Aurora screamed and ran away at once to her place of residence.
“It was more than fifty years ago, but I still remember it vividly.”
Concluding her words, Aurora sighed softly.
“The [Death Maiden] you speak of, Aurora-sama, does not sound like a terrifying existence, does it?”
Aurora smiled as Ekaterina said this.
“I see. When I was a child, I was both terrified and proud to have encountered the [Maiden of Death]. Back then, I would have spoken to her a little more if I was not so terrified.”
Aurora continued.
“But over time, as I recall each of her words, I have come to believe that she was only being kind to me. I did a bad thing at the time. I was terribly rude to someone who was kind to a lost child. I hope to see her again someday and apologize for that time, but I was unable to see her again.”
***
“Everyone dismissed.”
After the meal was finished, Forli led the knights and the hostess away from the tent.
When Ekaterina thanked them for the delicious meal, they returned a happy smile that seemed to be more than just a courtesy.
Mina remained by her side and Forli nodded in agreement. He had no intention of asking her to leave.
“Miss, over here, please.”
Smiling, Aurora held out a plate of what looked like thin cookies.
“It is a pastry coated with the royal nectar of the Great King Bee. Originally, only the queen bee of the Great King Bee eats it, and since it is only made in small quantities, it is only rarely shared with humans. Even the emperor would not be able to eat it. It is the only luxury hospitality we Forest People can offer.”
“Oh, well, that is something. The delicacies we had at the dinner table were all very delicious.”
Nevertheless, it was exciting to think of it as such a precious thing.
Ekaterina tried a mouthful and found it to be crispy and pleasantly crunchy. The sweetness was not strong, but only slightly sweet.
(Ah!?)
︎
Ekaterina’s eyes widened at the sensation that came after taking a pause for a moment.
What was it, this magic power? I felt a surge of energy, as if fuel had been injected into my veins. It was as if all the energy I had consumed from clearing away the monocular bears and shoveling the soil in the fields had been recharged all at once.
“For a person with strong magical power like you, the effect is strong.”
Forli chuckled.
“The royal nectar of the Great King Bee is excellent for the body even if eaten by an ordinary person, and it has the effect of healing illnesses and wounds surprisingly quickly, but if a person with magic power eats it, it will increase their magic power.”
“My… how wonderful.”
“I heard that the fifth Duke Vassily called the royal nectar ‘the treasure of the forest’.”
It looks like a restorative potion from a game in my previous life or something. Amazing. If this were an adventure game world instead of an Otome Game, adventurers would have rushed in to get it. Thank goodness there were no adventurers in this world.
I forgot for a while that this was an Otome Game world… Since coming to the Duke’s territory, I was not involved in any Otome Game scenarios. It was a little scary that I might forget all about the scenarios and events of Otome Game.
“The queen bee of the Great King Bee is highly intelligent and seems to understand human reason, and that the Duke of Yurinova is recognized as ruler of this land. When the Duke visits the Forest People’s habitat, they often share their royal nectar with them. It seems as if they are making their value known.”
