Generally, there’s no way to escape.
Alice and Leo sneaked in during the chaos inside and outside the Imperial Palace. In the end, they got caught without a proper escape, but…
But not for me.
If I turn back time, I can go back to before I even entered here.
Thanks to that, I can’t even move my writings elsewhere, but after all, the only thing I have left in my hands right now is time.
The study was quiet.
Is it because this place is considered ‘nonexistent’? Someone must have already been aware that someone had sneaked in, and alarms must be going off in the Imperial Palace, but it seemed no one knew that I had made it this far.
As soon as I crawled out of the ventilation shaft, I headed straight to the door and locked it tight.
Originally, it was made to buy time in case the Imperial Palace faced a dangerous situation, but since I’m not planning to go out anyway…
Then I turned around.
Dust was piled everywhere. Just being here might cause serious health problems.
A faint light illuminated the center of the round room.
In the place where the light was shining from a magical stone, there was a box filled with nails.
However, the nail heads weren’t bumpy. They seemed flat at the ends, crafted like a plate; someone who had never seen it in motion before may have thought it was a peculiar structure.
I approached it and randomly pressed on that ‘screen’.
The shape of my finger sank into the nails. When I lifted my finger, the screen flattened, and then, from the empty space, the heads of the nails all rose up at once.
The surface became uneven. But it was not irregular.
[Please enter the title of the document you wish to retrieve.]
The bumps that rose only resembled letters. Copper-colored nails formed the shapes of letters, as if expressing them on the screen.
Clunk.
I opened the drawer beneath the screen.
Inside was something akin to a typewriter. But there was no place to insert paper. The thin metal plates, connected to each alphabet, all led downwards to the screen.
I opened the drawer all the way until it made a small click, then slowly began to type.
Click, click. Each letter I pressed echoed loudly in the dim study.
[04-08]
The registration number of the prophecy book.
Normally, this wouldn’t be known. It’s not even listed in the thick document list hanging next to the screen.
But it’s not like there was a password set up. After all, there are very few people allowed to enter this far.
Creek, creek, sounded the rusted machine moving, and the brass pillar behind the screen opened up to reveal a slender metallic arm.
Rattle, it made a noise as something began to move into place.
As the arm came out, the pillar also started to rotate.
The arm aimed high and pulled a book stuck near the ceiling.
The machine returned, and the arm came down.
Then it displayed the book cover in front of me.
[04-08]
That number was all that was written on the cover.
The machine arm didn’t let go of the book. To be precise, the tip of that arm was securely fastened to the metal component firmly embedded in the spine of the book.
But it didn’t stop me from opening the book.
Instead, as I opened it, I brought the faintly glowing magical stone closer to show its light.
“……”
I flipped through the pages right away.
[What I wrote about the future is not to prepare for that future, but to prepare you.]
It means the future is already set, so don’t try to avoid it; rather, prepare your hearts.
“Bullshit.”
I muttered like that.
Thud.
There came a sound from the door. It seems they finally realized I had made it this far.
Quite fast.
In terms of time, I might only have about 5 minutes to properly read the book.
If I had to read all the prophecy books here from start to finish, that would be far too short of a time.
But, well. All I have is time anyway.
I placed the book I was holding down and murmured.
“Again.”
*
“Crown Princess.”
“Lord Ford.”
It was another peaceful day like any other.
I wasn’t crawling in the ventilation shaft or fighting off bizarre-looking enemies. Naturally, I wasn’t asking bizarre mechanical librarians for books in a dusty place that smelled dank.
At least, that’s how it seemed to others.
While walking through the corridors of the Imperial Palace, I ran into a man.
A knight with a kind face and a trendy Kaiser mustache bowed his head at me.
He was wearing thick plate armor that seemed too heavy for modern wear, with both a sword and a gun strapped to his waist.
I thought to myself, perhaps he could pierce the armor he was wearing himself with that revolver, which was much bigger and longer than mine.
“I heard about the great deed you performed, Crown Princess.”
“Is that so?”
I nodded at the kind gentleman’s words. Well, I had nothing to hide anyway.
What happened in Northwood is a secret from others, but what happened on the Winterfield battlefield has been heavily publicized in the royal court. It would help raise the morale of the soldiers and promote the royal family itself.
Under normal circumstances, such ludicrous rumors would have been disbelieved, but the soldiers who were present on the battlefield all received long vacations and hefty bonuses as rewards. They must have all gone back home to spend time there, and of course, they would have been eagerly talking about me.
With so many witnesses and the guarantee of ‘Winterfield’, no one would disbelieve the story.
“Each of our knights should have gone with the Crown Princess to protect her personally, but I apologize for not being able to do so.”
The knight’s words were an apology, not praise for my great deeds.
“……”
This gentleman has no idea I weighed whether I should shoot all the knights inside the Imperial Palace or sneak in without alerting anyone else. I reversed time, after all.
“There can’t be any Imperial Palace knights there. And besides, it doesn’t make sense for the Order of Knights to escort one soldier from the battlefield.”
“……”
He made a brief face as if he had something to say but didn’t say a word. It must be due to the knight’s code of conduct; he can’t act recklessly in front of the one he serves.
“…… But.”
Still, leaving this man in this state felt a bit wrong.
After all, he was one of the few people I had seen in the Imperial Palace since I was very young.
To speak with the Crown Princess, proximity alone isn’t enough; there needs to be a reason. Status, position, age, and many other factors must be taken into account.
In that sense, this Lord Ford was in a position that could be justified.
“I appreciate your concern……”
At my words, Lord Ford raised his head.
And surely for a moment, but he looked at me as if he had seen something strange.
Yeah, well.
It’s not something I usually say.
And a gentle smile spread once again across Lord Ford’s face.
“No problem. We’re just doing what we have to do.”
He did mention he recently had a child, didn’t he?
I quietly looked up at the smiling Lord Ford and thought.
If the firstborn was alive, they would have been about my age. If I were a ‘normal princess’, I might have been able to exchange marriage talks with that man’s child. Not to marriage per se, but at least noble enough to be on the list.
Yet, I lost the child shortly after entering the Imperial Palace. It seemed to be an accident. I hadn’t heard the exact story, but it seemed like he hadn’t been able to see this man for some time. He must have been gathering his heart after the funeral.
Hearing someone murmur that it’s hard to believe such a sincere and kind person could suffer something like that.
I pondered whether I should say a few more words to him, but I simply nodded once more and continued on my way.
A bit late, the sound of footsteps began to follow behind me.
If that man died, he would leave only his wife and child in his territory. Many would be plunged into sorrow.
Couldn’t I just turn back time and make it so that never happened?
…Indeed, just half a year ago, I would have thought that way.
The longer I spent here, the more I realized it wasn’t just shooting someone I knew; even if I knew I could nullify it…
Perhaps it’s because I realized one more time that my ability to turn back time could fade away.
The results of the actions I took nonchalantly could alter the lives of countless people; it was a thought that hit me far too clearly after certain incidents.
“……”
Suddenly, Mia Crowfield, who had still looked at me with a bewildered gaze on the day the first semester ended, came to mind.
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