I’m a Wren, but I’m Going to Charm a Human!

Someone once said that you never know what life has in store for you.

I simply never imagined those words would one day apply to me.

I was the thirty-second princess of the Wren Kingdom, Princess Meishutanacompattineoraro. Since my name was ridiculously long, everyone simply called me Meishu, but that was hardly important right now.

I had always lived a happy life without ever wanting for anything. Father and Mother were so devoted to each other that they had thirty-one children together before finally having me.

And since I was the youngest, born to them rather late in life, one could only imagine how thoroughly I was adored.

My older brothers and sisters were all much older than me as well, so they doted on me endlessly. It felt a little embarrassing to say this about myself, but I was, in fact, exceptionally cute.

I took after my grandmother, a long-tailed wren beastwoman renowned for her beauty. With fluffy snow-white feathers and an elegant black tail, I was constantly showered with praise for how utterly adorable I was.

Among the reddish-brown wren beastfolk, I naturally stood out from everyone else.

Perhaps that was why I was never scolded, no matter how much trouble I caused. All I had to do was tilt my head to the side with an innocent expression, as though I had absolutely no idea what I had done.

“Peep?”

Without fail, everyone would erupt into shrieks.

“Aaaah! Princess Meishu!”

“My little sister is too adorable! How can she possibly get cuter with every passing day?”

“If anyone dares set their sights on our Shu, I’ll make them regret ever being born into this world.”

There was no one who didn’t adore me.

Mother and Father, my brothers and sisters, even the servants working in the palace and the citizens of the Wren Kingdom themselves.

So perhaps it was only natural that the prince of the Wren Kingdom’s neighboring realm—the Kingdom of the Sparrows—would fall for me as well.

The Sparrow Prince frequently visited our kingdom under the pretext of trade. Unfortunately for him, catching so much as a glimpse of me was difficult thanks to the overprotectiveness of Father, Mother, and my many brothers and sisters.

Still, the prince’s unwavering love and devotion seemed to soften my family’s hearts little by little.

Father, in particular, changed his mind dozens of times a day and often came rushing out even in the middle of state council meetings.

“My precious little baby… You’d rather stay here and live with your father, wouldn’t you? Going away to some distant foreign land would only bring you hardship. But then again… a prince of the Sparrow Kingdom is quite a respectable match… Ah, what am I supposed to do…?”

Mother, meanwhile, seemed heartbroken by the mere thought of sending me away. She would clutch me tightly in her arms and burst into tears.

“Sniff, sob… My Meishu. When did you grow up so much? I wish you could remain my precious little baby forever….”

After a long period of turmoil, however, my family finally raised the white flag.

It wasn’t simply because he was a prince. His admirable character and considerable abilities made him a perfectly suitable match in his own right.

But strangely enough, I was the only one who remained indifferent to the whole affair.

‘Why do I have to get married?’

I had never even had a proper conversation with him. My family was so protective that they insisted men and women should maintain a respectable distance before marriage and wouldn’t even allow us to hold hands. As a result, I hardly knew what kind of person the Sparrow Prince actually was.

“Is it really right for me to marry someone like this?”

Of course, we weren’t getting married immediately. An engagement ceremony was to come first, but I doubted becoming engaged would change much of anything.

It was while I was taking a walk, troubled by those thoughts, that everything happened.

I had told the maids following me that I wanted some time alone and sent them away before wandering through the palace gardens. Before long, however, I noticed something ominous about the sky.

Rumble—CRASH!

Sir Welting, my personal guard, should have been following at a distance anyway. Besides, this was the rear garden of the royal palace, practically my own backyard. Surely there was nothing to worry about.

Or so I thought.

Perhaps I had been far too complacent.

Without warning, a violent gust of wind tore through the garden. My body swayed precariously, as though I might be swept away at any moment, and the wind was so fierce that I could barely keep my eyes open.

Something was wrong.

Confused, I looked around and only then did I realize that the mass of black storm clouds was hovering directly above me and nowhere else.

“What…?”

The instant I noticed it, I saw Sir Welting sprinting toward me from the distance, his expression frantic.

“Princess Meishu!”

Never in my life had I seen him look so grave. He had never once raised his voice in my presence before.

“Sir Welting…!”

My cry came out almost like a scream.

Then something split the air with a deafening crack.

Rumble—CRASH!

That was the last thing I remembered.

* * *

When I regained consciousness, I was flying through the sky.

No, flying wasn’t quite the right word.

More accurately, I was plummeting through the air, tossed helplessly about by the raging wind.

‘My whole body hurts….’

Nothing about the situation made any sense. Where was I? Why was I falling? I had definitely been in my human form before, so when had I transformed back into a wren?

There was only one thing I knew for certain.

If I did nothing, I was going to die.

I hurriedly tried to spread my wings and fly, but the violent gusts were so powerful that simply keeping control of my body was nearly impossible.