Waking up

“Look! The Princess has awoken!”

A pigeon, perched on the castle, was startled by the sky-shattering cry and took flight.

The instant I opened my eyes, I found myself surrounded by a zealous crowd of maids.

“W-w-what in the world is going on?” I immediately sat upright in bed, clutching the quilt to my chest, utterly bewildered.

“Your Royal Highness, you have been unconscious for seven days and seven nights…” one of the maids exclaimed, tears of joy streaming down her face.

“Seven days and seven nights?”

I tilted my head, gazing at them in confusion.

“Yet, I remember nothing.”

The maids exchanged bewildered glances. “Could it be that Her Royal Highness has lost her memory?”

“That’s impossible.”

“What’s impossible about it? After all, simply waking up is a miracle in itself…”

Watching them surround me in a chattering circle, a headache began to throb behind my eyes.

“Stop, stop, stop! You’re far too loud!”

I cried out, covering my ears in frustration, before immediately throwing off the quilt and swinging my legs out of bed.

The maids’ gazes were akin to watching a fragile porcelain doll; they seemed to believe I needed to be handled with utmost care, even just to step out of bed.

They even moved to assist me, yet I was perfectly fine and certainly didn’t require any help!

“Your Royal Highness, I believe it would be best for you to remain in bed and rest.”

“Must I lie in bed and be gawked at by all of you? No, thank you.”

Being small and nimble, I effortlessly slipped out of their encircling formation.

Yet, they remained persistent. “Your Royal Highness, you absolutely must allow the doctor to examine you.”

“I absolutely do not need a physical examination.”

“Your Royal Highness, perhaps you would care to enjoy some breakfast first?”

“I’m not hungry. Right now, all I desire is a bath.”

“Your Royal Highness—!”

“What is it now?” I snapped, turning to glance back.

The sight before me gave me quite a fright!

There they stood, lined up in a neat row, declaring in unison, “We can attend to you during your bath!”

‘What kind of nonsense is ‘attending to me during my bath’?’ I thought, aghast.

‘Even if we’re all girls, I’d still be incredibly shy!’

With a resounding thud, I slammed the bathroom door shut.

‘Phew… the world is finally quiet.’

I sighed, feeling utterly overwhelmed by the maids’ attentive service.

‘Perhaps it’s simply because I am a princess?’

‘What a mess.’

‘Aside from the fact that I’m apparently a princess, my mind is a complete blank!’

I shed my white nightgown, then tilted my head, studying my reflection in the mirror.

The face staring back felt both familiar and utterly foreign.

A lock of bangs fell across my forehead, brushing the tip of my nose and partially obscuring my vision.

‘Huh? Isn’t the person in the mirror just a petite loli, barely reaching one hundred and fifty centimeters in height?’

A cascade of pure white hair flowed down to her ankles.

And then…

‘My chest is so flat…’

‘It must be that I haven’t developed yet!’

My gaze drifted slightly lower, and in the next instant, my face flushed crimson.

‘Ah??? I’m a boy?!?!’