The Duke slowly stood up and walked toward his daughter.
He gently wiped the tears from Heidi's face and said with a warm smile,
"It's alright, dear. After all, you are my daughter. Whether your memories return or not… I will always love you."
"My dear child."
Heidi's eyes filled with tears again. She suddenly hugged him tightly.
"I'm sorry, Daddy… I'm really sorry… I'm so sorry, Daddy," she said again and again while crying.
The Duke softly patted her head.
"It's okay, dear," he said gently while stroking her hair.
After a moment, Heidi slowly lifted her head and looked at him.
"By the way, Daddy… you called me here for something, right?"
The Duke smiled lightly.
"Actually… it's nothing very important."
Then he looked at her warmly.
"Right now, my daughter is more important to me than anything else."
Suddenly…
BANG!
The door suddenly burst open.
"DADDY!" someone shouted loudly.
It was Alex.
The Duke frowned slightly.
"Alex! What is this behavior?"
Alex hurried inside.
"Sorry, Daddy, but this is very important!"
"There's a letter from the King. He said if you don't answer his marriage proposal… he will personally come to the House of Hohenzollern residence."
The Duke's face darkened.
He looked extremely annoyed.
Heidi blinked in confusion.
"Marriage? Whose marriage? Brother's?"
Alex looked at her like she was silly.
"You dummy… yours."
Heidi froze.
"Kyaaaaaa?!"
Inside her mind she screamed.
"So THIS was the 'not important' thing Daddy wanted to tell me?!"
She felt like crying again.
"How can this not be important? It's a letter from the King!"
Then she looked at her father nervously.
"What should we do now, Daddy?"
Heidi quickly said,
"Daddy, send a letter to the King. Tell him that Heidi Hohenzollern will decide only after meeting and talking to his son."
"But dear," the Duke said softly, "you are still recovering."
Alex nodded.
"Daddy is right. You haven't fully recovered yet."
Heidi smiled confidently.
"It's okay, Brother. Nothing will happen. I'll handle everything."
Alex sighed.
"Alright…"
Then the Duke finally spoke firmly.
"Write a letter to the King."
"We will give our answer to the proposal at the Crown Prince's 21st birthday celebration."
Scene shifted
On the other side, Heidi— in Arwa's body—looked extremely frustrated and annoyed. The little children at the party were playing with her gown, tugging and pulling at it. The gown, which was a normal one, looked far too big on her, and the children had never seen such a dress before, so they were fascinated and kept playing with it. Heidi muttered angrily, "What is all this? If I had known, I would never have worn this gown!"
From the side, her brother Leon and her friend Louis were watching her struggle, trying not to laugh. They whispered to each other, hiding their amusement. Leon finally called out teasingly, "I told you, you're going to Leo's birthday party, not some boring banquet!"
Heidi groaned loudly, her hands on her hips, wishing she could escape the chaos while the children continued tugging at the gown.
She wondered, "Why are these children behaving like this with me?" The thought made her heart ache. She felt a pang of regret as Leon's words came back to her. "Maybe I should have listened to him…"
The scene shifted to a large mall where Arwa was carefully picking out a gown for herself. Her brother noticed and frowned. "What are you doing? Why are you buying such heavy, over-the-top clothes? Just wear something normal for the party!"
"Shut up! What do you know about fashion?" Arwa snapped, determined.
Leon sighed, trying to warn her. "We're going to a kids' party, not a banquet hall! Dressing like this… people will laugh at you. You don't understand, do you? Don't buy it!"
Arwa crossed her arms, holding the gown against her. "No, this is exactly what I want. Look how beautiful it is—pink and white. I love it."
Her brother shook his head but smiled. "Fine, take whatever you want. I'll pay for it and be back in a moment."
Present time
Someone gently grabbed Arwa's hand. Startled, she looked up and realized it was Louise. "What… what are you doing?" she asked, a little confused.
"Come with me," Louise said calmly, guiding her toward Leo's mother.
"Yes, Louise?" Arwa asked, still unsure.
"Can you help Arwa change her dress? She's uncomfortable in this one," Louise explained.
"Oh! Arwa?" Leo's mother exclaimed, eyes widening as she looked at her. "I didn't even recognize you! I thought you and Leon had brought some circus performer for my child's birthday entertainment!" she said, smiling warmly.
Arwa blinked, completely lost.
"Come inside," Artha said gently. "I'll show you some of my old teenage clothes. You can pick whichever one is comfortable for you."
"Your clothes?" Arwa asked hesitantly.
"Yes, anything that feels comfortable. You can wear whichever you like," Artha reassured her.
"Hmm… okay," Arwa murmured.
Louise, noticing her worry, added softly, "Don't worry too much. I've known her since childhood, so just take care and guide her a bit."
The scene shifts to show Artha standing by her wardrobe, pulling out some clothes. She held up a short skirt and a revealing top. "Do you want to wear this?" she asked, holding it out.
Arwa froze. "What is this? No way… I'm not wearing something like… underwear!" she exclaimed, stepping back.
Artha quickly handed her a short frock instead.
Arwa inspected it and frowned. "No… this is way too small. It's not even like a proper frock—it feels like some innerwear!"
Next, Artha offered a pair of baggy pants.
Arwa shook her head immediately. "No, not this either! This looks like something a gardener would wear!"
Frustrated, Artha rubbed her forehead. "What else should I give her? This is all I have!"
Exasperated, she stepped out of the room and called for Louise. "Come here! Arwa isn't liking any of the clothes I've given her. You check and see what she'll actually wear—because I'm losing my mind over here!"
Just as Louise entered the room, he and Arwa made eye contact. Both of them quickly looked away, slightly embarrassed. Louise cleared his throat and said softly, "I'll find a nice dress for you." He felt a little blush creeping onto his cheeks, as if he were shy.
He moved to the wardrobe and scanned through the clothes. Most of them were fancy and a bit revealing, not suitable for Arwa's taste. Then an idea struck him. He carefully picked out a white frock—it was a tube-style dress with a subtle glitter shimmer. To complete the look, he grabbed a matching white glitter jacket and handed both to Arwa.
"Here," he said gently, "try wearing this. See how it feels.
Scene shifted
Heidi sat in front of the mirror, getting ready. She wore a sparkling blue glitter dress, complemented by a necklace adorned with blue gem-like stones. It looked stunning on her, and she thought to herself, "Today… I'm finally going to the crown prince's birthday. I've never done this before—it's going to be amazing!"
The scene shifted, and outside the palace, a carriage was waiting. It was her first time riding in a real-life carriage, sitting in the palace garage before heading out. Excitement bubbled up inside her as she took a moment to absorb the experience.
Then, a hand reached toward her. A calm, courteous voice said, "Young lady, please allow me to help you up."
Heidi placed her hand in his, smiling softly, and replied, "Thank you."