The next day.

“Did I do something wrong?”

Feeling as if she was being reprimanded, Anette wiped the cold sweat from her forehead. Amidst this, Prince Michael’s eyes, sparkling like stars about to fall, never left her face.

When Anette had demonstrated her strength, the looks of fear in people’s eyes, as if they had seen something taboo, had become a thing of the past within a few days in the empire.

“Still, I’m not used to this kind of attention.”

Though she had thought Duke Harganet was persistently staring at her yesterday, Prince Michael’s gaze was burdensome in a different way.

“Uh, Your Highness…”

“So, you really are an adult? Really, really?”

“Yes…”

It felt like she had answered this question more than fifty times already.

The young prince, seemingly never tiring of asking, opened his mouth wide again and covered it with his hand.

Despite feeling somewhat exhausted, Anette found herself smiling slightly at his gesture.

“Is it that fascinating to you?”

“Yes! It’s super fascinating!”

Michael, with his bright eyes and flushed cheeks, looked exactly like an eight-year-old child.

His earlier attempts at appearing mature were cute, but Anette preferred this more genuine side.

‘This reaction is definitely more normal.’

People had been too calm in accepting Anette’s condition, which was strange.

However, Michael was just as intriguing to Anette. His incredible, mysterious power to bring down trees without touching them was a marvel.

“The incident yesterday was due to the ‘Imperial Authority,’ a power of the royal family. You might have already noticed.”

That morning, the Emperor, Empress, and Duke Harganet had come to explain the events in the garden to Anette, confirming her suspicions that they were related to Alkan royal powers.

The empire, strong and thriving, rarely witnessed the manifestation of such powers, and there was little official disclosure about them, so Anette had only guessed.

Nevertheless, Michael had recently awakened his power and couldn’t yet control it fully, Anette nodded, understanding.

Just as she thought this explanation was sufficient for a witness, Emperor Lucius added another revelation.

“My power is related to time.”

“What?”

“I can’t manipulate time for the entire world, but I can reverse or accelerate it in a specific space or for a specific person. For example, I can make a minute last a year or a decade pass in a minute.”

Lucius spoke casually, yet the content was anything but trivial, making Anette pause. She had never desired to know about the Emperor’s power.

However, she soon realized his intention.

“So, Your Majesty, are you saying you can accelerate my time and restore my original body?”

“Yes. If you trust me and lend me your hand for a moment.”

Lucius expressed his desire to repay the favor from yesterday, and Anette felt relieved but also had new questions.

She had been deeply concerned about not returning to her original form and couldn’t understand the calmness of the Emperor and Empress.

But now, it seemed they were calm because they already knew a way to reverse it. Yet, she wondered why they hadn’t hinted at such a possibility earlier.

‘Of course, they might simply have not wanted to divulge their powers…’
Anette had a feeling there was more to it.

Emperor Alkan had been friendly towards her from the beginning, showing great kindness and consideration. Although they hadn’t known each other long, he seemed to possess a warm nature. There had to be a reason why he didn’t step forward immediately.

A scene flashed through Anette’s mind: Michael suddenly collapsing without warning and the Emperor, as if anticipating it, catching his son, and Duke Harganet reassuring her not to worry.

“Could it be… that there are limitations to using the power? Like conditions required for its activation?”

When she inadvertently asked this, Anette noticed a brief hardening in Lucius’ expression. He seemed taken aback, as if he had never imagined such a question.

After trailing off with ‘That is…’, Lucius eventually nodded.

“Yes. The truth is, the royal powers are based on the user’s life force.”

Anette was even more surprised than before. Lucius reassured her that life force wasn’t directly linked to lifespan. It could usually be replenished with rest, food, and sleep, and especially the royals, with their extraordinary strength and recovery abilities, rarely faced any hardships due to using their powers.

He also revealed that the powers grow stronger with use and more efficient control leads to less life force consumption. He admitted to reversing time for himself, Charlotte, and the Grand Duke’s ‘bodies’.

Hearing all this, Anette responded, “I understand what you’ve explained.”

“Then…”

“I’ll keep your help as a last resort.”

Lucius was visibly startled. He had expected Anette to immediately ask for the use of his powers, not refuse them. The refusal was presumably due to the cost of his life force.