Lincoln had to go to Borstal, leaving me alone to keep an eye on the prince. The silence was deafening, with just the noise of the heart monitor to be heard. I didn’t move my gaze away from the prince, and I didn’t do anything else that eventually caused me to feel drowsy.
I was able to keep my eyes open at first but eventually fell asleep. A loud boom of something jolted me awake. My eyes almost widened as I realized the prince was no longer in the room. I instantly rose, and when I exited the room, I noticed Prince Augustus coming down the stairs. I called out his name before he took his first step down the stairs. He was knocked off balance because it surprised him when I emerged out of nowhere. I walked rapidly with my foot to keep him from going down the stairs, but even if I caught him, he would still fall, so I had no choice but to drag him away from the stairs and yank him along with my body. Both of us landed with a loud bang, and as Prince Augustus fell on my body, the wound on my back stung anew.
We couldn’t take our gazes away from each other. Until the prince realized his body was clinging to mine, he swiftly rose. Unfortunately, his body gave up as a result of his sudden move.
"Prince!" I would have put his hand on my shoulder to serve as his foot, but he swung it away, preferring to grab the handrail instead of me. "Your body was shocked as a result of your sudden awakening. If you want something, you can ask me to get it; it’ll be better if you stay in your bed." I explained.
The prince did not respond. Instead, he repeatedly tried to descend on the stairs, which I again halted. It’s not polite of me to drag him in, but I have no option. Although he shoved me a few times, I tried to put his hand on my shoulder. I put him on the bed and locked the door so he couldn’t get out. "You’ve left me with no option, Prince Augustus,"
I reinserted the needles that had become lodged in him after he had ejected them. I followed every step Lillian instructed me to do, and I tried numerous times to stab everything the prince had pulled from his body, but he resisted and purposefully tossed everything away.
"If you keep doing this, Prince Augustus, you will not be able to heal. You’ll remain like this for a longer time, and I’ll be obliged to tell the king everything. "
"Why don’t you do it right now? Why bother waiting a few more days? Isn’t it what you want, to wreck my life?"
This never-ending battle between us hurts my brain even more. "I thought if I quit, you’d get rid of this habit," I said as I gripped her arm hard. "Can we stop this? My head hurts a lot after what happened." And then I jabbed him with the needle. "I’m no longer your personal maid. You can’t treat me that way anymore; instead, treat me how you treat other people."
He did nothing but obey my instructions, went silent, and seemed to be a kind dog. I then changed his dextrose and injected meds into him.
"If you’re so disgusted by seeing me, it’d better keep an eye on you outside the room," I replied as I closed the door.
I walked downstairs to the restroom. I looked in the mirror and shifted my gaze away from it. My wound reopened, and because of the amount of blood, it became glued to my clothes, making it difficult to lift. I haven’t even touched it yet, yet I can already feel the pain. I barely cleaned it a little after returning upstairs.
As I informed the prince I’d be outside, there was another tremendous crash. I hurriedly opened the door, fearful that the prince had fallen again. "Prince!" I exclaimed. I find him flinging stuff around the room once again. "What do you think you’re doing, Prince Augustus?" This isn’t your room, so quit throwing things everywhere. Lillian saves your life, but instead of appreciating her, you act like a jerk once more."
"Y- your back..."
"How about it?" He withdrew the ones that were still attached to his body. "Prince Augustus!" I exclaimed.
After removing everything, he grabbed me and drew me to the bed. When he touched my shirt, I was shocked. I held his hand, but he insisted on raising my shirt. "P-Prince Augustus, I have c-cleaned my wound," I stammered.
Prince Augustus remained silent once again. He dabbed an alcohol-soaked cotton ball on my wound. Despite my complaints, he proceeded to pour alcohol. "You shouldn’t be concerned about me, negie! I don’t want anyone to blame me because you died behaving like a hero to me," he said in a serious tone.
"How can I stop if you keep doing things that are too risky?" I said.
"It’s none of your concern if I harm myself. This is my life, not yours. "
"Of all the princes, you are the most obstinate. You never pay attention to anybody, especially the king. "
"I don’t want someone to decide for me."
"The king’s choice is the best for you. Don’t you see how your own decisions may sometimes harm you? Just like joining a race that the king is unaware of. What happens if you die? Don’t you imagine everyone engaged in this race will suffer? The king will punish everyone. "
"I don’t mind."
I scoffed. "You self-centered little jackass!"
Prince Augustus burst out laughing, which surprised me. Did the things I said make him laugh? I don’t find it funny.
"Negie, you started to be impolite."
I emerged even before the prince put on the bandage because I recalled Mama had told me to go get Allerick and Blythe. "I’m dead meat!" I completely forgot about Allerick and Blythe. I rushed out of the room without even saying goodbye to the prince. I’m an hour late, and I’m sure they’ve been waiting a long time.

"Make sure you’ll be able to pick up your siblings. Go to their school at the right time so they don’t have to wait too long. "
The situation became worse when I couldn’t catch a taxi and had to wait for nearly 40 minutes. "St. Nicholas," I said to the driver.
When I unlocked my phone, it showed 21 missed calls from Blythe. I dialed her number, but she didn’t answer; when I tried again, Blythe answered the phone.
"I’m sorry for keeping you waiting; I’m almost there."
"Ate..." As soon as I heard Blythe’s shaking voice, all of my tiny hair sprang up. Something didn’t feel right.
"Blythe…"
"A- Allerick... ate Gemma..."
"Why? What happened to Allerick? "
"Ate... please... please hurry... I- I don’t know what to do anymore. My hands..."
"Blythe, speak slowly. I’m not sure what you’re saying."
"Allerick... was lying on the road, and there's... too much blood gushing out of his head," Blythe cried, and the sound of her sobs can be heard over the phone. "I tried very hard to wake him up, but Allerick... ate, I think he stopped... breathing."
My mind went blank and my body got weak the instant Blythe said it. My tears flowed freely as my phone fell to the ground. "Ahh... ahh... AAH!" I burst out weeping.