Currently, Dunha was in a state of confusion after realizing that she somehow became a small child.
"T-This has to be a dream! Yes, a dream!"
Dunha thought.
She proceeded to pinch herself in the face and felt pain.
"It's not a dream..." she thought.
"P-Princess?" said the guard who stayed behind.
He got worried after seeing Dunha hurt herself for no reason.
"..."
Dunha looked up to talk to the guard.
"Can you tell me what year it is right now?" Dunha asked.
"Year? It's currently the first day of the first month of 1760." The guard answered. "Well, it will be once the sun rises."
"Eh...? 1760?" Dunha murmured. "That means I'm currently 5... What is going on?!"
"Princess, was your nightmare about the undead?" the guard asked. "If that is the case, the princess does not have to worry about anything. The undead is nothing more than a myth..."
Dunha did not hear the guard talking as she was lost in thought.
"If I somehow return to the time when I was still a child... Then does that mean..." (Dunha)
Suddenly, Dunha heard the sounds of loud footsteps coming from the dark hallway.
"Dunha! Are you alright?!" a woman shouted.
When Dunha turned around, her eyes were wide open in shock when she saw a young beautiful woman with long black hair standing in front of the door. The woman was panting as she ran all the way here.
"How is this possible..." she thought.
Dunha could not believe what she was seeing. When she looked at the unique design of the woman's clothes, she knew who she was. It was her mother.
The reason was that the last time when Dunha saw her mother was when she passed away shortly after giving birth to her second child. After giving birth, Dunha's mother suddenly fell ill and was in a bad state.
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When the royal head doctor could not figure out what the queen's illness was, the king gathered all of the best doctors, healers, alchemists, and magic-users he could find to help his wife. However, despite their best efforts, none of them was able to figure out the queen's illness either.
As days passed by, the queen slowly became weaker and weaker. By the seventh day, the queen took her last breath and the kingdom mourned for countless days.
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Suddenly, Dunha's vision got blurry as she felt something dripping down her face...
"Tears..." she noted.
She realized she was crying.
"I know that I promised myself to never cry after my father's death but..." Dunha thought. "Forget it."
Without thinking twice, she ran towards her mother as fast as she could.
"Mama!" Dunha shouted as she opened her arms. "Since I'm still 5, it won't be weird for me to say this, right?" she thought.
Once Dunha reached her mother, they warmly embraced.
"Oh, my sweet Dunha... Did you have a nightmare?" Dunha's mother asked as she crouched down to hug her daughter.
"Mhm..." said Dunha tearfully.
Dunha continued to hug her mother and did not let go of her and instead rubbed her face against her mother's chest.
"Mama and Papa were gone and scarwy monsters were everywhere..." said Dunha in a weird tone. She was attempting to make herself sound like a 5-year-old.
Seeing her mother for the first time in decades allowed her to feel happy for the first time in years.
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Dunha's mother was surprised to see her daughter cry but that did not stop her from stroking her daughter's head with a warm smile.
"There there... There's no need to cry anymore Dunha... Mama's here now..." said Dunha's mother.
Once she gently made Dunha let go of her, she pulled out a handkerchief and wiped her daughter's tears away.
"Guards," said Dunha's mother in a strict voice.
"Yes, your highness," the two guards answered almost instantly as they flinched.
They briefly had their guards down because they were busy admiring the touching scene between the princess and the queen. They were completely caught off guard when the queen called for them.
"Tell Charles that I'll finish the rest of the paperwork tomorrow. If he asks for the reason, tell him that I have to sleep next to my daughter for the rest of the night because she had a nightmare," said Dunha's mother.
"Y-Yes, understood your highness!!" both the guards shouted.
The guard who ran earlier stayed behind this time while the second guard ran towards the dark hallway without a lantern.
Once the first guard bowed his head and left the room, Dunha's mother lifted her daughter and carried her to the bed.
"Don't worry my little sweetheart... Mama will be right next to you, so you can sleep peacefully," said Dunha's mother as she gently tucked her in.
Dunha was finally able to calm down and began to smile.
"Mama..." said Dunha in a gentle voice.
"Yes, my sweet child?" her mother asked.
"Can we hold hands?" Dunha asked.
"Of course we can," said Dunha's mother.
While all but her face was under the blanket, Dunha stuck her hand out to hold her mother's hand.
To make Dunha fall asleep faster, Dunha's mother gently tapped her daughter's belly as she hummed.
"Hm, hmm, hmmm~" Dunha's mother hummed.
"When was the last time since I felt this comfortable?" she wondered. "Oh, I missed my mother's voice so much..."
As her mother continued to hum, Dunha's eyelids were beginning to close slowly.
"Even if this is a dream, I don't mind at all. If it's not, I better investigate more tomorrow..." she thought.
Eventually, her eyes closed. For the first time in years, Dunha peacefully fell asleep.
(To be continued.)
2020/02/19