Chapter 3

The manor was unusually quiet.

Lily padded through the polished obsidian halls barefoot, her ponytail loose and a bit messy. The silken white pajama pants and navy tank top gave her an almost relaxed look—very un-princesslike, and that was exactly how she liked it.

On the kitchen counter lay a folded note in Shizuku’s familiar scrawl:

               "No school today. Rest. The universe won’t collapse in 24 hours. —Dad."

She snickered.

LILY:
Wow, Dad being... lenient? That’s a first.

Stretching, she opened the fridge, revealing an array of labeled containers—some prepped by the manor chefs, others undoubtedly ordered from Gastran. Her stomach growled.

LILY (thinking):
Nah, I’ll cook today. Might as well enjoy the silence while I’ve got it.

She tied her hair back into a higher ponytail, cracked her knuckles, and got to work.

The kitchen came alive. She heated a pan, pulled out fresh eggs, tomatoes, spirit peppers, and a slice of leftover Deep Fried Dragon Steak. She diced it all with her family dagger—Mizukiri, which was absolutely overkill for chopping—but tradition was tradition.

LILY:
Astera’s style scrambled eggs… the Lily edition.

She tossed everything into the pan with a flourish, adding just the right dash of lightning salt and dark sugar. It sizzled into a delicious, golden omelet-like form. She plated it with a side of candied starfruit slices and poured herself some cold Star-Sparkling Water.

LILY (smiling):
Breakfast of chaotic half-goddess teens.

She ate slowly at the long dining table, the morning sun bathing the room in a comforting glow. Her mind wandered to Emrys, to the battles ahead, to Kifo’s cryptic promise...

—

After some reading in the manor’s hydrangea garden and a quick nap under the koiwood tree, Lily returned to the kitchen with a new idea.

LILY:
Lunch: Let’s make a Shizu Burger… but my way.

She made her own star-flavored bun dough, grilled a slice of seared Spirit Catfish, stacked it with grilled cheese, spiced tomato, a fried egg, and that crunchy dragon bacon Shizuku always pretended he didn’t love. She even mixed her own sauce—a blend of Eris-style sweet spice and a faint note of Alto’s favorite light mayo.

As the scent filled the manor, she took a bite and laughed.

LILY:
Perfect. He’s gonna steal this recipe the second he finds out.

She made a second burger and wrapped it in enchanted foil. For Dad, later. Even if he wouldn’t admit it, he’d appreciate the gesture.

Later, she sat on the rooftop of the manor, feet dangling over the edge, burger in one hand, a book in the other, and the sky stretching endlessly above her.

A rare day of peace in the life of the Universal Princess.

And somewhere, she could still feel Emrys’s quiet presence watching, not intruding—just there.

LILY (softly): Yeah. I’ll be a captain someday. But today… I’m just Lily.