2. Giving You a Hug
Xia Yi had already changed her clothes and left Xia Lulu's room.
"Cough, cough!"
She cleared her throat.
If she were to meet other members of the dragon race later, she must not waver; she had to maintain her elegance and uphold her image.
Recently, she had noticed something rather troubling.
It was about her own dignity.
As a member of the royal family, it was essential to command respect among the dragons, or it would be difficult to enforce obedience.
This was very important.
After all, no one wants to be seen as a mere mascot!
The way others looked at her, as if she were a beloved pet, was unbearable.
In the past, Xia Yi had established some authority through her own efforts.
For example, during the royal trials, she had used her strength to defeat the magic golem giant, impressing everyone and passing the assessment.
That event had made the people in the Dragon Palace recognize her power.
Also, when she went to the Blackstone Kingdom and suppressed the rebellion there, she demonstrated her capabilities.
With both strength and tactics, she had reached the peak of her authority.
However, for some reason, after using a strategy on Xia Lulu, it led to unexpected situations, making her seem like a dragon loli who was fond of acting spoiled, clingy, and insincere.
How could this be?
These incidents had gradually reshaped everyone's impression of the little princess to the current version.
She had to do something about it.
That was Xia Yi's current thought.
She walked through the Dragon Palace, pondering ways to salvage her reputation.
At that moment, someone's voice interrupted her thoughts.
"Princess, good morning."
"Sera!?"
"Mhm." Sera nodded in response.
Why did she have to face such a difficult opponent right away?
No, she absolutely could not back down in front of her personal maid.
"Princess, did you enjoy staying with the Queen last night?" Sera asked directly.
"Hehe, Sera, what are you talking about?"
Xia Yi took a step back, her ears reddening.
She tried to appear casual, with her hands on her chest, avoiding Sera's somewhat teasing gaze.
"You're overthinking it. There's no way I could be happy about that. Xia Lulu just dragged me into it, forcing me to sleep with her…"
"Oh, is that so?"
"Of course, you didn't misunderstand, did you? I'm not that clingy."
Xia Yi decided to deny everything, as Sera had no way to prove otherwise.
After all, only she and Xia Lulu knew what had happened last night.
"I thought you were so fond of the Queen that you couldn't help yourself," Sera sighed lightly, "I misunderstood, Princess."
"You know now."
"So, the Princess secretly making a cake in the kitchen wasn't because you like the Queen."
"…?!"
Xia Yi was stunned.
Wait, how did Sera know about that!
She had been so careful; no one should have found out!
Sera pressed on, "Princess, the commotion you caused was definitely because you wanted to see the fireworks, right? It wasn't specifically for someone else, was it?"
"Um, um… Yes!"
Xia Yi could hardly look Sera in the eye anymore, and her voice lacked confidence.
"So, last night when my sister and I saw the Princess on the Queen's bed, it was definitely the Queen who invited you to sleep together, not at your own request, right?"
Sera's triple attack!
Xia Yi's cheeks were flushed, and she seemed to be at a loss, but for the sake of her pride, she still retorted.
"Yes, it's all… Xia Lulu is just too clingy, it's not me…!"
"Oh, I see," Sera chuckled and narrowed her eyes, "Then what's with your clothes right now?"
"…!"
"This shouldn't be your own clothes, right? If I remember correctly, you don't have this set in your wardrobe."
Sera delivered the final blow.
The little princess was wearing a striped brown dress and white over-the-knee silk stockings.
"I, I…!"
Xia Yi's arms blocked her blushing face, feeling that anything she said lacked persuasiveness.
This is too annoying!
"Sera, you're going too far, are you my enemy?!"
"Not at all, Your Highness, I've always been helping you."
"You deliberately didn't leave work late at night just to watch me! I sneaked into the kitchen to make a cake, and you deliberately didn't tell anyone, just to be against me!"
"I was concerned about you. You were acting strange those days, I was just a bit worried," Sera explained, "After I saw it, I guessed you wanted to surprise Her Majesty the Queen, so I didn't tell anyone. And before that, I had guessed some clues and even showed you in detail how to make a matcha cake."
Eh?
Now that she mentioned it, it seemed true.
Xia Yi thought for a moment and continued to ask, "Then how do you explain what happened later? Last night, weren't you trying to stop me?"
"Not at all, I just verbally advised you a bit, mainly to test your determination."
"That's true…"
"Didn't you notice? When you were preparing the fireworks, no one came to stop you, and your plan was always progressing successfully."
Xia Yi also noticed this point.
That night, it seemed like Sera was fighting with someone, probably… Lucia?
Under normal circumstances, there was no reason for Sera to fight with Lucia. She should have come over to stop her, just like the others in the Dragon Palace.
But later, her plan was indeed steadily progressing, even when setting off the fireworks, there was no interference.
Definitely, someone was helping.
"I've always been on your side," Sera said earnestly.
It was Sera who had helped her.
Xia Yi felt moved in her heart.
She had never asked Sera for anything, but she had made enemies with others for her sake.
Even at the risk of being punished by Xia Lulu.
She must thank Sera properly.
Xia Yi made up her mind.
"Sera, you really did help me, tell me, what reward do you want? Anything is fine, I can fulfill your request!"
"Your Highness, no need, I'm already very satisfied to have been able to help you," Sera shook her head.
Xia Yi thought for a moment and left.
Material things, Sera probably wouldn't care for, her salary was not low, and she didn't have particularly large expenses.
And although she had some pocket money, it wasn't particularly a lot. Maybe Xia Lulu didn't want her to develop a habit of squandering, so she didn't give too much, and she couldn't give particularly valuable things.
As for preferences, there weren't any particularly obvious ones.
Then how about…
Xia Yi walked up to Sera and hugged her proactively.
"This is…?" Sera was quite surprised.
"This is a unique hug, as a special reward for Sera's help. I command you in the name of Christie to accept it well, no refusal!"
The little princess lifted her head, looked at Sera, and smiled.
"If that's the case, then I gratefully accept, thank you, Your Highness, I really like your reward," Sera replied.
Yes, that's fine!
The little princess maintained this position, sticking with Sera for a while, letting the big sister maid fully feel her embrace before slowly letting go.
"Alright! Sera, if there's nothing else, then I'll…"
"Your Highness, I came to find you to report an important matter," Sera said seriously, "You have a new job."
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