.

The flush on her face instantly turned deathly pale.

She knew that some ministers and members of the royal family would still say very harsh things to her even now.

Dorothy was already used to the insults and slander from others; she no longer cared.

However, she couldn't let Felyn see those slanderous words. She couldn't leave a bad impression in Felyn's mind.

"Dorothy, what are you doing?"

Lecia was the first to notice that something was wrong with Dorothy. She seemed to want to push the door open.

Eavesdropping on their father's conversation was already a major taboo. If they were discovered, a scolding would be unavoidable.

Lecia wrapped her arms around Dorothy's waist, preventing her from pushing the door.

"Don't... don't... Brother Felyn, don't look..."

Dorothy's eyes instantly reddened, and tears began to fall.

She panicked.

Like a child caught doing something wrong, Dorothy felt as if her world was collapsing.

If Brother Felyn sees those words, if Brother Felyn believes those words, will he hate me...

Will he leave me completely...

No, don't, I don't want Brother Felyn to leave...

Please, I beg you, don't look, don't look...

---

Separated by a single door, Felyn looked at the documents in his hand, flipping through them page by page.

「Your Majesty, your subject believes that Dorothy should be stripped of her princess title. Possessing such a vast amount of magic power, she must be an anomaly among the human race.」

「Your Majesty, your subject has heard from the maids that Her Highness Dorothy sits by the window all day with a fierce look in her eyes. It is feared that she harbors thoughts of revenge against the royal family and will threaten the foundation of the empire.」

「Your Majesty, excessive magic power will eventually affect Her Highness's mind. Her Highness Dorothy's recent behavior has been very abnormal. It is feared that when the empire goes to war, Her Highness Dorothy's body will undergo a strange transformation. Your subject suggests that Princess Dorothy be relocated to Seiva and not remain in the Royal Capital District during the current crisis.」

Felyn flipped through the pages, and the words were all roughly the same.

The further he read, the harsher they became. Some ministers even threatened to die to force Dorothy away from the Royal Capital District.

The royal family and ministers had been slandering and insulting Dorothy for a long time, and the king had not punished them for their disrespectful words.

Therefore, these words gradually became bolder and more unpleasant.

Felyn placed the documents on the table, feeling a little annoyed.

"Finished reading?"

"Mhm."

"I'll give you one more chance. If you had to choose between Dorothy and Lecia, you choose..."

"I choose Dorothy."

This time, Felyn didn't wait for the king to finish his sentence and directly called out Dorothy's name.

Just by looking at these words, Felyn could imagine what Dorothy had been through.

After she greeted the ministers and left, the ministers who were just smiling would immediately change their expressions and speak ill of Dorothy behind her back.

Or some old ministers, relying on their age, wouldn't even give Dorothy a pleasant look.

She could only face the public with a gentle smile while forcing herself to deal with the ministers.

They say Dorothy has a huge amount of magic power in her body? That her body structure is no longer human?

But the amount of magic power in Dorothy's body wasn't decided by her. Doesn't she want to be a normal girl and play with others?

Sitting by the window all day, with a fierce look, intending to take revenge on the royal family?

The royal family and ministers deliberately distance themselves from her, and even children throw waste paper balls and insects at her window. Can't her gaze be fierce? Can't she want revenge on the royal family?

As for saying Dorothy's behavior is abnormal, that's even more nonsense.

If it were him, he would have wanted to kill everyone who had bullied him hundreds of times over to vent his anger.

Isn't that normal behavior?!

"I haven't had much contact with Her Highness," Felyn explained to the king, holding back a wave of anger in his heart.

"Her Highness is not a monster. She is just a gentle and lovely girl."

Outside the door, Dorothy's body froze. Her hand rested on the door, and her body began to tremble uncontrollably.

"She wants to play with people her own age, she wants to get the attention of her elders, and she also wants to be praised."

"She might even bake cookies for people, read the latest comic books under the moonlight, and put up posters of Miss Zervanie in her bedroom."

"Even if people throw paper balls at her, she still sits by the window and looks at the world outside. She longs for freedom, and she is unwilling to be bound."

"She treats the people around her gently and will also do her best for someone."

"In my opinion, Her Highness is not a monster at all."

"Even after such a long period of suppression and slander, Her Highness can still smile strongly, can still walk out of her bedroom, and even represent the royal family at events. This willpower has already far surpassed that of most people."

As Felyn spoke, his voice also began to tremble slightly.

Dorothy had many flaws.

Her love for him was paranoid, crazy, and reckless.

But that was just a result of her past experiences. She desperately longed for love, desperately longed for someone's attention.

But no one had ever smiled at the young Dorothy.

"I have never met Her Highness Lianlora. I have not personally witnessed Her Highness Lianlora slaying the dragon. However, I want to see Her Highness Dorothy cleave through prejudice and slander, to live to a height that others never imagined, to live a wonderful life amidst the curses of 'monster'."

"A princess like that, a Dorothy like that, isn't much different from a dragon-slaying hero, is she?"

(End of Chapter)