It Was Cold.
I had an older brother and a younger brother.
My older brother was Barthemic Browrose, and my younger brother was Yardral Browrose.
Barthemic had inherited our father’s beautiful silver hair and pale green eyes. He was calm, kind, and incredibly handsome. He was also two years older than me. Yardral, on the other hand, had inherited our mother’s reddish-brown hair and light green eyes. He was handsome as well, but he was a year younger than me.
My brother Barthemic always spoiled me and listened to every selfish request I made. Yardral was different. For some reason, he wasn’t very comfortable around me.
I had never intended to bully him, but when I thought about it, I often did things he disliked without realizing it. Children could be surprisingly cruel without meaning to be.
But the person I was now wasn’t the same person I had been before.
In my previous life, I had been a grown woman. A rather middle-aged woman, if I was being honest. Married? No. Unfortunately, that had never happened.
Anyway, back to the present.
I wasn’t the old Cardinal anymore.
My younger brother was adorable, and I wanted us to become friends.
I wanted to stop relying on my older brother’s kindness all the time.
I wanted to become capable of doing things on my own.
After all, I was convinced that my future probably involved being cast out and forced to live as a commoner.
My brothers were most likely important characters in whatever story this world belonged to. If I really was a villainess, then the ending waiting for me would probably be exile from my family.
If that happened, I needed to be prepared.
I would have to learn how to cook.
I would have to learn how to clean and wash clothes.
I would need practical skills to survive.
More importantly, I would need a way to protect myself.
Without knowledge, money, and the ability to manage both, I would never survive on my own.
And in any difficult situation, having allies was better than being alone.
But who could become my ally?
As I sat quietly on my bed, lost in thought, a familiar voice interrupted me.
“Lady Cardinal? You’ve been staring into space for quite some time. Are you feeling unwell? If you cannot sleep, I can guide you gently into the world of dreams.”
“Miss Ageha…”
Ageha was one of the maids serving our household. More accurately, she was practically the head maid. Whenever I had trouble sleeping, she would perform something that seemed halfway between hypnosis and illusion magic.
Every single time, I would drift off to sleep before I even realized what was happening.
Thinking about it now, there was something strange about her.
The head butler was named Kagerou.
The chief gardener was named Higurashi.
And then there was Ageha.
Why were only those three given names that sounded so different from everyone else’s?
Their names reminded me of ninjas from Japanese stories.
Of course, there were no ninjas in this world.
Or perhaps there were.
They just called them intelligence agents or spies instead.
Half asleep, I found myself asking a question without thinking.
“Miss Ageha… are you part of an intelligence unit?”
Ageha’s eyes widened instantly.
Apparently, she hadn’t expected such a question from a six-year-old child.
“Did someone tell you something, my lady?” she asked carefully.
I shook my head.
“No. I just thought that Mr. Higurashi, Mr. Kagerou, and you might have been part of an intelligence organization.”
For a moment, Ageha looked troubled.
Perhaps I had touched upon a secret I wasn’t supposed to know.
An uneasy feeling settled in my chest.
“If I’ve learned a secret… will I be killed?” I asked nervously.
Ageha’s expression immediately softened.
“That would never happen. If anyone’s life would be in danger, it would be ours, not yours.”
I sat upright in alarm.
“I’m sorry! Please forget I said anything! I won’t tell anyone, I promise!”
Ageha looked even more shocked than before.
“My lady… are you worried about our safety?”
“Of course I am,” I replied.
To me, it seemed like an obvious answer.
Ageha stared at me for several seconds.
Then I noticed tears gathering in her eyes.
I immediately regretted bringing up the subject.
After all, it would be difficult to ask someone who might be punished for their secrets to teach me illusion magic.
What a shame.
The following day passed slowly.
I spent almost the entire day in bed recovering from my illness.
By evening, I had slept so much that I doubted I would ever fall asleep again.
Then something happened that nearly stopped my heart.
The ceiling above me opened.
Three figures dropped silently into my room.
Ageha.
Kagerou.
Higurashi.
For the love of everything holy, couldn’t they have used the door?
The three of them knelt simultaneously.
“Princess!” they declared in unison. “We swear our loyalty to you!”
“…Huh?”
I blinked.
Several times.
Surely I was dreaming.
Kagerou stepped forward and began speaking.
“Ageha, Higurashi, and I were once members of the Intelligence Division. We are retired now. Throughout our entire careers, no one ever discovered our identities.”
“I see…”
“We took great pride in that fact. Yet our disguises were seen through by a six-year-old child. Such a thing was beyond imagination.”
I had only guessed because of their names!
Kagerou continued.
“At that moment, we realized you were no ordinary child. Therefore, we wish to serve you.”
Wait.
Did this mean I had somehow recruited three legendary former spies?
That sounded incredibly useful.
I raised my hand timidly.
“Um… if you’re going to serve me, does that mean you’ll teach me things?”
The three exchanged glances.
“What sort of things, Princess?” Higurashi asked.
“Things like swordsmanship. Martial arts. Illusion magic.”
Silence filled the room.
The three stared at me.
Finally, Ageha spoke.
“Is our protection not enough for you?”
I quickly shook my head.
“No! I know all of you are very strong. But I want to become strong too.”
Their expressions softened slightly.
I continued.
“I want to know what I’m capable of. I want to learn. I want to grow. I want to cook and clean and do things myself. There are so many things I want to try. I don’t want to spend my whole life depending on other people.”
The room fell silent once more.
The three exchanged another look.
Then Kagerou smiled.
“Princess, are you prepared to endure difficult training?”
I straightened my back.
“I’ll do my best!”
The three former intelligence agents nodded.
And so, from that day onward, my secret training began.
What started as a simple desire to prepare for a possible exile became the first step toward mastering the techniques of the kingdom’s former intelligence division.
My new life had truly begun.
