Princess's Struggle for Survival-Chapter 152: Countdown

However, seeing Lyra so happy, Astrid wouldn't dampen her spirits. It was only natural for a young girl to like pretty clothes.

With Lyra's salary, she could afford to buy them herself, but she sent most of her earnings back home and saved a small portion for emergencies during her studies.

The Elizabeth Academy of Magic covered food and lodging in the tuition fees, but living in the imperial capital without some spare money was inconvenient.

"When winter approaches, Elise will purchase a new batch of seasonal clothes. You can go and see then, Miss Lyra, and buy any styles you like."

Astrid spoke while picking up her teacup, bringing it to her lips and gently blowing on it before taking a sip. The delicate tea aroma spread through her mouth.

Thin white mist curled around the woman's long, curved eyelashes, eventually dissolving in the sunlight.

Lyra gazed at the silver-haired princess before her, her smooth black-stockinged legs naturally crossed.

The velvet material made a soft rustling sound as her knees rubbed together.

"Yes, thank you, Princess Astrid!"

Lyra withdrew her heated gaze and replied softly.

Seeing this, Astrid put down her teacup and placed her fingers back on the book pages.

"Just remember when the time comes."

With that, Astrid chanted a spell to close the window, leaned back in her chair, and continued reading her magic book.

After standing in the room for a while, ensuring Princess Astrid had no further instructions, Lyra quietly left.

Having just been promoted to an intermediate apprentice and knight, there were still many things she hadn't mastered.

She needed to work harder to truly become the sword and shield that protected Princess Astrid.

Meanwhile, deep in the castle, Amalia was also reading a book related to magic, though compared to professional literature, this one leaned more toward casual discussion, with less systematic and in-depth content.

The golden-haired girl sat in her seat, her slender legs gently pressed together, her body slightly leaning forward, her gaze focused.

Lying beside the girl, Auri rested her fluffy head near Amalia's fair, smooth ankle, her tail occasionally wagging as he basked in the sun.

Compared to the orange cat's lazy ease, Amalia seemed less relaxed. She stared at the page, her delicate brows furrowed.

Since gaining Livia as a stable source for borrowing books, Amalia had access to more and more reading material.

Upon learning of her younger sister's interest in learning magic, Livia had even taken the initiative to borrow books from the Valeria Royal Library that would aid in her magical studies.

Perhaps due to her personality, Amalia never mentioned to Livia which specific types of books she wanted, leaving the latter to choose based on her learning progress.

Thus, books suitable for her level were selected, while advanced texts, like those for master-level magic, never appeared on the shelves.

As for other branches like potions, magical forging, and magical machinery, Livia didn't specifically borrow professional books, instead using these casual magic discussions to help Amalia understand.

If pressed to say what Amalia was most interested in, it would be potionology, understanding the reactions between herbs and recognizing what that dark green potion represented.

Of course, Amalia wouldn't seek it out or suggest that such books be placed on the shelves sooner.

She didn't know what she wanted, nor what she didn't want.

Perhaps being content with the status quo was Amalia's greatest satisfaction.

However... the more she avoided thinking about certain things, the more they seemed to surface unexpectedly...

Like the black lingerie that didn't quite match Livia's usual style, the occasional silver-white hair caught in the bedsheets, and now this book that vaguely touched on sensitive topics.

Amalia gently stroked the cover, her gaze seemingly etched onto the dark ink lines on the parchment.

"Most non-humanoid magical creatures are highly sensitive to magical elements. Perhaps due to differences in thought or cognition, they seem to have a unique understanding of illusions, unaffected by illusion magic and corresponding potions that only work on humans."

"Take, for example, the 'Land of Eternal Slumber' (Note 1) used for large-scale environmental hypnosis, or the 'Transformation Potion' (Note 2) that alters one's appearance from another's perspective. Both have minimal effect on creatures like the Shadow Crystal Crocodile and the Molten Lizard, which possess basic intelligence."

"There's also the possibility that these magical creatures' intelligence levels are still too low to be affected by illusions. Due to the lack of data on higher-level dragons, we can't draw conclusions from their superior species, though dragons themselves would never admit to any bloodline similarity with those lower beings."

If it were just these two paragraphs, Amalia might not have reacted much. What concerned her most were the small annotations at the bottom of the page.

Note 1: The 'Land of Eternal Slumber' is a high-level magic requiring multiple people to construct the spell circle, typically led by a main chanter who communicates with the magical energy, assisted by nine to fifteen mages to establish the array.

Note 2: The 'Transformation Potion' is an intermediate potion crafted from hallucinogenic mushrooms and herbs, allowing the drinker to achieve a temporary disguise effect.

Intermediate potion, disguise, these sharp words struck Amalia like a dagger.

The book had more detailed annotations. Amalia flipped to the page marked with the 'Transformation Potion,' her lips tightly pressed, her emerald eyes narrowing unconsciously.

The 'Transformation Potion' itself is a deep, dark green liquid with tiny bubbles at the bottom, tasting bitter with a strange sourness upon drinking. A single dose is contained in a small crystal vial about two fingers wide and one finger long.

Amalia had observed Livia's potion up close. Now, with more precise data for comparison, her heart sank further.

Dark green, bubbles at the bottom, and the dosage matched the glass vial Livia used to store the potion.

And most crucially...

Her gaze moved downward, and Amalia's pupils suddenly dilated.

"The effective time for a single dose of the 'Transformation Potion' is two hours, non-stackable... Repeated consumption leads to partial wastage of the potion's effects..."

The two-hour duration also matched Livia's actions.

Looking at the text before her, Amalia felt a chill in her heart.

This book was one she had borrowed from Livia... meaning Livia likely knew she would see it...

The disguise effect of the 'Transformation Potion' could be easily discerned by anyone with advanced apprentice-level mental strength, according to another useful piece of information in the annotations.

Advanced apprentice.

Amalia repeated these words in her mind, but her mood didn't improve.

She knew full well that even magic was taught to her by Livia. This book might be an accident, but guiding her to train her mental strength was undoubtedly Livia's deliberate plan.

Livia wasn't doing this to keep deceiving her... but to let her discover the truth herself...

Why...

If the goal was to keep her living in constant doubt and unease, then Astrid's objective had been achieved.

With just a few small details, she had driven Amalia to speculate wildly, her mind in turmoil every morning, unable to focus.

On one side was her dearest sister; on the other, Astrid, who had once bullied her.

The stark contrast between these two identities kept Amalia in a perpetual state of conflict and self-doubt.

It seemed... like a deadlock...

Using Livia's tenderness and love to lure her in, while simultaneously tearing her apart, forcing her to let go of her illusions and face the cold, harsh reality.

Astrid Calliste... is this your goal?

First, giving her the only light in her dark life, then ruthlessly snatching it away wasn't enough.

You had to make the flame flicker, forcing her to watch and slowly doubt whether she had ever truly felt even a hint of warmth from it.

At this point, it had become an open scheme. Whether Amalia struggled or not, she would experience this torment, like ants slowly gnawing at her heart.

....

"Amalia, guess what's inside?"

"Is it food?"

"Nope."

"Then... a new game?"

"Not that either."

Livia poked the golden-haired girl's head affectionately.

"Don't you remember? I took your measurements some time ago."

"It's new clothes."

Watching Livia take out a few neatly folded summer outfits from her bag, Amalia released her grip around Livia's waist, her snow-white ankles pressed tightly together as she sat quietly beside her.

Under the moonlight, the clothes on the bed emitted a flowing glow. Whether in tailoring or material, these new outfits were clearly superior to what she had worn before.

"Amalia..."

Noticing Amalia's gaze, Livia smiled softly, her voice warm.

"Why don't you try one on? I'd like to see how these clothes look on my little princess."

Astrid had initially only given Elise specific measurements and a general design concept. The final result would depend on how they looked on the golden-haired girl.

Looking into Livia's slightly expectant emerald eyes, Amalia softly replied, "Okay," then stood up, her fingers reaching behind her to untie the sash of her nightgown without hesitation.

Twenty minutes later, Amalia stood gracefully before Livia in a lightweight princess dress.

The white ribbons tied into cute bows on either side of her golden hair, the lace-trimmed puffy sleeves, and the wavy bustier design that modestly covered her chest revealed glimpses of her snow-white collarbone, like a budding flower hidden among leaves.

"And the socks and shoes."

Holding the golden-haired girl's hand, Livia pulled her closer. Amalia sat down between Livia's knees as the latter took out a pair of creamy white tights, spreading her legs to rest them on the girl's waist, her arms raised above her shoulders.

"Bend your legs a bit, and I'll help you put them on properly."

Amalia obediently bent her knees slightly. Livia leaned down, gently grasping her delicate ankles, aligning the toes with the tights, and carefully pulling them up. To avoid snagging the fabric, Livia's movements were light, and she adjusted the seams afterward.

Looking at the slender, smooth legs now free of wrinkles, Livia nodded in satisfaction. She then took out a pair of delicate princess shoes with laces and helped Amalia put them on.

"This set really suits you... Amalia..."

Standing before the mirror, the previously slender golden-haired girl now appeared elegant and poised, her half-lowered emerald eyes adding a touch of charm. The pure white puffy dress complemented the exquisitely crafted princess gown, lending Amalia an air of nobility.

Remembering the original story, it was said that Amalia often wore white dresses after her coronation, earning her the title of the "Blonde, White-Dressed Tyrant."

But judging by the current effect, this future emperor's personality hadn't yet reached extremes, and her overall attire resembled more of an innocent, adorable princess than a ruthless empress.

To be more specific, she looked like a soft, sweet cream cake, seemingly harmless and unthreatening.

Noticing Livia staring at her in the mirror, Amalia tilted her head slightly, her hand gently touching the ribbon as a strand of golden hair fell naturally.

"Sister, do I look good in this?"

"Beautiful and adorable."

"Adorable... huh..."

Amalia blinked, her fingers rubbing against the thin silk gloves, which felt a bit unfamiliar.

"Yes..."

Livia nodded slightly, patting the girl's head.

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"Truly adorable!"

Regardless of her personality, just based on her appearance, Amalia should never have been the type to lack affection.

Having Amalia turn around once more, ensuring her little sister was adorable from every angle, Livia pursed her lips and reached for the crystal stone in her waist pouch to capture this moment.

In the next second, an unexpected accident occurred.

As Livia reached into the pouch and touched the crystal stone, the buckle securing the glass vials suddenly came loose. Two dark green potions flew out of her grasp in a fraction of a second.

Realizing something was wrong, Livia instinctively reached out to catch them, but whether as Astrid Calliste or Livia Valeria, their identities were those of frail mages, not swift knights.

Naturally, Livia didn't catch the vials, and her attempt only hastened their fall.

"Crash..."

Two crisp sounds of breaking glass, and the floor bloomed with two dark green splashes.