But, maybe this is also just one of her own ways of showing love.
If my mother had even a shred of talent for the culinary arts, I'm certain she would have insisted on cooking every one of my meal by herself.
But Thankfully—for the sake of the palace's food budget, the structural integrity of the kitchen, and the mental health of the cooking staff—the head chef had politely, yet firmly, banned Her from ever stepping foot near the kitchen stove.
"So that's your mother ?" The Slacker Queen, who was still sitting on my shoulder asked. her tiny voice was tinkling in my ear.
Currently, she is visible and audible only to me. So she can talk freely without alerting anyone.
On that note, There are three levels of visibility for spirits.
First, where they are visible to just their contractor.
Second, where they are visible to only spirit mages with enough spirit affinity.
And third, where she is visible to just about everyone.
[Yes, My Mother, Elizabeth Von Regulus, the third queen of the Regulus kingdom.]
I used telepathy to reply, since I don't want the others to think of me as a lunatic and call upon the Royal Doc.
It would be interesting to see the other queen's reaction to the news, though.
"Queen, you say ?" Aquarius tilted her tiny head, "Doesn't that make you a prince. You never told me that."
You didn't let me, woman! I might've told you if you weren't so busy, acting like a hotshot queen!
But again. I buried those thoughts deep in my heart, from where they will never revive and see the day light again. Some thoughts are just better when left unsaid.
[There are a lot of things, you don't know about me yet] I replied
My mother had already finished serving me and is now seated directly beside me, close enough to watch every bite I took.
Even though, by the customs of nobles, she should be at the opposite seat of me.
"I guess there are," Aquarius mused, her tiny eyes tracking the maids as they served Mother "...so why not start from here ?"
Currently the maids are serving her food.
Sign...
[The name's Tyler Von Regulus and I am the third prince of the Nation of Humans.]
The maids finished serving and I picked up my silver fork and knife with practiced grace.
"Ohh.. my first contract is with a prince, huh.." she said, her voice dripping with faked amazement.
I was about to cut the juice stake.
[You can go ahead and think of it as your honor.]
"Ty," my mother called out, her voice cutting through my mental bickering.
"Yes, Mother?" I answered, turning toward her.
"Hmph! Why the hell should A literal queen be honored to contract with a mere prince ?" Aquarius's voice rang in my ears, haughty as ever. "If anything, it's the other way around!"
I am too lazy to argue with her.
I didn't argue back with her and ignored her. It was simply just that I was far too mature to argue with a pixie while eating.
Definitely not because i don't have a counter attack. Definitely not!
"Should mother cut the steak for you ?" My mother asked.
"No need, mother. I can do it myself." I said, offering her an awkward, strained smile.
This was the routine. Two or three times a week, the 'Lady Queen' of the Arbutus Palace would discard her Royal elegance and attempt to revert me to the toddler I had been before I 'woke up'.
Most of the time, I fought for my independence with everything I had.
But occasionally, when I saw the genuine hope in her eyes, I'd cave.
I'd let her cut the meat, let her guide the fork, and let her pretend for twenty minutes that her son hadn't grown up.
"...I see," she murmured, her shoulders slumping. She wore a look of such profound disappointment that you'd think I had just declined a royal coronation rather than a piece of ribeye.
"She is a doting mother," Aquarius commented from my shoulder. For once, her voice lacked its usual haughty edge. "Almost too much, if I'm being honest. It's almost stifling."
[That, I already know,] I replied internally
"Still," the tiny Queen whispered, her glowing eyes reflecting the warm candlelight of the room. "You are lucky, Boy."
I didn't answer immediately. I looked to my side. My mother was cutting her own steak now, her movements exaggerated and jerky—the universal sign of a mother who was 'definitely not upset'. It was an amusing sight too see her sulking.
Lucky huh...
[I indeed am] I sent back my response to Aquarius, my voice softening.
The dinner had wound down into a series of comfortable, mundane questions—Mother asking about my studies, the quality of the tea, and the state of the garden etc.
By the time I returned to my chambers, the adrenaline of the summoning had long since vanished, replaced by a bone-deep lethargy.
The mana pool was already drained with the summoning ritual. so there's no need to exhaust it even more with bucket training.
And So, I collapsed onto the bed, the silk sheets gave a welcome relief against my skin. The tiny blue body of the Queen followed me, hovering near the headboard.
"...are you gonna spend the night here as well, Aqua ?" I asked, my voice muffled by the pillow.
The pixie froze mid-air for a fraction of a second. "Who?"
I rolled onto my back, looking up at her. "Is there anyone other than us here?"
"...And what exactly did you just call me?" she asked. Her voice was no longer that of a haughty sovereign; it was small, curious, and perhaps a little defensive.
"Aqua," I repeated, closing my eyes. "Is that not allowed? It's shorter. And Efficient."
surprisingly, She didn't snap at me. Instead, there was a long, ringing silence. I opened one eye to see her hovering over to the window.
She sat on the sill, her tiny silhouette framed by the infinite silver of the stars.
"No. It's not that it's not allowed," she whispered, her gaze fixed on a distant constellation. "It's just that... nobody has ever called me that. Or maybe..."
She trailed off "Maybe I've just lacked the kind of people who would even bother to try."