To be honest, this world is starting to look more... interesting. But also way more dangerous for a three-year-old.
And yes, I can finally walk. Well run aimlessly, crash into walls, and cry dramatically until someone gives me an apple.
My sister? She calls this phase the "Era of Tiny Chaos."
"She's running again!" Aristelle shouted from down the corridor.
Footsteps thundered from all directions. As usual... I ran. With my still-wobbly toddler legs, I made my grand escape from the study room.
Why? Because seriously today's lesson was about the royal family tree. You know, the one with more tangled branches than high school drama.
I ran and ran until—THUD!
"Ugh!" yelped a young servant, almost dropping his tray.
I stood in the middle of the hallway, panting. The tray had fallen.
Cakes.
CAKES.
My eyes sparkled.
"Ariellee!" Aristelle's voice grew closer.
Panic. Cake or capture?
I made a choice grabbed two. One for biting, one for carrying. And I ran again. The world belongs to the fast.
Five seconds later...
"Gotcha!"
I was suddenly lifted off the ground like a sack of potatoes.
"WHAT THE HECK, SIS!?" I yelled, mouth still full of cake.
Aristelle looked at me with her usual deadpan expression. "That's the third class you've skipped this week."
I chewed slowly. Gave her my best innocent toddler stare.
"And now... you're stealing from the kitchen staff."
I looked down at the cake. Swallowed carefully. "Not stealing... it's resource redistribution."
She squinted. "Since when do you talk like a stingy old nobleman?"
I grinned. "Ehe~"
I got punished that day.
The punishment? Sitting still in the study while Aristelle gave a detailed explanation of Aggress' border defense policies from the year 421. With illustrations. And puppets.
"This is Baron Vensdal," she said, holding up a cat puppet. "He attacked the border."
Then she raised a bunny puppet. "And this is General Thorne. He said 'NOOO!' and then... BAM!" She hurled the bunny at the cat.
"WHOA!!" I cried, eyes wide with awe.
"Focus," she said, all teacher-mode.
The lesson lasted half an hour. I lasted ten minutes. After that, I started making weird sounds from under the desk.
"Prrrtt... I'm the underground unit."
Aristelle stared. "Ariellee. Get out from under the table."
"Can't. I'm on a sabotage mission."
"Out."
"Let's negotiate. One more biscuit."
She closed her book. "Two biscuits. But you sing the national anthem."
"...Deal."
And that's how I got a biscuit and possibly committed minor treason.
Later that afternoon, we sat on the palace balcony. The sky was painted orange-gold, and a gentle breeze brushed past us. Perfect moment... for plotting.
"So," Aristelle said, opening her notebook. "Tomorrow's operation: Search for the Hidden Room."
My eyes widened. "Hidden?"
She nodded mysteriously. "According to an old book in the library, there's a secret room behind the west wall. It was once used to store ancient artifacts."
I gasped dramatically. "Artifacts? Like, castle-exploding ones?"
"No. More like old books and portraits of our ancestors with huge eyebrows."
I shuddered. "Still scary."
She showed me a rough sketch. "You'll distract the servants. I'll look for the hidden button."
I raised an eyebrow. "And how exactly do I distract them?"
She grinned. "...By pretending to get stuck in the jam jar again."
...Sis. That only worked once. And my head doesn't even fit anymore.
The next day, the operation began.
And, as usual... ended in complete failure.
We were both caught by the Head Butler as I screamed from behind the curtain, "Sis! I'm stuck in the wall!!"
He stood there, arms crossed. "Your Highness, please stop training your sister to become... a junior archaeologist."
Aristelle and I looked at each other.
And then burst out laughing.
Even though the mission failed...
I had a partner.