Chapter 46 â The Princeâs Seal
âLong, long ago! A really, really long time ago!â
The pages of my sketchbook fluttered as I turned them.
On the paper was a drawing of a dragon breathing fire.
âIt was the time when dragons used to smoke!â
Tian squinted his eyes.
ââŚThatâs a dragon? Looks more like an earthworm.â
I ignored him completely and flipped to the next page.
âOur ancestors could use magical power!â
âAnd what do those three lumps of scribbles have to do with magicâŚ?â
Flip.
âAt that time, no matter how serious a wound was, one spell could heal it right away!â
ââŚâ
âBut when the power of magic disappeared, people faced a great crisis!â
The page showed a dark sky colored in black, brown, and gray crayon.
On the ground, I had drawn people with sad faces lying around.
âPeople who had relied on magic for everything suddenly had a hard time!â
To emphasize their suffering, I drew blue lines streaming down their faces with crayon.
âOh, rivers flowing over rocks! Nice!â
ââŚThose are people.â
ââŚâ
Tian awkwardly shut his mouth, and I stubbornly continued flipping the pages.
âWithout magic to rely on, humans had to solve problems on their own.â
The next page was full of machines drawn in gray crayon.
âBut people quickly found a new way to live!
Instead of using spells, they developed âtechnologyâ based on magic!â
âR-right, I see.â
âAnd they gave this technology a nameââMagical Science!ââ
When I said âMagical Science,â Tian sneaked a glance at me.
âAnd to support Magical ScienceâPharmacy!â
The new picture showed flasks and beakers filled with colorful liquids.
âBut pharmacy developed much more slowly than magical science!
Because it depended too much on research conditions!â
Tian nodded faintly.
He looked pretty impressed with my presentation.
âVisual aids really help. Iâm glad I prepared this.â
I tried not to grin too proudly and continued explaining.
âAs a result, people started dyingâpoof, poofâeven from the tiniest wounds!â
My handmade illustrated presentation was finally nearing the end.
âThe biggest problem was infection!
Even a small wound could become impossible to treat once infected!
There was no medicine to prevent it, and that was a huge problem!â
âYes, thatâs true. I learned from my tutor in the palace how many citizens die because of infection.â
âExactly! And the only cure, the Florentia flower, is so rare that even the royal family canât get it easily.â
Saying that, I flipped to the last page.
There, I had drawn a picture of the Florentia flower.
âHm, green thread?â
âFlorentia flower.â
âR-right. Go on.â
I gave the prince a serious look, then closed my sketchbook with a flourish.
âAnyway! Thatâs why our Abner Academy inventedâŚâ
I rummaged through the little fabric bag Iâd gotten as a birthday present.
âTa-da!â
Iâd drawn all those pictures yesterday just for this momentâ
even though my fingers still hurt from drawing all day long.
Finally, I found what I was looking for and proudly held it out to the prince.
âThe wound treatment ointmentâLubarina!â
Then I raised my other hand.
âAnd the infection-prevention potionâLubawen!â
One was a small jar of green ointment, and the other was a bottle of liquid medicine.
Tian blinked in confusion, staring at the two bottles in front of him.
I held them out even closer so he could see them better.
âYour Highness, Your Highness! Remember I told you I almost died?
I had a huge wound on my back like this!â
Tian winced at my exaggerated hand motions.
But I didnât stop talking.
âAnd guess what! I healed completely in just two months!â
I suddenly felt like one of those shady street vendors selling fake miracle cures.
While I was wondering how to make my pitch sound more professional,
Tian looked back and forth between me and the bottles.
âSo youâre saying you healed without using any Florentia flowersâjust with these?â
âAs expected of the Crown Prince! Youâre so smart and cool!â
âWhâwhat?â
He coughed awkwardly and looked away, then asked quietly,
âAre you telling the truth?â
âOf course! Itâs all true!â
âThat means you⌠or rather, the Abner Academy has created something the entire Empire will be shocked by.â
âExactly!â
âBut how could youâor the Academyâpossibly do that?â
I had already expected that question, so I nodded like an adult.
Then I explained the history of the Lubarin plantâ
how it was despised in the South, how both nobles and peasants joined forces to eradicate it,
and how, in truth, it possessed immense healing and infection-preventing powers.
âThatâs⌠unbelievable.â
Tian stared blankly at the bottles, still looking stunned.
âSo you revived the Lubarin plant and made these medicines? Just the two of you?â
I nodded proudly.
âIâm super smart, you know! And my teacherâs even smarter.
He might become the youngest ever Tower Master one day!â
Tian just blinked at me in disbelief.
I placed the bottles on the table in front of him and finally said what Iâd been waiting to say.
âSo! I want to register Lubarina and Lubawen with the Royal Pharmaceutical Institute.â
ââŚâ
âMy teacher said that if I have a royal recommendation letter, itâll go through faster.â
Everything Iâd prepared had been for this moment.
âThank goodness Tian came to visit!â
I had already planned to visit the capital soon with Owen.
And if I met Tian there, I was going to ask him for this favor.
âSo please, Your Highness! I want you to write me that recommendation!â
Tianâs eyes widened.
ââŚMe?â
âYes! It has to be you!â
He looked flustered and fidgeted before speaking carefully.
âI understand what youâre asking. But Iâve neverâŚâ
He trailed off, hesitating.
âIâve never used the Imperial Seal before.â
Now it was my turn to look surprised.
Honestly, I hadnât expected him to agree right away.
But that answer was⌠unexpected.
Tian blinked, then nodded slowly as if realizing something.
âYou probably donât know what it means for a royal to use the Imperial Seal.â
Then, after thinking for a moment, he continued.
âEvery member of the royal family has their own personal seal. I have one too.
I received mine when I became Crown Princeâwhen I was two years old.â
Of course, I already knew that.
But I didnât interrupt him.
âThe seal is used only when a royal makes an important decisionâ
like signing an official document, sending letters to foreign kingdoms, or summoning nobles to the palace.â
ââŚâ
âIn simple terms, itâs like a face.
It carries your name, your identity, and your royal authorityâand adds weight to your words.
But Iâve⌠never had a chance to use mine.â
For a brief moment, his expression turned bitter.
I nodded inwardly.
âBecause of Empress Karinâs interference, huh.â
Tian had just said it himselfâ
For a royal, the seal was like a face.
And yet he had never been allowed to use it, not even once.
âYou know, Annelia,â he said with a small, embarrassed smile,
âIâm not exactly a great crown prince.”
I stayed silent, thinking.
âHmm. Maybe this could actually work in my favor.â
I had several reasons for asking Tian for the recommendation letter.
âFirst, heâs literally the only person I can ask.â
He just happened to be someone Iâd befriendedâand a Crown Prince to boot.
And since he was still young, he was easy to talk to.
If Tian had been the wild troublemaker people described in my past life,
I never wouldâve tried asking him for this.
But in reality? He was just a kind, timid boy.
And secondâ
According to what I knew, Tian commanded a small elite unit of knights.
A unit that just so happened to operate on dangerous battlefieldsâŚ
Which meantâ
They were exactly the kind of people who would need my new medicine the most.






