The place I've always dreamed of

When I awoke, I noticed Sir Henri watching me with curiosity. I could see he was now able to stay awake without much effort, which could only mean one thing...

"How long did I sleep?" I asked, noticing it was bright outside. The old man chuckled.

"For quite a while, I’d say."

"Who’s guiding the horses?"

"See for yourself," he said, laughing. I leaned out of the cabin and saw that Rafar was in the driver’s seat. I wondered why he was driving instead of one of the servants. He was the villain of the story, so why did his actions keep surprising me with every moment we spent together?

"The other lads are too young; they don’t know how to do this sort of thing," Sir Henri commented, as if reading my mind—and also as if he thought things were better in his day.

During the time that passed, I asked Sir Henri about his injuries. He was treating them himself, and the improvement was already evident.

"I just don’t know what I’ll tell Gertrude when I get home," he said, shaking his head. "She’s not a fan of this new trend."

"Have you been married a long time?" I asked, curious. When I was little, I loved hearing my grandparents tell, over and over, how they met.

"When I met her, she was the new nanny for the bocchan," he said, looking nostalgic.

"For Rafar?" I asked, surprised. He nodded.

"When his parents did that cruel thing, she was the first to take his side… that’s why she’s not so fond of this new trend people have, replacing their human parts with robotic ones," he explained, noticing my confused look. "But that doesn’t concern us, does it, girl?"

I reflected for the rest of the journey on what I had discussed with Sir Henri. I wanted to understand what he meant by "cruelty," but nothing came to mind. Neither in the novel nor in the game was anything written about Rafar’s past—only about the monster he had become.

When the carriage stopped, I looked out the window, surprised to see we were still on a trail. Sir Henri stepped out with a smile, bidding me farewell with a handshake.

"Thank you for saving my life, Princess."

After helping Sir Henri down from the carriage, Rafar climbed in and sat across from me. Despite hours of driving, he showed no sign of fatigue. I noticed his eyes were fixed on me, studying every detail.

"So, you’re not only a noble but also a doctor," he remarked, pushing aside a few screws lying on the seat.

I didn’t know how to respond to his comment. Staying silent didn’t seem like the best option, either. But what was I supposed to tell him? That I was reborn in the body of a noble girl but had been an engineer in my past life? I took a deep breath, fidgeting with my hands to calm myself.

"I don’t deserve that title; I’m just a scholar in the field," I finally replied, unable to keep eye contact.

"Am I asking too many questions?" he asked, as if wondering if he should stop.

"Of course not." I quickly shook my head. "I just… I’ve never had support to pursue what I love, so it’s strange to talk about it."

It was true. My father abandoned my mother and me when I was still a child, and she was disappointed when she found out I wanted to pursue engineering as a profession. Her dream was to have a lawyer for a daughter, not a fixer of phones and gadgets. Furthermore, Mai never really had the chance to express what she truly wanted to be or which path she wanted to follow.

"I didn’t ask to embarrass you," he said, a slight smile on his face. "I was just surprised by everything that happened and wanted to know what you’d do next."

"I’m not planning on doing anything," I replied defensively, which made him laugh and pat my head.

"You know, Mai, I thought you were a noble who didn’t care much about things around you when I first met you, but I was wrong. I’ll be forever grateful to you for saving Sir Henri’s life."

I smiled at hearing him say that.

"I just did what needed to be done," I said, trying to keep my good spirits in check. I had succeeded!

"By the way, we’re close," he commented, looking at the approaching hills. "Mai, there will be some… complicated situations for you to handle when we arrive."

"What do you mean by that?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. I should’ve guessed!

"Well… my parents… they won’t accept you," he said, his gaze shifting to my arms. Then he looked me over entirely, making me blush.

"Hey!"

"Sorry, you really don’t have any robotic parts, do you?"

"No, I’m entirely human," I replied, and he sighed—a sigh I could tell was one of relief.

"I love that about you, but the people of the South won’t view you favorably."

"The people of the South? You mean your parents?"

"No… in our kingdom, only 1% of the population is human."

"THIS IS A DREAM!" I couldn’t hold back my smile. I was on my way to paradise!