I Raised Snow White!

-Vivian…?

“Ainsel?”

Ainsel’s expression, which had been sunken, gradually brightened as she looked at me.

The thought that Ainsel had finally regained consciousness made a wave of emotions rise within me.

To be honest, I had been plagued by the fear of not knowing what would happen to Ainsel until now.

Even though she said she trusted me, I kept worrying—what if I couldn’t help her and everything went wrong in the end?

That fear had just disappeared, and I found my eyes beginning to sting and redden without realizing it.

To avoid letting the tears show, I took a deep breath and looked at Ainsel.

Ainsel, seemingly still not fully conscious, gave me a bashful smile.

Smiling, now? After all the anxiety I’d been through this entire time?

Feeling a bit annoyed, I deliberately ran my finger across the surface of Ainsel’s mirror form, leaving streaks behind.

Ainsel let out a small shriek, “Eek!”

-W-Why are you doing this…?!

“You’re smiling, huh?! Do you have any idea how worried I’ve been?! You told me to trust you, and then your consciousness just vanished—do you know how much I’ve agonized over it?!”

I rubbed the mirror aggressively, leaving fingerprints everywhere, which oddly made me feel a bit better.

Ainsel flailed her hands as if her vision was obstructed, hurriedly asking me to wipe it clean.

“Honestly… You asked me to come to your room, then suddenly lost consciousness, and when I looked into it, they said it was because of the contract—no one could tell when you’d wake up again…”

-I-I’m sorry… I really didn’t know it would turn out like that back then…

“Ugh! Don’t make excuses!”

When Ainsel tried to explain irritably, I smudged more fingerprints on the surface, making Ainsel’s eyes well up with tears.

I’m the one who should be crying here—what are you crying for?

After bickering for a few more minutes, I finally wiped the mirror clean.

Ainsel blinked a few times, now able to see clearly, and looked at me hesitantly.

“Well, at least it’s a relief. Fran’s treatment worked, after all.”

-…? Fran? Don’t tell me you’re talking about that Frankenstein from the Coven?

“Yes, that Frankenstein. Anyway, I should tell you what happened while you were out.”

I started explaining everything that had happened since Ainsel lost consciousness.

Thinking back, so much had occurred.

“First, after entering the room you opened, I discovered that the king was dead and that Aurora had become a Leannán Sidhe. With Sylph’s help, I managed to escape from there.”

The incident of driving Aurora out with Sylph’s assistance.

“And ultimately, the king was confirmed dead—Bainshaw found his body, along with Aurora’s. Sylph said Aurora must have died as well, and she hasn’t been seen since.”

The event of the king and Aurora being found as corpses.

“After that… we held the king’s funeral.”

The king’s death led to a royal funeral being held.

“Once the king was gone, the Council of Elders debated over what to do with me since I didn’t carry royal blood, and I ended up staying here until the princess’s academy graduation.”

The disputes with the Council over my position.

“And… to wake you up, I learned there was a fairy doctor named Fran in the Coven, so I sent a letter. Fran came, and she’s the one who treated you.”

The letter to the Coven that brought Sylph and Fran together.

“And before Fran arrived…”

I also mentioned the tale of the Little Mermaid, connected to ‘someone.’

As I recounted everything, Ainsel looked like she was on the verge of tears, avoiding my gaze.

“…It’s not your fault. So why the long face?”

-But… because I made the wrong judgment, you went through all that alone…

“…I won’t deny it was hard. There were so many times I thought, ‘What if you had been there? Could I have made different choices?’”

At my words, Ainsel flinched.

Did Ainsel think I was blaming her?

I gently pressed my forehead against the surface of Ainsel’s mirror form.

The cold, inorganic sensation was quickly replaced by warmth where we touched.

“So… don’t pull any stunts like that again, okay? I mean it. I really struggled without you. If you don’t help, it’s exhausting.”

-I-I’m sorry…

“I’m not asking for an apology. I’m just saying.”

-…Alright. I won’t do it again.

As I pulled my forehead away, Ainsel’s tearful face came into view.

Finally, Ainsel broke down, sobbing loudly, while I pretended to stroke their head and gave a wry smile.

*

Once Ainsel had calmed down, we talked about many things.

Amidst all those conversations, the most intense one was the moment when Aurora’s death was confirmed. Ainsel, who had been unable to say anything about Aurora due to their contract,-

-That Aurora! That XXX! Aah, it feels so good! She’s finally dead!

Ainsel’s furious insults served as proof of Aurora’s demise.

Since contracts dissolved upon the other party’s death, it was clear the contract forbidding harm to Aurora was gone.

Overjoyed by both the contract’s end and Aurora’s death, Ainsel practically bounced with glee.

Even though I didn’t know exactly when she had died, I felt some relief about Aurora’s ambiguous fate.

Now, there was essentially no one left to threaten the princess.

Watching Ainsel celebrate, I asked,

“If you hated her that much, why did you end up bound by that contract in the first place?”

-I told you before. ‘Someone’ stole my true form. It happened in the brief moment I got distracted by a duplicate. When I came to my senses, I was locked in that room and forcibly bound by the contract.

Ainsel, seething with rage, stomped around as she spoke of this ‘someone.’

I figured the person who turned Aurora into a Leannán Sidhe, manipulated the Little Mermaid, and stole Ainsel’s true form must be the same.

Who could they be?

Why were they obsessed with turning people who were fixated on love into other ‘fairies,’ leaving them with tragic ends?

Even the Little Mermaid wasn’t found in her original form but had turned into a different ‘fairy.’

Whoever they were, it was clear they were transforming people into fairies.

And only those deeply fixated on love were being targeted.

“…Well, since the Coven is handling it, they’ll probably catch them soon.

Fran said she doesn’t need my help, so she’ll take care of it.”

-…Now that I think about it, why do you call her Fran like she’s your close friend?

“Because she told me to. Besides, she seems closer to the princess than me. Maybe it’s because they practiced dancing together every day. The princess used to hate Fran at first, though…”

As I talked about Fran and the princess, Ainsel’s complexion turned pale.

Seething with jealousy over losing her role as the princess’s confidant, Ainsel insisted we visit her right away.

“Calm down… The princess is probably asleep by now. Let’s go see her first thing in the morning. I’m sure she’ll be happy to see you.”

-Do you think so…? What if it’s too late now? What if she likes that witch more than me now…

“That won’t happen. Don’t worry too much… Oh, right, speaking of which, what about the earrings?”

I couldn’t carry around the main body, and while it was undeniably heavy, having Ainsel as earrings was much more convenient.

Originally, I’d thought of making it into a necklace, but wearing it as a necklace was uncomfortable because of the positioning, so I had no choice but to carry it on my ears.

Ainsel told me not to worry and suggested looking under the bed for a small box.

When I bent down to check under the bed, there really was a small box. I took it out and opened it.

Inside the box were numerous mirror earrings.

Although the decorations varied slightly, I picked out a small earring just the right size to hold Ainsel.

When I held it up, Ainsel smiled brightly and called out to me.

“I always kept spares for the earrings here. Just bring it close to me, and we’re good to go.”

“Like this?”

As I brought the earring closer to Ainsel’s main body, a small reflection of Ainsel began to appear in the mirror on the earring.

Was this how she transferred herself into an earring?

I put the earring on, now feeling accustomed to it, and checked its position.

“Ah… this eye-level stability. It’s been so long.”

“It’s been so long since I’ve worn earrings that my ears are aching.”

I grumbled in a playful tone, and Ainsel chuckled along with me.

After walking around the room with Ainsel dangling from my ear, I realized once again how much more comfortable earrings were.

Feeling a wave of familiarity, I reached up and patted the earring holding Ainsel, whispering softly as I celebrated her recovery.

“Welcome back, Ainsel.”

“I’m back, Vivian.”

*

“Princess!!!!!”

“Ainsel!!!!!”

Cling!

As soon as the news spread that Ainsel had regained consciousness, the princess rushed in and tightly hugged the earring holding Ainsel.

She rubbed the mirror against her cheek, trying to distinguish whether this was a dream or reality.

Once she realized it was indeed real, tears welled up in her eyes, and she smiled gently at Ainsel, saying how much she had missed her.

Ainsel also broke down into sobs, crying with the princess, apologizing for everything.

‘I’m glad they’re back together…’

Watching the princess hop around in joy with the mirror in her hands made me feel warm inside.

As I stood there watching, Fran, who had approached me at some point, gazed at me silently.

Though her face remained expressionless as always, having spent some time together, I’d learned to read Fran’s subtle emotions.

Right now, her expression seemed to hold a hint of regret.

“Feeling sad about leaving the princess behind?”

At my question, Fran shook her head firmly.

“No. My work here is done. I will return to the main house without delay.”

“Already? Can’t you at least stay to see the princess’s ball? She’d want that.”

“That’s—”

Just as Fran started to respond, the princess grabbed her sleeve, tilting her head up to look at Fran.

Her large, doe-like eyes were filled with sadness, as if pleading for Fran not to leave.

“Leaving already?”

“…No. I will stay to see the princess’s ball.”

“Yay!”

The princess grinned brightly, holding Fran in one hand and Ainsel in the other.

Was she happy to have two friends?

She began introducing them to each other.

“This is Ainsel! My friend, the mirror fairy!”

“…Nice to meet you, Ainsel.”

“And this is Fran, my friend! She’s a homunculus!”

“…Nice to meet you, Frankenstein.”

…Of the three, did the princess realize she was the only one truly smiling?

While the princess beamed joyfully, Fran remained expressionless, and Ainsel’s face looked uneasy.

As I observed the three exchanging polite introductions—

A knock came at the door from one of the Queen Dowager’s ladies-in-waiting.

“Come in.”

“Your Majesty, the Queen Dowager asked, ‘Just when do you plan to come see me? If you don’t come today, you’d better be prepared for the ball.’”

“Oh.”

“And… if I may add, I personally believe you won’t be able to escape her anger even if you visit today…”

The lady-in-waiting looked at me with genuine concern, and only then did it hit me.

I had promised the Queen Dowager to decide the princess’s name and inform her within two weeks.

And the deadline had passed as of yesterday.

‘…I’m doomed.’