Ophelia gave Little Merlin’s soft, chubby cheek a gentle kiss and looked at Lucia.
“As you can see, she is my daughter.”
Lucia’s gaze remained glued to the tiny figure, unable to look away.
“How did she become a child?”
“Anyway, come in first. Give us a moment.”
“All right.”
Lucia stepped into the wooden cabin, closing the door much more gently than usual.
Without worrying too much about Lucia, Ophelia carried Merlin straight to the bathroom to begin washing up.
Normally, Ophelia would have finished her morning routine by the time Lucia arrived, but the unexpected situation with Little Merlin had delayed her today.
During the process, Ophelia noticed that Little Merlin was unusually quiet for a child, behaving perfectly no matter what Ophelia did.
Doing so once or twice could be called being well-behaved, but to Ophelia, who had raised children before, something felt off. Children were supposed to be noisy, crying, and mischievous.
‘Is she even a child if she doesn’t cry or make a fuss?’
Ophelia intentionally splashed a bit of water onto Merlin’s face. Merlin immediately pouted, looking like a wet kitten as she shook the droplets off her face.
Her tender, childish voice carried an unshielded protest.
“I hate Mama!”
Well… she still had emotional fluctuations, at least.
“I’m sorry. How about Mama gives you an extra piece of chocolate later?”
“Mm! I like that!”
Ophelia asked mischievously, “What do you like?”
Ophelia picked up a dry, soft towel and carefully wiped the droplets from her daughter’s face.
Standing before the full-length mirror, Little Merlin giggled as she looked at the layers of lace on her skirt.
She even grabbed the corners of her dress and clumsily spun around once, inspecting her flower-like reflection from every angle.
If it were the adult Merlin, she would definitely be throwing a tantrum by now.
Ophelia nodded. ‘Right, that’s more like it.’
She thought of the adult Merlin—it was just a little dress, after all. Even though she looked so cute, she still acted so stubborn about it.
After confirming her daughter’s appearance was perfect, she carried Merlin out.
“Sorry for the wait.”
Lucia was sitting quietly at the table.
Mary had already served breakfast while they were washing up, consisting of dishes left over from the previous night. It was common for Mary to help out when Ophelia was busy.
At the dining table, Ophelia had placed two thick, soft cushions on Merlin’s original chair so she could reach the surface.
“Come on, Merlin. Open wide—ah—”
Lucia held a small piece of toast spread with jam, leaning forward with expectation shimmering in her eyes.
However, Little Merlin furrowed her tiny brows, stared at the toast for two seconds, and then heartlessly turned her head away.
“I’ll eat by myself. I’m not a child anymore.”
Lucia’s hand hung awkwardly in mid-air, caught in a dilemma. If anyone else had dared to reject the Third Imperial Princess of the Empire like that, they would have been executed long ago.
Yet, facing this shrunken version of Merlin, the usually stern and dignified Lucia showed no trace of anger.
“You really are…”
“Pfft, haha!”
Ophelia couldn’t help but laugh.
“Merlin, you shouldn’t be so cold to Lucia. She comes to see you every day. If you’re a naughty child, your reward might disappear.”
Little Merlin puffed out her cheeks, seemingly weighing the pros and cons.
Finally, as if making a massive compromise, she reluctantly turned her head and took a bite of the toast in Lucia’s hand.
“Nom.”
The bite was a bit too large, and her cheeks instantly puffed out like a feeding hamster, bulging rhythmically as she chewed.
“Oh, Little Merlin is so good.”
The disappointment in Lucia’s eyes vanished instantly.
“Eat slowly, don’t choke.”
Ophelia pushed a bowl of warm mushroom soup toward her daughter, her gaze so tender it could melt stone.
Little Merlin held the wooden bowl—which was slightly too large for her—with both hands and took a large gulp.
Because she drank too quickly, a pale yellow cream stain inevitably caught on the corner of her mouth, forming a comical half-mustache.
“Is it good?”
“It’s good.”
Merlin set the bowl down and stuck out her tongue to lick her lips, but she couldn’t reach the stain at the corner of her mouth.
Ophelia naturally reached out and gently wiped the stain away with her thumb.
Sunlight spilled across the dining table, and breakfast drew to a close in a warm, wonderful atmosphere.
Lucia looked at Little Merlin, and Little Merlin stared back with her large eyes.
“Is this Merlinlia?”
“Yes.”
“What happened?”
Ophelia watched her daughter sucking on a piece of chocolate, looking soft and adorable, and explained softly.
“Nothing happened. She just woke up like this after a nap.”
Lucia was somewhat puzzled. “Just woke up like this?”
“An Elf’s soul is complicated like that. Back then, the damage to her soul allowed her Crystal Core to fall out easily. Even though it has been reversed now, the damage wasn’t heavy, so it’s not surprising she turned into a baby.”
“Even though Little Merlin is very cute, will she stay this way for long?”
“Perhaps. It might be like a deep sleep; she could recover quickly. This should be a reaction from her soul repairing itself, but no one can guarantee how long it will take. At the very least, she is no longer in danger.”
“That’s a relief…”
Hearing that Merlin was fine, Lucia finally relaxed completely. She looked at the carefree little girl munching on chocolate, and a strange, soft emotion rose in her heart.
“Merlin, can I give you a hug?”
Little Merlin swallowed the chocolate in her mouth, looked at Lucia, and blinked.
“Mm.”
Little Merlin opened her arms, looking entirely welcoming.
Lucia stepped forward and pulled the girl into her embrace.
“Oh? Her personality was already soft, but now that she’s a child, she’s even softer.”
“I am not!”
As if her sore spot had been poked, Little Merlin began to squirm restlessly in Lucia’s arms like a little wriggling loach.
The two usually visited Merlin in the morning before heading to the academy.
Lucia replied casually, “Mahina? She’s probably busy. After all, she received a mountain of letters all at once.”
At the mention of Mahina’s name, Little Merlin stopped fussing in Lucia’s arms and perked up her ears.
Lucia rubbed Merlin’s small face.
“You’ll be receiving yours soon. They will be delivered personally by the person who was supposed to be in charge of the mail, though they should be with Mahina for now.”
Ophelia simply watched the two interact quietly.
“Is it the things you mentioned before?”
“Of course.”