Royal Reboot: Level up, Your Majesty!

Queen vs. The Art of Awkward Greetings

Eydis entered her bedroom at Primrose dormitory expecting mediocrity. And mediocrity welcomed her with open arms. The space was an ode to beige: walls, desk, and wardrobe all competing in a contest of blandness.

But then, there was the girl on the desk. Not at it. On it. 

She looked like an invitation to sin (not that Eydis would ever admit it). Crimson eyes met hers, fierce and piercing. There was something otherworldly in that beauty, something just out of reach.

It was not reasonable. 

Had Eydis ever met anyone like this in her own world? And if not… why did it feel like she should have?

She could almost believe “celestial goddess” hadn’t been an exaggeration. 

Unfortunately. The hair didn’t help. Liquid starlight, if she were the type to use overwrought metaphors (which she usually wasn’t). But it shimmered. And she, embarrassingly, had questions. About conditioner, mostly.

Astra, presumably, was dressed in what Eydis mentally classified as peasant sleepwear: a black camisole and shorts. Functional. Minimalist. A little too revealing, and yet, on her, it looked effortlessly good.

Unfair.

She blinked once at Eydis, then resumed an expression best described as disinterest.

Eydis realised she’d been staring. She shed the stiff green blazer she’d suffered through all day and tossed it onto her desk.

“Ah. My reluctant cohabitant,” she greeted.

Astra didn’t comment. Didn’t move much at all, aside from a single, indifferent nod.

A quiet one, then. That was a relief. Finally, she could enjoy the rare luxury of hearing her own thoughts without competing with Natalia’s relentless narration of daily drama. Speaking of which…

Eydis reached into her bag and pulled out her phone. It lit up in her hands like it had a soul. Possibly one it had stolen.

"Do you know how to use this to contact someone?” she asked, holding it between two fingers.

Astra stared at her. When she finally spoke, her voice was low, husky, and unexpectedly magnetic.

"You don't know how?" 

"I had a concussion,” Eydis lied, with no shame. “My hands haven’t caught up with my mind.”

A flicker crossed Astra’s face. Displeasure? Concern?

It vanished a heartbeat later.

By some miracle—or blind luck—Eydis managed to unlock the device. She held it out toward Astra, who stared at it for a second before sighing and reaching to take it.

“Wait,” Eydis said, placing a hand over hers.

Astra flinched.

Eydis pulled back immediately, already regretting the contact. Just how much damage did teenage me do to this one?

"Show me how to do it. Call Natalia, please,” she added, trying for casual.

Astra took the phone and tapped through a few screens. After a moment, she looked up. “No answer.”

"Leave a message,” Eydis said, waving a hand. “That’s a thing, right?”

Astra nodded and opened a message thread. It was blank. No messages. No history. No interactions.

Just silence.

Eydis stared at it for a moment longer than necessary.

So. We’re not that different after all.

Astra glanced at her. “Want me to type it?”

Eydis blinked back into focus. “Yes. Bathe me, please. And be generous with the rose petals.”

Astra froze. “I’m sorry. What?”

"Can you message Natalia and ask if she’ll help a girl out?” Eydis clarified. In hindsight, not her best decision.

It had sounded reasonable in her head: a steaming bath, candlelight, perfumed oils, maybe even music.

Astra, unfortunately, was not convinced. Her grip tightened slightly, as if she were deciding whether to type or throw the phone through a wall.

“Are you two… never mind.” With a deep sigh, she started typing.

"Not yet,” Eydis admitted, “but in time, she will accept her place.”

Her place as a handmaiden, of course. She finished the sentence internally, apparently, that title didn’t land well in this world.

Message sent, Astra shoved the phone into Eydis’s hands like it was cursed. 

Finally, something we agree on.

This roommate arrangement wasn’t going to be easy. For Astra, living with someone who’d once written unsolicited love poetry about her had to be… unpleasant.

Understandable. Still, mildly inconvenient.

The silence that followed was vaguely judgmental.

Eydis drummed her fingers on the desk. Then, attempting diplomacy: “About the poem. Massive misunderstanding. Let’s pretend it never happened, shall we?”

Astra didn’t blink. “Misunderstanding? Which part? The kiss or the serenade of undying love?”

Oh.

Teenage Eydis hadn’t just been dramatic. She’d been emotionally compromised.

By a girl.

“K-iss,” Eydis repeated slowly. “A regrettable phase, no doubt encouraged by youth, impulse, and possibly a head injury.”

“Happened recent—“

“—In any case, my affections lie elsewhere. No need for alarm,” Eydis cut in.

Astra’s gaze lingered on her. Quietly. Long enough to make Eydis wonder if she was being dissected behind those crimson eyes.

Then, mercifully, someone knocked.

Eydis quickly pulled the door open, releasing a breath she hadn't realised she was holding as Natalia stood outside, visibly flustered.

"Not. A. Word," Natalia huffed. 

Eydis smiled sweetly, already gathering her bath essentials. On her way out, she cast a brief glance in Astra’s direction.

The girl’s expression hadn’t changed, but somehow, she now looked like she’d been flash-frozen mid-thought.

Had she said something wrong? Probably.

Love, it seemed, was as foreign to her as this strange new world, and ten times more challenging.

"Perhaps you could show me the wonders of this 'shower' you mentioned," Eydis suggested, turning her attention to Natalia after the door had clicked shut behind her, "think of it as an early release from your royal scrubbing servitude."

Natalia resembled a malfunctioning kettle, eyes darting between Eydis and the nearest exit as if debating whether she had the stamina to sprint out of this conversation.

“Y-you know how to bathe yourself?” she sputtered. “Because earlier, with the face wash—”

“You wound me. Do you take me for someone who can't handle a little cleansing ritual?" Eydis winked playfully. “Unless, of course, the purpose was to witness a certain someone's captivating display of...flustered cuteness."

“Oh my gods, captivating now? So that whole face wash thing was just a test? Like… seeing how much of your nonsense I’d put up with?”

Eydis smirked. “Think of it as reconnaissance,” she said smoothly. “Any great campaign requires boldness and tactical boundary-pushing. Wouldn’t you agree?”

Natalia massaged her temples. “Okay, first of all, reconnaissance? Second, why the military jargon? Third… actually, never mind, I don’t have the brainpower for this.”

They reached the steaming communal showers. Eydis’s gaze swept over the structure, her mind already dissecting its mechanics. A handle, a spout — a contraption not unlike the basin from this afternoon. Here, water danced not to the will of a mage, but to the laws of physics.

Natalia took a breath, opening her mouth, but Eydis moved swiftly, twisting the handle decisively towards the red dot, and a torrent of hot water gushed forth from the showerhead. 

Natalia closed her mouth. Slowly.

"Functional," Eydis declared. "And yet, tragically lacking in rose petals. Such a missed opportunity, wouldn't you agree?"

Natalia, still reeling from the audacity of Eydis’s action, finally burst out laughing. "Maybe it wasn't a concussion, Eydis. Maybe you're just... possessed by a dramatic demon queen?"

Eydis' lips twitched. "Perhaps that's not entirely off the mark," she replied enigmatically as she yanked the shower curtain shut, leaving Natalia staring at a wall of floral plastic.

Meanwhile, Eydis smiled to herself. While she might not have acquired a handmaiden, the acquisition of a highly flustered mortal was proving to be almost equally entertaining.