Lilianne Rea Sinfonia was born as the child of Lotus Rea Sinfonia, the 17th King of the Kingdom of Sinfonia, and his Queen, Dahlia Rea Sinfonia.
For many years, the royal couple had not been blessed with a child. Cruel rumors had even labeled the Queen as barren. Yet, despite being the long-awaited firstborn of the First Wife, Lilianne’s position was precarious from the start.
This was because she was born just as Ryze Rea Sinfonia, the son of a concubine, had married and been formally appointed as the Crown Prince and next in line for the throne.
The Royal Palace was not a monolith. A faction soon emerged claiming that Lilianne, as the child of the First Wife, should be recognized as the legitimate heir to the throne. Their advocacy caused no small amount of turmoil within the palace walls.
However, Lilianne was but a newborn infant. Many argued she was no match for Ryze, who had already undergone extensive training and education as a royal. Over time, the voices calling for Lilianne to become the next monarch began to fade.
In most cases, this would have been the end of it—settled as just another typical succession squabble. But by the time Lilianne reached the age of four, the demands to place her on the throne returned with renewed, overwhelming force.
The reason was a stroke of irony: Lilianne Rea Sinfonia was a "genius." And not just an ordinary one. Even in the long history of the Human Realm, she possessed a talent that was utterly incomparable.
She understood the contents of any book she read with ease. Etiquette, dance—she mastered them after being shown only once. Most astonishingly, by the age of five, she had already become capable of wielding magic.
In later years, she would remark that it took her "about three months" to acquire magic. For a human, this was not merely "fast"—it was on an entirely different level. The very premise was unheard of.
Lilianne had indeed taken three months to manifest magic, but she had done so through "self-study." At that young age, she had not yet been provided with any formal magical instruction.
Without a teacher, Lilianne had sensed the magic power flowing through her own body and taught herself how to exert it. The discovery struck terror into those who witnessed it.
This development deeply troubled King Lotus and Queen Dahlia. They were already preparing to abdicate the throne to Ryze, but as Lilianne’s brilliance became undeniable, the Lilianne Faction grew louder by the day.
Lilianne was, quite simply, a historical anomaly. She could memorize books at a glance, perform etiquette so perfectly that her tutors were left speechless, and replicate physical movements after seeing them only once. Such feats were her daily reality.
The faction supporting her grew until it split the Royal Palace in two. Her parents spent their days exhausted by the political fallout.
However, the politics were not the only thing changing. A shift had begun to take root within Lilianne herself, and it was not a positive one.
Through the eyes of the young Lilianne, the people around her were "nothing but incompetents." Even adults could not match her. She watched the people around her struggle with tasks she found effortless.
Her busy parents had less time to spend with her, and everyone else simply praised her as a genius. These factors combined to plant a seed of arrogance in Lilianne’s heart—a disdain for others.
Left unchecked, Lilianne’s personality would have surely warped. She might have grown into a person who used her power only to look down on others.
Lotus noticed this early. He reached out to his long-time friend Reijihart, an Elven mage, and invited him to serve as a Court Mage. His hope was that Reijihart’s daughter, Sieglinde, would become a friend for Lilianne—someone who could heal her loneliness and teach her compassion. However, moving an entire family from Rigforresia took time.
He feared that by the time help arrived, Lilianne’s arrogance would have already set in stone.
But there was one person who chose to scold the young Princess.
"Lilianne-samaaa... that's a no-nooo, you knowww?"
"W-What are you doing, Illness!?"
The person was Illness, the maid assigned exclusively to Lilianne.
Lilianne reacted with immediate indignation when Illness lightly poked her on the forehead. She could not understand why she was being reprimanded.
"You must not say things... that belittle those around youuu."
"...I-It’s the truth! Even you can’t beat me, Illness. I’m more amazing..."
"Is that sooo? I don't think you're amazing at allll, thoughhh."
"W-Why!?"
Lilianne had almost no experience being scolded. It was only natural—few would dare reprimand a Princess hailed as a once-in-a-century genius.
Yet Illness did exactly that. She spoke with a gentle, slow, and admonishing tone.
"Hurting someone... isn't amazing in the leasttt. That is something... anyone can dooo. What is truly amazing... is recognizing and protecting those who have no powerrr."
"..."
"Lilianne-sama may indeed possess great powerrr. But... if you use that power to hurt others... you are just a common bad personnn. It is only when you use your power correctly... that you can truly be a fine personnn."
"...Ugh, but..."
Illness spoke to her without rushing, explaining the weight of responsibility that came with great strength and what was required of someone who would one day lead and protect people.
Lilianne was brilliant. She did not need much time to realize that Illness’s words were the truth.
Still, a part of her remained unconvinced—until Illness said something that forced her to reconsider everything.
"...If Lilianne-sama... grows up to be a bad adulttt... I will... 'dislike you,' you knowww?"
"T-That’s... I don’t... want that."
At that stage, Lilianne was not truly arrogant; the signs were only just beginning to show. Being scolded at that critical moment—and the fear of being disliked by the woman who had cared for her as long as she could remember—gave her the push she needed to change.
Later, she gained a kind friend in Sieglinde. With that support, Lilianne grew into a woman who never forgot compassion or kindness.
As she matured into a beloved Princess, she even managed to repair her relationship with her older brother, Ryze. While she hadn't anticipated that Ryze would become an extreme siscon, she truly came to value her family.
Of course, this was partly due to her own innate kindness, but the presence of Illness had been the deciding factor.
By the time Lilianne was fourteen, her talent was famous not only in Sinfonia but in neighboring countries as well. Few were surprised when she placed second in her very first martial arts tournament.
People praised her as a model of royal excellence. Lilianne accepted their accolades with the graceful, practiced smile of a Princess.
However... there was one person for whom she dropped the act.
"Illness! Listen! I took second place in the martial arts tournament! I lost to Sieg in the finals, but... I’ll win next time!"
Gone was the elegant royal mask. Lilianne spoke with a genuine, beaming smile. Illness stopped her cleaning and let out a wide, unique grin.
"Kuhihi, is that sooo... congratulationsss. Lilianne-samaaa... you 'worked very hard,' didn't youuu?"
"E-Ehehe... it was nothing. I still have a long way to go."
"Still, it is splendidd. As a reward... shall I bake a cake or somethinggg?"
"T-Thank you! I'd love that!"
Illness never once called Lilianne a "genius." She never praised her talent; she always praised her "effort." Lilianne loved that more than anything else in the world.
She loved the feeling of being gently stroked on the head. She loved the gentle taste of the reward cakes.
To Lilianne, Illness was her "another mother." She loved her biological mother, of course, and was grateful for the snatches of time Dahlia gave her between royal duties. Now that Ryze was King, she and her mother shared tea frequently.
But she loved Illness just as much. Illness had been there since her earliest memories, scolding her when she was wrong and praising her when she tried her best.
That was why, when she changed her name to Lilia Albert and founded the Ducal House of Albert, she had bowed her head and begged Illness to come with her.
She claimed it was because Illness was a superior maid who could train the others, but that was just a pretext.
Lilianne—Lilia—was terrified.
A best friend who had lost her voice, the heavy burden of a Duchess, the uncertain future... she felt a crushing anxiety about it all. That was why she needed Illness... her "another mother," to stay by her side.
In the office of the Ducal House of Albert, Lilia was working late into the night. A knock at the door made her stop.
When she granted permission to enter, Illness pushed in a cart.
"Miladyyy... are you stillll... workinggg?"
"Y-Yes, just a little... No, it really is just a little more. I just wanted to finish this up..."
Hearing Illness’s slow drawl, Lilia averted her eyes and scratched her cheek like a child caught in a prank. Illness set the cart aside, approached Lilia, and lightly poked her on the forehead.
"...That's a no-nooo, you knowww? Working hard is all well and gooddd... but please do so in moderationnn."
"Auh... Yes."
Aware that she had been pushing herself too hard, Lilia nodded sheepishly.
Satisfied, Illness moved back to the cart.
"I baked a cake... as a snackkk. Would you like someee?"
"Thank you. I'll have some."
"Yesuuu."
As a Duchess, Lilia had eaten countless varieties of expensive cakes at parties and galas.
Yet none of them compared to the ones Illness baked.
It was a gentle, heartwarming flavor. For Lilia, it was "mother’s cooking."
As she ate the cake with a happy expression, Lilia spoke softly.
"...Illness. Am I... doing well as the Head of the House? Am I properly protecting everyone?"
It was a small, whispered confession of her lingering anxiety. Illness gave her usual "kuhihi" laugh and gently placed a hand on Lilia’s head.
"It's alrighttt. Milady is... truly... working harddd. I am happy... that you have become such a fine personnn."
Lilia smiled, feeling her heart enveloped by the warmth of that stroke on her head and the unique grin she had once found slightly scary but had now come to cherish.
"...But... overworking yourself... is bad, you knowww?"
"Ugh... B-But, Illness works much more than I do..."
"I'm a Demon... so I'm alrighttt."
"...Because you're Count-class, right?"
"That's righttt... kuhihi."
"Fufufu."
Looking back at Lilia’s life, there were many points where she could have been led astray.
The friction with her brother, her overwhelming talent, her busy parents, and the way society saw only her genius and not her as a person—any one of these could have turned her into a person who misused her gifts.
But she had been blessed with the people around her.
Lilia still does not know that Illness’s true identity is Pandemonium. But even if she were to find out, though she might be shocked, it would likely never change their bond.
Whether she was a Count-class Demon or an executive of the Six Kings, it didn’t matter. To Lilia, Illness was her "another mother," and that was a truth that would never fade.