Max was fast asleep.

  Something soft and persistent brushed against his legs.

  “—AH—!”

  He jolted awake, rolling to the edge of the enormous bed and ending up dangling just centimeters from the floor. He caught himself with his hands, heart racing.

  Laughter came from behind him.

  “Don’t you know how to knock?!” he protested, jumping to his feet. “You interrupted my sleep!”

  Sophie was leaning near the entrance, covering her mouth to keep from ughing any more. Abby, casually seated on the bed, swished her tail from side to side.

  “We knocked more than once,” Sophie said, in an innocent tone.

  Abby looked at him seriously, her tail still swaying.

  “Looks like you’re a pretty deep sleeper,” she added with a mischievous smile. “We couldn’t think of a better way to wake you.”

  She let out a small ugh, clearly pleased.

  Max ran a hand over his face.

  “I was dreaming…” He sighed. “…that I was eating pizza and drinking an energy drink while pying a zombie shooter.”

  They both stared at him.

  “What’s pizza?” Sophie asked.

  “Doesn’t matter,” Max replied.

  Abby leaned forward slightly.

  “Oh, and you owe me one,” she added. “I took care of the guards. They’re still asleep, waiting for Dorian to arrive and wake them up.”

  She looked at him with amusement. “Unless you know how to do that.”

  Max shook his head immediately.

  “No, no idea.”

  He settled back onto the bed.

  “So… why did you wake me up so early?”

  Sophie took a step forward.

  “Miss Enor is waiting for you,” she said. “She wants to have morning tea with you. By the fountain.”

  Max blinked.

  “Enor…?”

  Sophie nodded and carefully pced a fresh change of clothes on the bed.

  “I put together something comfortable.”

  Abby was already heading for the door.

  “Don’t keep the princess waiting,” she said over her shoulder, smiling.

  The two of them left the room, closing the door behind them.

  Max stayed seated for a few seconds, still processing everything.

  Then, in front of him, the system window appeared.

  The quest was still there.

  [ Discover the cause of the princess’s sadness. ] [ Progress: 97% ]

  Max frowned.

  “Still not done with this…”

  He looked at the bottom.

  The reward was still hidden.

  He sighed, grabbed the new clothes, and stood up.

  ‘Well…’ he thought. ‘Better not be te.’

  ***

  The courtyard was quiet.

  Enor was sitting there, beside the fountain. Waiting for him.

  The teapot rested on a small stone table, next to two finely decorated cups. She was arranging them carefully when she saw him approach.

  Max was wearing a neatly buttoned white shirt, dark dress pants… and his new boots. For him, everything fit perfectly. For anyone else, not so much.

  Enor, as always, wore one of her white dresses with gold and green details. The neckce the merchant had gifted her the day before gleamed at her neck.

  When their eyes met, she smiled.

  “Good morning.”

  Max scratched the back of his neck.

  “Good morning, E. Sorry I took so long to get up. I was pretty tired after yesterday.”

  She shook her head, calmly pouring the tea.

  “Don’t worry. I haven’t been waiting long.”

  They sat across from each other. Steam rose slowly from the cups.

  Max watched her for a few seconds before speaking.

  “There was something left unfinished yesterday…” he said carefully. “You told me there was something you wanted to tell me.”

  ‘Before that nuisance Gawain interrupted us…’

  Enor held the cup in both hands. She hesitated slightly.

  “The truth is…” she began. “When they told me they were going to summon a pet from another world to keep me company, I didn’t think it would create a bond like the one we’re forming.”

  She looked up.

  “I’m very grateful that you came to this world.”

  Something tightened in Max’s chest.

  ‘Me too,’ he thought. Even if it meant leaving his gamer life behind.

  Enor continued.

  “From the outside, my life as a princess might seem simple. But in reality…” she lowered her gaze to the tea. “I live confined. The pace is enormous, but it’s a cage. The farthest I’ve ever gone is the entrance.”

  She took a deep breath.

  “I have duties every day. Magic practice three times a week. Studying the kingdom’s history. Learning nguages. Etiquette. Politics.” She gave a sad smile. “Every day is the same as the st.”

  She tightened her grip on the cup.

  “I don’t have friends. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t look at me as something above them… as a symbol.”

  She looked at him again.

  “Until I met you.”

  Max blushed.

  “I’ve spent my entire life faking a noble smile,” she confessed. “But what I really want is to know the world. To know what lies beyond these walls.”

  At that moment, the system window appeared in front of Max.

  [ Main Quest Completed ] [ Reward: Secret Egg ]

  His heart skipped a beat.

  He looked at her, silent for a second.

  Enor met his gaze, vulnerable, sincere.

  “…That’s what I wanted to tell you.”

  Max stayed quiet for a few seconds, searching for the right words.

  “I’m happy I met you too, Enor,” he finally said. “And… that I’m in this world.”

  He looked away for a moment.

  ‘Maybe the only thing I’m not fully sold on is your title.’

  He looked back at her and pced a hand on the table.

  “I’m going to do everything I can so you get to know Eldoria. The vastness of this kingdom. The roads, the cities, what lies beyond the pace.”

  He couldn’t help an ironic smile.

  ‘It’s funny… I come from another world, and yet I know more of Eldoria’s map than the princess herself.’

  Enor felt something strange move through her chest. Warm. New.

  She looked at him with wide eyes… and then smiled. A wide, sincere smile, from ear to ear.

  A royal smile.