Published: September 6, 2025
“Brother Cornelius, Matthias, please inform Ehrenfest. I’ll rest at the dormitory tonight, and if I’m feeling well, I’ll return tomorrow. I’m hungry and very tired.”
“Given how much your appearance has changed, we understand that a lot must have happened over the winter. Rest well tonight, Rosemine.”
Brother Cornelius said this as he reached out to stroke my head like before, then stopped. Seeing his hesitation because of my changed appearance, I brushed back my cloak’s hood, took his hand, and placed it on my head.
“It was truly difficult, Brother Cornelius.”
Looking up at him and silently asking him to stroke my head, he said with a complicated expression, “Rosemine, you must grow on the inside as well.” As he gently stroked my head, Grethia went to the kitchen to ask Hugo to prepare my meal.
“Hartmut will probably be quite noisy tomorrow.”
Brother Cornelius said, sounding rather bothered, then waved me off to return quickly to my room. I summoned my single-rider mount and rode back to my quarters. I still wasn’t used to the taller perspective and body. Climbing stairs in a ceremonial dress with a long train was too dangerous.
Once in my room, I threw off my hooded cloak. Returning to the uppermost floor of the altar in the innermost chamber, I told chief attendant Liselotte that I couldn’t leave without the royal family opening the door for me. I also asked her to bring me a hooded cloak. Since I said “Adult size!” three times, she properly prepared an adult cloak.
…Am I perfect? Though the adult-sized cloak feels a little long.
Grethia, who brought my meal, looked at me with surprised and somewhat confused eyes. The turquoise eyes I used to see clearly were now harder to see because of the changed eye level.
“…Since your gaze is now roughly at the same height as mine, it might take some getting used to.”
Her words made me realize just how much I had grown. I am about the same height as Grethia, maybe a little shorter—almost even eye level now, unlike before when I looked up to her.
…Still a bit shorter than Liselotte, though.
“But what exactly happened? Hartmut has been saying every day that Lady Rosemine is growing, but I didn’t think it would be such sudden growth. You truly are beautiful.”
“I was made to grow by arnvax, the god of nurturing. The sudden growth was very painful.”
As I took off the head priest’s ceremonial dress, the tattered clothes underneath were revealed. Liselotte and Grethia gasped at the state of my undergarments and showed anger toward the gods who forced such sudden growth upon me.
“To grow so much that you can’t even wear your socks, without changing clothes or attendants around—what were they thinking? Besides, arnvax, the god of nurturing, is a male deity!”
“I think it’s wonderful that she’s grown so beautifully. But I cannot forgive that Lady Rosemine, who wished for growth so much, feels confusion and dissatisfaction rather than joy.”
Hearing both their words, I told them I also shared the same helpless anger.
“But now, realizing I’m eye to eye with Grethia, I’m finally feeling happy. Until now, I was alone without any comparison, and I couldn’t even look in the mirror. So I hardly felt my growth.”
The pain was intense, and I was too busy trying to hold my clothes together to savor the growth. But when I looked in the mirror, I was genuinely impressed by the beautiful girl I had become—so beautiful that if I’m not careful with my words and actions, I might become more disappointing than Angelica.
“Still, are you sure this is alright, Lady Rosemine? It seems you’ve prioritized Ehrenfest over the royal family…”
While helping me take off my dress, Liselotte asked with concern. But I wasn’t too worried. Though I took advantage of the confusion caused by my altered appearance, I had already gotten approval from Siegiswald and Hildebrandt. There shouldn’t be any problem.
“Since the royal family gave permission, there’s no need to worry. I’m more concerned about Ehrenfest, and my clothes are all torn. With my body size so different, I won’t have any clothes fitting me tomorrow. Even without Ehrenfest’s crisis, I wouldn’t be able to discuss matters with the royal family like this.”