My Childhood Friends Are Trying To Kill Me

It was natural to hate her because she was the daughter of his younger sister.When he saw Lelia, he felt guilty about his dead wife and resented his sister. It felt like the closed wound was reopening and blood was coming out of it. 

Perseus did not want to hear Lelia’s name at all, so he decided to postpone the child’s disposal until later. 

Lelia had to live the same life as before in the last tower she had lived as a child.

A life of hunger.

There was an episode of encountering Juliana at that time. Lelia had made a mistake because she was jealous of Juliana. Unlike Lelia, who was a nuisance to everyone, Juliana stole all the love and affection. 

But Juliana was a child who deserved to be loved. A child who absorbs all the sunlight with her body and radiates it out with love. 

Lelia, on the other hand, had always been a shady and skinny child. 

Lelia, in the story, felt miserable when she saw Juliana, who was different from herself. 

However, her role wasn’t about hitting or humiliating Julianna. Unfortunately, she was hungry that she had no strength, and instead of hitting Juliana, she tried to steal things. 

To put it simply, Lelia was just a tool made for the episodes that happen to the main character in the novel. 

The first was to show how fussy Julaina’s brothers were.

The story of that day came to Lelia’s mind. 

Juliana fell asleep under a big tree while taking a walk in the small forest behind the forest. On the picnic mat, was Juliana’s favourite doll and that was the first doll she had received from her stepfather, as well as some pretty looking snacks and books. 

The maid, who was in charge of Juliana, who was smiling pleasantly in her sleep, headed to Juliana’s room for a while to get a blanket. The surrounding was calm, but in fact, dozens of elite soldiers secretly guarded Juliana. Despite being safe in the Imperial Palace, Emperor Perseus was so protective of her that he sent Juliana the head of the army’s elite unit. 

Watching Juliana who was sleeping, while hiding, caught their hearts with her cuteness. 

Then, Lelia appeared. 

She is walking around looking for fruits in the woods, and she was surprised to see the sweet dessert on the picnic mat. She finds a doll next to Juliana, who is asleep. The doll was a white bear that came right into her arms, and it was so cute. Without realizing it, Lelia put the dessert in her mouth and hugged the doll. The soft touch was really pleasant. Unknowingly being greedy, Lelia hugged the doll and tried to take it.

It was then… 

“Hey! Wait, what are you doing?”

“I can’t believe there is a thief in the Imperial Palace.”

It was Cedric and Damien, the twin sons of Emperor Perseus, who appeared cold. 

“This is her, right? Aunt’s daughter who bullied our mother.”

“Correct.”

The uproar wakes up Juliana from her sleep. 

“… Uhhh? My doll!” Juliana was shocked to see her favorite doll in Lelia’s arms. 

“Huh? Wasn’t it enough to bother and bully our mother that now you are trying to steal Juliana’s doll?”

“You dare to steal anything from the Imperial Palace.”

The two brothers walked slowly towards Lelia, and Lelia trembled, holding the doll in her arms, looked terrified.

Juliana said, ‘Ah…. They are acting like this again!’, clutching her head, and she pushed them.

“Stop it, brothers!”

“…”

“But Juliana… .”

“If she was really trying to steal, she would have ran away! But this kid is here.”

Juliana approached Lelia and reached out her hand.

“Hi, I’m Juliana. That doll is my favorite doll… I hope you can return it. Can you do that?”

Even though Lelia stole her doll, she looked at her with a smile, and Lelia carefully gave her back the doll. 

“Thanks. It’s like my treasure.”

“Well, you keep the ones we gave you in bed.”

“It’s unfair to only walk around  with only what father gave you.”

“But this is the first doll I got! I still hug the one you gave me tightly when I sleep.”

“Well, then…”

“Do you really hug and sleep with the dolls?”

“Of course!”

Lelia carefully looked at them and quietly turned around to leave, as if she was afraid to get accused of stealing again. 

“Wait a minute. Stop right there.” Cedric ordered Lelia to stop.

Lelia slowly turned her head, as he spoke. 

“Come here and apologize properly, alright? How dare you steal the Imperial Princess’ property and run away just like that?”

“Brother!”

“Juliana, I know you’re kind, but we can’t just ignore this. You were so kind to the maids, but now, you are the Imperial Princess.”

“…Umm…”

“And that girl is the daughter of the woman who bullied my mother. No, she probably killed her.”

“…”

“Come here. You murderer’s daughter.”

Lelia approached them slowly.

Lelia couldn’t even remember her mother’s face. She didn’t know if her mother was the killer. So she had to put up with it even though those words were humiliating.

Cedric and Damien were both skilled swordsmen. They were born with magical powers. There was no way she could escape. 

“Apologize.”

“I’m sorry.”

“To whom are you apologizing? Do it here.” Damien said, standing behind Juliana, patting on her shoulder. 

“I’m sorry.”

“Hey, is it because she is being nice to you? Don’t you know how to apologize to the Princess of the Auraria Empire? I think you want to do the same with Juliana, just your mother did to our mother. As long as we are here, it is impossible.”

Oh, my. 

Realizing what she’s done wrong, Lelia slowly bowed her head to Juliana.

“Forgive me, princess.”

“I’m really alright.”

Juliana accepted Lelia’s apology, wriggling her fingers, perhaps because of the weird situation.

“It’s not okay! Get on your knees. Apologize properly.”

Juliana was in trouble, but Cedric and Damien did not seem willing to miss this opportunity. 

On that day, Lelia kneeled in front of Juliana and recited ‘I’m sorry, princess’ 100 times before finally gaining her freedom.

By the time her apology was over, Emperor Perseus came and said it was time for a meal, and carried Juliana on his back.

“Oh, that’s cheating! I’ll carry Juliana on my back!”

“Damn, it’s just you all the time!”

The two brothers followed Perseus and Juliana.

After thinking about it, Lelia returned to reality. It was such an unusual scene that I remembered it in detail.

Lelia lifted a small doll from the display stand.

[Unlike the original, I have no intention of running into Yuliana or to steal her doll.]

[You never know. I don’t know, maybe I’ll see the doll and reach out my hand.]

[But my own doll? If there’s one? Seeing the child’s doll made me think that it wouldn’t hurt.]

“I’ll just have this.”

Only what she chose. It was the same rabbit doll that she had picked for Oscar earlier. 

“Uh… rabbit…” Kalix laughed at her choice as if it were ridiculous.

“I’ll take this one, too.”

“Well, can I buy one, too?”

When Romeo and Griffith went on to choose the same doll, Kalix frowned.

“Then, me too.” So, unavoidably, Kalix lifted a rabbit doll with the size of his palm.

Contrary to expectations, the owner looked at the five small rabbit dolls picked by customers, who belonged to the royal families.

***

That night.

The children ate dinner, washed up, and then naturally gathered into Lelia’s room.

“…”

In her pajamas, Lelia headed to the room right next to her own bedroom.

She sighed when she saw five beds arranged in a row.

It was Romeo who had two beds for himself.

Because of his sleeping habit, he had bought two of them, and informed them that if any of them invaded his space, he would not let them get away with it. 

And on the bedside. The rabbit doll was up one by one, and she liked it in this way.

[It’s cute!]

[Yes, no matter how handsome you guys are, they’re ten-year-old kids.]

[Although I am seven years old…]

Anyway, Lelia approached Oscar holding a tiny white rabbit doll.

“Oscar, are you ready to go to bed?”

“Yeah…”

Lelia just thought of Oscar’s flustered face with the doll in his hand and stroked his hair. Earlier, Oscar looked surprised, when his friends, who left him behind, came in with a doll in their arms. However, when Lelia gave him a white rabbit doll, he hesitated to accept it.

Lelia explained that she couldn’t explain to Oscar when she gave him the doll.

“Oscar, this is a worry doll. I went out of my way to buy it for you. I went to buy this.

“Well, the worry doll… What’s that?”

The other children turned their eyes to Lelia’s words.

“Uh, so… umm… You guys at least have one thing that you are scared of, right? It haunts you in your dreams. But if you are holding a doll when you are sleeping, it will eat up all of your nightmares. It’s a doll that takes away all your worries.”

“… The captain is also very good at talking bullsh*t.” Romeo was being sarcastic.