On the carriage ride home, Hazel and the Grand Duke took turns showering the children with praise. Even eating in such a crowded formal setting, the two of them had stayed remarkably composed without making a single mistake. "So, whatever reward you two want, just say the word."
Luca immediately rattled off a whole list of ten wishes without pausing for breath. But Luna, sitting beside him, stayed quiet the entire time. Hazel knew exactly why the girl looked so down. Ignoring the jolting of the carriage, she leaned over, wrapped Luna in a hug, and said soothingly, "You were incredibly well behaved tonight."
"But I'm not lovable," Luna said.
Hearing that, Hazel immediately protested. "If you're not lovable, then who on earth is?"
"But Luca is more lovable than me, isn't he?"
She replied gently, "There's no such thing as a standard for being lovable. Everyone sees it differently."
"Then what's the royal consort's standard, huh? Is it because I've been too unruly?"
Instead of answering directly, Hazel asked back, "Do you think everyone loves your brother just because he's lovable?"
To her surprise, Luna answered immediately. "He's not lovable at all, is he? Even without being lovable, he's still loved by everyone. So if I grow up to be just like him, would the royal consort like me then?"
Seeing Luna's wounded, vulnerable expression, Hazel couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy, remembering her own childhood. So she looked the girl straight in the eye with unwavering conviction. "Listen to me. If someone tells you they don't love you, never let that make you feel like you're the one who's unworthy. Because that's their problem, not any fault of yours."
These were the exact words her own grandmother had once told her.
Right now, Hazel's only wish was to be able to protect these children. And yet, the cruel deeds the previous witch had once committed were something she simply couldn't ignore. So she cast a small spell to swap her senses. As luck would have it, at that very moment the crown prince happened to be talking about her. He had no idea just how much he'd let slip that day. He still firmly believed Hazel was on his side.
It was only then that Hazel finally understood the previous owner of this body had once been affiliated with the royal faction.
"Aren't witches supposed to be able to sense holy power? The only reason I lowered myself to talk to her was to find out exactly where that holy relic is hidden in the Grand Duke's household. While she must have felt incredibly honored just to meet me, judging by that day's look on her face, she was clearly swept off her feet by my handsome looks."
Hazel was left speechless listening to this. She never imagined the crown prince was this deep in his own delusions of grandeur. If we're talking about good looks, surely that title belongs to someone on the Grand Duke's level.
Just as she was thinking that, the crown prince suddenly flew into a rage, slamming his fist on the table. "That devil of a grand duke hasn't caused any trouble lately, so his reputation's probably only grown even more, hasn't it? I originally planned to eliminate him the exact same way I got rid of his parents, but father insisted I not act recklessly."
Right after that, the crown prince suddenly noticed the cookie hidden in his pocket. Sensing the danger, Hazel immediately severed the magical connection. Thanks to that, she'd managed to catch a shocking secret straight from the crown prince's own mouth.
While she was still lost in thought, the Grand Duke suddenly walked in, startling Hazel badly. "I came here simply to say thank you. You accomplished something no one else could have. A talented nanny like you deserves a reward. Is there anything you'd like?"
Without a moment's hesitation, Hazel answered right away, "Yes, there is." But to everyone's surprise, all Hazel really wanted was simply for him to trust her.
The Grand Duke could hardly believe his own ears and asked her to explain why. "Because I will always stand by the Grand Duke's side unconditionally, even if there are things that weren't actually done by me. Who knows what misunderstandings might arise down the road. So please, I need you to trust me no matter what."
Even though the Grand Duke had no idea what Hazel was getting at, he nodded and agreed to trust her anyway.
Afterward, Hazel put on a serious expression and revealed the truth about the royal faction pulling the strings behind the scenes. To her surprise, the Grand Duke simply replied calmly that he'd already known about it for a long time. "I pretended not to know, purely to keep you safe, Hazel. And come to think of it, I specifically told you not to get involved in this matter at all, didn't I?"
Hazel had no choice but to tell the Grand Duke about her encounter with the crown prince earlier that day. That he'd claimed to be searching for the location of a holy relic hidden somewhere in his household. Was that the real reason behind their attack?
"Actually, a few years back, the royal family had once quietly inquired about whether my mother, given her status as a holy maiden, might use the holy relic as a betrothal token. No one besides the children must ever learn about what happened today. The only people who know about this are myself, Daniel, and the captain of the guard. But how exactly did you manage to slip past the sensing abilities of the mage standing beside the crown prince?"
Hazel explained that she'd used a sense swapping spell and cast it onto the cookies. This only left the Grand Duke even more puzzled. Here was a witch who didn't even know a basic healing spell. And yet she could genuinely pull off such an advanced piece of magic. Suspicious as it was, he recalled Hazel's passionate, heartfelt vow from earlier.