Meeting The Star

The Regent returns Kira to the palace safely. Evelyn and Bloom had left for their respective homes. The princess thanks the General for his care and walks off to her residence. She doesn't notice the look he gives her as she walks away.

Kira, as the pampered Princess of Fyn, had her own personal residence called the Blossom Pavilion. It was named after the cherry blossom tree in the gardens, which the princess was very fond of.

There was another residence nearby. The Moonlite Pavilion housed Kira's harem. She used to spend most of her time there but now avoided it like the plague.

Unfortunately, she always had to pass the Moonlite Pavilion to reach her residence. On a few occasions, she was lucky enough not to encounter any of the men who served her. Today was one of those lucky days.

She felt relieved when she reached her residence without running into anyone. The staff, including male servants and a few female maids, were used to being ignored by the princess, so they made themselves almost invisible around her.

When Kira entered her room and saw a beautiful woman inside, she assumed it was one of the maids. The woman wore simple white robes but was strikingly beautiful, with red lips and smooth, pale skin. She had a slender, captivating figure.

The woman had been leaning over the table, touching the porcelain teacups Kira and her friends had used earlier that day. The princess assumed she was cleaning.

"You don't have to clean now. Just go out; you can do it tomorrow," Kira said.

The woman raised an eyebrow at Kira's words, her lips curling into a sneer. "What do you mean?"

Kira was momentarily stunned by the woman's attitude. Usually, the servants didn't talk back to her. She thought she might have sounded offensive, after all, the woman was only doing her job.

"I'm feeling tired. You cleaning the room will just disturb me. Come back tomorrow morning," Kira said. By then, she wouldn't be in this world anymore.

The woman didn't respond directly, so Kira ignored her and went to sit by the mirror. Slowly, she took off the hairpins and crowns used to style her hair. Having long hair was uncomfortable, and she hoped to find some scissors to cut it off.

Suddenly, she felt a cold hand on her shoulder, causing her to flinch. She glared at the woman. How bold of a maid! "What are you doing?!"

"The princess seems very tired, so I thought I'd give you a massage."

"I don't need you touching me! Get out!"

"You're not being very nice, princess," the woman tsked, looking both offended and thrilled. Kira felt something was off—the maid's voice had taken on a different pitch, almost masculine. Maybe she was imagining it.

After seeing Moon strip off his clothes and discovering he wasn't actually a woman, she had learned not to assume people's genders based on appearances alone. But this woman was clearly dressed as a woman. Kira pushed her away.

"Who the hell are you? I said get away!"

"Could it be that you don't like this form? Would you prefer something else?" the woman said coldly. Her eyes were icy, though her expression remained calm. Kira, too stunned to respond, tried to make sense of her words.

The woman seemed to come to her own conclusion. She sighed and stood. Something happened too fast for Kira to follow, but soon, the person standing before her was no longer the beautiful woman—it was Dae!

"Well, isn't this what you wanted?" the fake Dae said, though the voice wasn't even Dae's—it was an unfamiliar, masculine voice. He stretched out his hands. "Alright, baby, come to me."

Kira didn't scream or faint this time. She dashed out of the room like the devil himself was chasing her. In her haste, she collided with someone. They would have both fallen if the other person hadn't regained his balance.

Looking up, she was relieved to see a familiar face. She felt like crying in relief as she hugged him tightly. "Moon, Moon!"

"What's the matter?" Moon asked, concerned.

"There's a witch in my room!"

"A witch?"

The person Kira referred to walked out of the room, back in her female form. She looked at Kira with displeasure. "So it's true. You're so obsessed with that damned pig Dae that you can't even look at the rest of us! Even if I take his form, you still don't want it?!"

Kira hid her face in Moon's chest. The prince gave her a look, then glared at the other man. "Get out."

"I'm going," he scoffed coldly and walked away.

"Who was that?" Kira asked.

"The Star."

"Oh." Bloom had mentioned someone in her harem named Star, but Kira hadn't paid much attention. It turned out not only was Star a man, but he could also change his form easily. It wasn't that unbelievable, considering she'd seen a live dragon.

"Let go," Moon said coldly. Kira realized she was still holding onto him and quickly stepped back, embarrassed.

"Sorry," she said. Moon didn't respond. He placed something in her hand—the wooden hairpin she had purchased. She must have forgotten it in the carriage, and the Regent had found Moon to return it to her. Now that he had completed his task, he had no reason to stay. He turned to leave.

"Wait!" Kira called.

"What is it?" He looked back at her. Her gaze was fixed on something at the top of his head.

"This hairpin, is it…"

"A gift," he said casually. "Is the princess bothered?"

Kira thought about it briefly and shook her head. Moon left, and she didn't try to stop him.

Actually, she suspected that Evelyn might have feelings for Moon, and the hairpin confirmed it. It was still a bit awkward. Her friend had a crush on one of Kira's consorts. It might have bothered her if she were the real princess, but she wasn't.

Kira looked up at the sky. It was getting dark, and the wind was chilly. "I wonder, is it so bad to live like this?" She was treated much better in this life—shouldn't that make her want to stay?

"What are you thinking?" From the corner of her eye, Kira saw a familiar figure. She turned to look at Dae.

"Thinking of killing yourself?" Dae asked.

"What concern is it of yours?!" she snapped.

Dae's gaze shifted to the wooden hairpin in her hand. His lips curled into a sinister smile. "That won't do." He pulled out a dagger from his robes and threw it at her feet. "Aim for the heart." Then he turned and walked away.

The princess watched him disappear, then looked down at the dagger. She picked it up, a thoughtful look in her eyes.

"Could this work?"