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1. Childhood Friend – Lena’s Dream

Early in the morning, in a small house with no table, Lena and her parents sat on the floor, scraping every morsel from their bowls.

‘Where should we go today?’

Looking out the window, Lena noticed the cloudy weather. Days like this are better spent working indoors.

After finishing her meal, Lena bid farewell to her parents and stepped outside. The village greeted her with the sounds of livestock crying out for their morning feed. All of them belonged to someone else.

Lena searched for the only bakery in town.

There was always a shortage of help here.

“Oh. Is that you, Lena? You’re as reliable as ever.”

Hans’ aunt, who was getting things ready inside, smiled at her as if she had expected her arrival.

In fact, Lena had a cheerful personality, often preferring to gather food in the forest or fields, and she avoided working indoors as much as possible.

The bakery was the only exception. Lena loved the fragrant aroma that wafted from it.

Hans’ aunt welcomed her warmly. Although she only came on cloudy days, someone as enthusiastic as Lena was always welcome.

“Hehe… You haven’t started kneading yet, right?”

Lena chuckled sheepishly as she grabbed some flour and took a seat, causing Hans’ aunt to click her tongue.

‘Tsk tsk. I don’t understand how such an energetic girl wants to become a priest.’

That was the thought that crossed her mind every time she saw the girl.

Priests occasionally went out to preach, but they usually spent most of their time in the church, swamped with work that kept them from leaving.

First and foremost, the priest had to conduct daily rituals. The sacred powers that the priest possessed required him to praise the deity and lead the congregation to worship.

They also had to heal the sick. When villagers fell ill, they turned to the church, and the priest used his powers to bestow blessings of healing.

In such a small village as Demos, that was possible due to how close-knit everyone was. In the city, one had to pay a hefty sum for treatment.

Priests also had to teach children. In such small villages, there were no teachers to educate the kids, and teaching history and theology was the priest’s duty, so they acted as the de facto village teacher.

They really were busy folks.

Hans’ aunt thought Lena wasn’t suited to be a priest, and being so poor made it impractical as well.

But Lena dreamed of becoming one.

When her father was severely injured at work, the village priest had sprinkled a gentle glow on his wounds, leaving a lasting impression on young Lena’s heart.

That warm energy had guided her toward the path of priesthood.

Whether she realized what her aunt thought or not, Lena kneaded the dough energetically. As the moist white powder formed a sticky mass, she continued working until it became firmer. Sweat soon beaded on her forehead.

“Phew!”

After making the dough nice and smooth with a sprinkle of flour, Lena took a moment to rest her tired arms. While catching her breath, her thoughts wandered.

Lately, Leo has been acting strange.

He was originally quiet like his father, but these days he hardly spoke and rarely smiled. His gaze often drifted far away.

Oh! Wait a minute…

‘It was recently Leo’s mother’s memorial day, wasn’t it?’

That had to be it. Being as mature as he was, Lena had almost forgotten, but his mother had passed away two years ago. He was probably feeling down thinking about her. I need to help him out more.

Lena picked up the flour again and patted the dough firmly.

As sweat collected on her delicate nose and threatened to drip, she finished off by slapping a few lumps of dough before calling it a day.

Hans’ aunt handed her a generous loaf of bread as payment.

“Thank you! I’ll enjoy it.”

“I have to thank you even more. Come by again.”

Lena left, promising to return on the next cloudy day, but just as she stepped outside, an unexpected visitor appeared.

“Lena! Hey there!”

“Uh… Oh, it’s Hans. Hello?”

A cloud passed over her heart. The truth was, there was another reason Lena didn’t visit the bakery often.

“Are you just coming from work? You look pretty today.”

“Uh, thanks.”

She tried to pass by, but Hans naturally fell into step beside her. Lena glared at him, trying to tolerate her discomfort.

Hans was a lazybones. The bakery was so busy that on days no one helped, Hans’ aunt had to struggle through the work alone, yet he never lent a hand.

It seemed like he had no particular task. He didn’t even join the village boys in their collective activities, so he must have been just loitering around.

‘Why is he wasting his height and health like this?’

Unaware of Lena’s thoughts, Hans rambled on.

“I went to the big village the day before yesterday. I saw two people fighting in the market. When I went to ask about it, the situation was…”

She had to put up with his aimless chatter until she got home.

– Hey! Get lost! I don’t like you!

She wanted to shoot back, but with neighbors, what could she do? Fighting amongst peers in such a small village would lead to nothing good.

Lena thought of the Goddess of Patience and Devotion, Namere, and finally made it home safely.

“Thanks for seeing me off.”

“It’s my honor to help a lady!”

In his cheerful voice, she almost forgot those teachings.

Fortunately, her time spent flitting in and out of the church to study theology didn’t go to waste; Namere had not left her side.

Hans hummed a tune as he left, and Lena chucked the bread nonchalantly into her basket before stepping outside again.

‘Phew! Where should I go next…’

Ideally, she wanted to visit the church and read a book, but she held back.

As the only daughter, she shouldn’t be idling around. Since she worked hard last weekend, she needed to keep up the effort until next weekend. Let’s do this!

While cheering herself on as she looked for a place to go, a familiar voice called from behind her.

“Lena!”

Without her realizing it, she broke into a wide smile. Even without hearing the voice, she would have known. The only person who would call for her at this hour from next door was one person.

When she turned around, it was indeed Leo, peering out the window.

“Leo! You’re home already?”

“Yep. I’m going to take a nap for a bit since I’m going to dig up, uh… Bellafloir with the older boys tonight.”

“Pfft, it’s Bellafleur, isn’t it? That pronunciation is funny!”

Bellafleur was an edible root vegetable that would push its way through the ground at night to bloom, emitting a faint glow that made harvesting it in the dark easier.

“Hehe, I messed up the pronunciation. What are you up to today?”

“Cough! I already went to Hans’ aunt’s place. Now I’m thinking about stopping by the village chief’s house. If there’s nothing to do, I might just go to the church.”

Lena walked to the window, leaning against the wall, sneaking glances at him.

She liked Leo.

Ever since they were little, Lena and Leo had journeyed together, hand in hand, through thrilling adventures.

Through creepy forests, endless plains, and icy valleys! Each time they returned, they would have edible treasures in hand.

She missed the warmth of his hand. As they grew older, they had gradually stopped holding hands.

When did that start? Lena counted the years in her mind.

‘Was it when I said I wanted to become a priest?’

Priests couldn’t get married. It seemed to show a certain reverence toward the clergy… but isn’t that a bit too rushed?

Lena hid her complicated emotions. Although she missed holding Leo’s hand, she was okay with how things were.

“By the way, you know~ after you left yesterday~”

Lena stood by the window and chatted away with him. Leo listened patiently, showing no signs of annoyance; he truly was kind.

‘How do I make him a prince?’

No answers came.

Minseo, no, Leo had grasped the rough outline of this world by now.

It was a vast continent with seven kingdoms.

In the north were the Ashtin and Aster kingdoms, in the west was the Jerome Holy Kingdom, in the center was the Belita Kingdom, in the east was the Aisel Kingdom, and to the south were the Conrad Kingdom and this village, which belonged to the Orun Kingdom.

He tried to gauge the size of the continent. It would take two months to ride to the capital (Oberg) of Belita, which lay in the very center of the continent, while it would take a week to reach the southern sea.

‘Riding across the continent in five months, is it like China? No, it’s probably much bigger than that. Is it about the size of a combo of China and Australia?’

A sigh escaped him. The thought of raising this lively friend as a princess felt nearly impossible.

“Okay then, I’m off! Have a good nap!”

After chatting away for a while, Lena waved goodbye and left, while Leo propped his chin against the window, lost in thought.

His body felt drained.

Without a surname, Lena was a commoner. To make her a princess, she would have to marry a prince, but in fairy tales, marriages between commoners and royalty were rare.

In this place, where the class system was strict, it would be fortunate if marriage between royals and commoners had not been outlawed.

Plus, this Demos village was too remote. Not even the lord governing it showed interest, so as long as taxes were paid on time, it was rare for any high-ranking person to visit.

‘The Princess Maker game is really easy, huh…’

The Princess Maker game was set against the backdrop of a capital city.

That alone made access easier; plus, the heroine could visit the palace once a month.

Kings, queens, ministers, and generals had nothing better to do and would gladly listen to a little girl simply because the father raising the heroine was a hero who saved humanity. Life was quite simple.

In other words, Princess Maker started without the hindrances of class or region.

All one had to do was raise the daughter well.

In fact, every January, when the character visited the royal castle, they could have a cozy date with a disguised prince.

‘But what a predicament I’m in.’

With the window still open, Leo lay back down on his bed.

He had to work every day.

It wasn’t that he faced the same struggles as Lena’s family. His father, a fantastic hunter, made sure Leo’s family never went hungry in the village.

Still, the environment left no room for idleness. He had to work daily alongside village boys and Lena, while his father wished for him to keep honing his hunting skills.

Leo uncomfortably tossed and turned. Between trying to live his life and simultaneously make Lena into a princess, it was just too much.

He didn’t know how to manipulate Lena either. In the Princess Maker, daughters would naturally follow the tasks assigned to them unless they went astray, but Lena sometimes just waved her hand and said, ‘See ya!’

How could he possibly take her to a capital city where a prince might live?

He’d heard it would take two weeks of riding just to reach the nearest capital (Nevis) of the Orun Kingdom. He had no strength, funds, or justifiable reasons to protect and take Lena there.

Not to mention, time was running out.

Leo and Lena were the same age, mid-teens, and would be of age next year, but if he wanted to marry Lena off to a prince, even delaying her age wouldn’t help; being in her late teens was already pushing it. In this world, hitting your late teens was perilous when it came to getting married.

On the other hand, Princess Maker was a game that started its protagonist at ten years old and married her off at eighteen. It gave players the time to raise a child and prepare for marriage over eight years, but not here. Lena could marry even right now.

Not to mention, the looks from Lena’s parents were weighted. Being so poor, it seemed impossible for their daughter to become a priest, but as good parents, they couldn’t just stop her dreams; they probably hoped that this energetic childhood friend would pull off some “incident.”

It made sense since Leo and Lena were already the official couple that everyone in the village knew about. Everyone knew that Lena wanted to become a priest, so they never brought it up.

The gentle breeze flowing through the window tickled Leo’s nose. Stretching lazily, he muttered to himself.

“Should I just keep living like this? It’s peaceful here in this village…”

Even thinking about raising Lena as a princess didn’t feel like a return to reality; this place didn’t resemble a game either.

His memories of his parents and Chaehwa, as well as modern civilization, had faded to mere whispers, and he felt no desire to return to such a hectic world.

And on a darker note, Lena was undeniably beautiful.

In the village, if one wasn’t careful, the eyes of noblefolk might catch her, and she could be taken as a concubine, so they always kept her hidden.

And he was just a close childhood friend to her, while everyone around wished for the two of them to marry.

‘I’ve truly been blessed.’

In fact, the previous Leo had dreamed of becoming a great hunter like his father.

How modest his dream was, leaving no room for despair. Just as it troubled him to make Lena a princess, big dreams naturally sow despair.

He used his hands as a pillow and lay down.

‘Yes, I’ll live here.’

With that simple resolve, Leo drifted into sleep. His heart settled peacefully into the serene Demos village.

*

Early in the morning, Lena woke up unusually early.

It was still dim, but she quickly got dressed and quietly slipped outside, careful not to wake her parents.

The dawn air was chilly.

Crickets chirped, signaling the approach of autumn.

Lena trudged toward the vegetable garden.

Since she woke up too early, she had some spare time, so she might as well pull some weeds. If she worked quickly, her mother would likely have breakfast ready by the time she returned.

Arriving at the small patch of land, Lena bent down to pull out the weeds. However, looking at the dark and small garden, she felt a wave of melancholy. Our house didn’t even have a yard, so they had set up this tiny garden outside of the village.

‘Becoming a priest… Am I going to have to give that up?’

To become a priest, one had to study at the Monastery Church in the Holy Kingdom, but she had neither tuition nor even travel funds to get there.

‘If only I were a boy, I would’ve left without a second thought… No, even as a boy, it would have been tough.’

In this world, bandits, robbers, and territorial disputes in passing villages, along with thugs and ruffians in the cities made solo travel dangerous, even for a boy.

Unless one was a knight or a holy knight, it was preferable to leave a will before embarking on such long journeys. For a teenage girl, being stuck in the village was her only option.

Lena sniffled, holding back tears.

‘Crying? What’s there to cry about… What have I done to deserve this?’

She wiped her eyes in the brightening garden and dug into the ground. She threw all the weeds she pulled into the hole and covered them away with lingering regrets.

She had to work again today.