The Seed Thief

A group of women gathered in a beautiful garden, their laughter and conversation filling the air. 

They were the elite of the kingdom—duchesses, countesses, renowned scholars, and celebrated artists. Any one of them could command a room, but today, their attention was focused on a single person. A woman with fiery red hair, seated at the head of the table.

It was Lulu.

“So, the Tower Master won’t be able to attend our gathering for a while? Such a shame.”

The Duchess’s face was etched with genuine disappointment. Today’s gathering was hosted by her. It was also a gathering that any woman in the kingdom would long to attend.

It was a privilege to be invited. It wasn’t because of the duchess’s social standing, but because of the guest of honor—The Tower Master, Lulu, was someone everyone wanted to meet.

Of course, the duchess hadn’t always been so welcoming.

After Prince Ervandas had retreated from public life, rumors had spread like wildfire. They whispered of his wife, a commoner with no family name, a witch with the dreaded red hair.

When the Duchess first heard these rumors, she thought they were absurd.

Ervandas, married? It was unthinkable. He, who had always shunned the company of women? Married, with a child?

It was only after the marriage was officially announced that she realized it wasn’t just idle gossip. However, only the marriage itself was announced, with no further details revealed.

So people didn’t know who his wife was, or even if the child that was born was a girl or a boy.

Despite the public’s curiosity, Ervandas remained quietly secluded in a separate palace near the capital.

About a year into his seclusion, the Duchess received a secret summons from Ervandas.

* * *

“Can you help my wife?”

The Prince, who was rumored to have not only defeated but completely annihilated the enemy forces, retained the handsome features she remembered from his youth. No, rather, those features, combined with a mature composure, held an even more captivating allure than before.

The Duchess, momentarily captivated, quickly recovered her composure.

“You mean Her Highness the Princess Consort?”

“Yes. Her name is Lulu. She doesn’t like being called ‘Your Highness,’ so it’s best to just call her by her name. If you don’t like that, His Majesty recently bestowed a separate title upon her… You can just call her ‘Lady.’ She prefers that.”

As he spoke, a loving smile spread across Ervandas’s face, revealing his affection for his wife. The smile was so bright and tender that the Duchess, forgetting her manners, stared blankly at his face.

Then she realized.

“Wait a minute. Her Highness’s name is… Lulu?”

“Yes. She doesn’t have a surname.”

The Duchess was speechless with astonishment at his reply. Good heavens. So the whispers circulating in secret were actually true. The rumor that she was a commoner without even a proper name.

“Is that name… perhaps a nickname, or…”

“It’s her real name.”

“…”

“I know what you’re thinking. For the record, she does have red hair, and she is a mage.”

The Duchess, who had been dazed, remembered why Ervandas had summoned her.

“But help? What kind of help do you need?”

“Well… she needs guidance on the ways of the nobility, no, actually, just human relationships in general. You’re the most well-connected person in the kingdom when it comes to social gatherings. And even though you’re older than Lulu, you’re both women, and the age gap isn’t too big, so I thought you would make a good teacher.”

The Duchess couldn’t readily agree to his request. If he had asked her to teach about the kingdom’s history or official duties, she would have gladly accepted. But guidance on human relationships in general?

She had a feeling this was going to be a difficult task.

After a moment of contemplation, the Duchess replied,

“Can I… meet Lady… Lulu first?”

It was a difficult name to utter. Lulu. Was this really an acceptable name? Adding the title ‘Lady’ after that name seemed like it would turn into a strange joke.

“Of course. Can you come now? Lulu really wants to meet other people, so you can come right away.”

When she agreed, Ervandas led the Duchess deeper into the separate palace. Arriving at the rear garden of the palace, a place no one had entered for a year, the Duchess doubted her own eyes.

“Th-This is…”

She had heard that the garden of the separate palace was beautiful. But that beauty usually faded during winter. However, the garden of the separate palace was a lush, verdant summer.

A woman with red hair stood in the middle of the flower garden. And floating in the air before her was a child with the same red hair.

“Lulu!”

Ervandas called out, and the woman turned around. At that moment, the Duchess blinked a few times. A dazzling red waterfall shimmered in the brilliant sunlight.

“Er!”

The woman, turning around, spotted Ervandas, grabbed the child floating in the air, held her close, and ran towards him. To the Duchess, who had lived her entire life as a noble, it was an unrefined, almost frivolous run, but somehow, it didn’t seem offensive. Each step was filled with such joy.

“Er, is this the one who will be my teacher?”

“Well, it’s not certain yet.”

The Duchess’s eyes widened at Ervandas’s sudden use of formal speech. The Prince wasn’t even particularly respectful to his older brother, the King. Of course, he might use honorifics, but his tone was always laced with a hint of brotherly insolence. It was generally accepted that the only person he truly treated with utmost courtesy was the Queen.

And yet, he was humbling himself before this woman, this commoner with a ridiculous name, with utter sincerity.

“Why?”

“The Duchess hasn’t confirmed that she’ll be your teacher yet.”

At Ervandas’s reply, Lulu stood before the Duchess. The Duchess held her breath, captivated by the red eyes staring intently at her.

Red, a color often associated with misfortune. But those eyes were clear and bright, and intensely powerful.

Lulu smiled at the Duchess and raised a hand. Various magic circles appeared at her fingertips and then dispersed into the air. All the flowers in the garden bloomed simultaneously, and butterflies of all colors took flight.

Mesmerized by the sight, as if heaven itself had been brought down to earth, the Duchess watched in a daze. A butterfly landed on her finger. She assumed it was illusion magic. Given her position, she had met mages before. They often used magic to deceive the eye. So this must be the same…

A breeze blew, and the butterfly took flight. At the same time, the scent of the blooming flowers filled the air.

The Duchess realized. This Prince’s wife was a powerful mage, capable of defying the seasons.

And also, that she was a remarkably pure-hearted person.

The Duchess smiled wryly. She had realized what kind of teaching Ervandas had asked of her.

It seemed her task was to taint that purity, just a little, to make her blend in with the world. It was certainly something the Prince, who had only ever frequented the royal court and the temple, couldn’t teach her.

From the next day onwards, the Duchess visited the separate palace and taught Lulu about royal etiquette, as well as the complexities of human relationships. As she did so, she understood why Ervandas had entrusted this task to her. It was because she could teach Lulu various things that he couldn’t.

“But that didn’t mean you should throw a drinking party like this.”

Ervandas, returning from a visit to the royal palace, found Lulu and the Duchess in a spacious room of the separate palace, surrounded by every bottle from the underground wine cellar, completely emptied. He sighed, holding his head.

But the Duchess, undeterred, continued to guide Lulu through various experiences.

Lulu, who had initially been as clueless as a divine messenger dropped into the world for the first time, quickly learned the ways of human society. 

Another year passed.

Having learned much from the Duchess, Lulu began to engage in official activities. Naturally, not everyone welcomed her at first.

But Lulu no longer smiled at those who didn’t welcome her. Instead, she simply displayed her overwhelming power.

It started with the Magic Tower. The kingdom, having discovered the involvement of mages in the rebellion, had sent a formal complaint to the tower. The Tower Master and his entourage, indignant, arrived at the palace.

Saying they “visited” was a euphemism; it was practically an attack. And that was exactly what Lulu had been waiting for.

Lulu stopped them as they arrogantly tried to break the protective magic of the royal palace. The Tower Master and their entourage, who had scoffed at the idea of a single young female mage posing any threat, soon hardened their expressions.

A single young woman was effortlessly dismantling all their magic. Flustered by the overwhelming difference in magical power, they recalled a similar incident from long ago.

“Could it be… the Forest Witch’s?”

A ridiculously powerful young mage, capable of magic that could warp the very fabric of the world.

“Long time no see.”

Lulu smiled, bound their magic power, and then crushed it with her own, causing it to dissipate. Temporarily deprived of their magic, the mages became weaker than ordinary humans.

With the Tower Master subdued, conquering the Mage Tower was child’s play. Lulu ascended to the position of the new Master of the Magic Tower.

The title Tower Master held immense power. Now, no one in the kingdom, not even the King, could underestimate Lulu.

After securing control of the Magic Tower, Lulu retrieved numerous documents from within. Among them was information that had piqued Lulu’s curiosity.

“As I thought…”