“There’s nothing to be ashamed of. As a boy, it’s natural to aspire to be strong, isn’t it?”
“Ah… yeah.”
Noel seemed to want to say something for a moment, looking at me with a soft smile, but then Mr. Bear ruffled Noel’s hair with a grin.
“There are ‘those kinds of things’ for men, you know. Princess, please cheer him on as well.”
“Yes, do your best, Noel.”
“Y-yes.”
When I cheered on the taller Noel, he blushed deeply, seeming a bit troubled, but happy.
And since Noel is a bundle of talent, he’ll likely rank highly in any field.
…I wonder if I can recruit him?
After that, our journey to Sigres began.
It usually takes about three weeks by carriage from the Tull territory in the west of the Holy Kingdom to the neighboring country of Sigres to the west. But…
“I was instructed by the lord to use inns as much as possible so that Lady Eur would not have to camp.”
“…Father.”
It seems Vio was the inspector. But the others, including our servants, were nodding in agreement, as if to say “of course.”
Well, there’s nothing we can do about that. I thought the journey would be a leisurely one, traveling from one post town to the next, with a one-month round trip. But it seems that was not the case with us.
In fact, about ten days into the journey, on a road surrounded by a dense forest, we finally encountered a monster from another world!
“Guwoo!”
“It’s a rogue hippopotamus, be careful!”
…It was a hippopotamus.
At mr bear’s voice, the mercenary group and soldiers stepped forward, and the escort knights surrounded me.
Noel didn’t step forward either, but as the rear guard, he readied his sword and cast support magic on mr bear and the others.
The hippopotamus, despite being hit by countless arrows, pushed back the soldiers with its massive charge.
As expected, a hippopotamus. It’s strong. (Confusion)
We managed to drive it off, but… to think a hippopotamus would attack travelers on the road. This is a terrifying world.
“For a hippopotamus to show up in a place like this, it might have been driven out of the forest by the elves…”
“…Huh?”
According to mr bear, there is an elven settlement in the deep forest between the Holy Kingdom and Sigres. They’ve been cutting down the forest to sell the timber.
Now that I think about it, we also bought a lot of charcoal from the elves in the town with the iron mines…
Is that really okay, forest guardians? Seriously, you salt dumplings.
The image of elves I had imagined is somehow different…
Well, in any case, we were able to safely cross the border and enter the interior of the Sigres Kingdom.
This is my first time in a foreign country. What kind of country is the renowned agricultural Sigres Kingdom?
“Princess! This baked sweet potato is delicious!”
“The sweetness of this corn is amazing!”
“Princess, princess! Over there, they have fresh white asparagus to eat!”
“ ………… “
…My escort knights, you’re really enjoying the journey, aren’t you? Why do you keep coming to report to me about it?
In the first post town we reached in Sigres, even though it’s a post town, there were many farmlands before reaching it, as you’d expect from an agricultural country. Fresh vegetables were piled high for export to the Holy Kingdom of Taliteld, in addition to local consumption.
The main street of the town was lined with stalls and food carts for merchants and tourists from the Holy Kingdom, and my escort knights, like Bri and Sarah, flocked to the stalls, much to the amazement of the mercenaries.
Oh dear, my children are a bit too free-spirited.
“…Vio. Please tell the escort knights to submit a report on what they’ve been eating and drinking this time.”
“Understood.”
You’re all on the job, you know.
But since I haven’t been able to go out for long periods of time since entering the magic academy, I can understand why the girls are having so much fun.
As I gave that instruction to Vio, who was riding in my carriage with the four servants, she nodded solemnly but looked at me with gentle eyes.
“Lady Euru, you are so kind.”
“I’m just increasing their workload, aren’t I?”
It’s not good to play during work hours, but I’ll cover the cost of their meals at least.
And who knows, the things Sigres wants to export may not all be good products. Those free-spirited girls of mine will probably tell me about the good things without hesitation.
I may be called the “Holy Maiden,” but I’m a daughter of the Versenia Duchy, so I want to find good products for our people.
But still… am I too sweet?
**
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT GADGETIZEDPANDA.COM
“On behalf of the Holy Kingdom of Taliteld, we would like to offer our congratulations on the marriage of His Royal Highness, the Prince of Oslo.”
Three days after arriving in the capital of Sigres, a wedding ceremony was held between His Royal Highness Oslo, the brother of the Sigres Sovereign, and the Baroness Etia.
While the Sigres Royal Castle may not be extravagant, it is said to be the largest among the neighboring countries, and a hall the size of a domed stadium was filled with thousands of guests.
…I hope it doesn’t collapse, though.
At this venue, I gave greetings before the members of the Sigres Royal Family, then the Sigres nobility, and finally the visiting foreign guests, and my work was finally done.
Giving the same greetings to the same people three times in different locations and with different audiences was quite exhausting.
The key is for the [Princess], the representative of the Holy Kingdom of Taliteld, to deliver a congratulatory speech before this diverse gathering.
Accompanying me to the party was Vio in a stylish dress, and the twin maids Noah and Nia… The two maids are a bit too young, you see. I had the female escort knights dress appropriately and stand guard around me. It would be nice if they could find a potential husband candidate as well.
I also had mr bear, in (unsuitable) formal attire as an escort, and Noel, who is close to my age, come at my request.
“You don’t have to be that nervous, you know?”
“Y-Yes…”
“Gahaha, if you don’t get used to these kinds of events, you’ll never reach your dreams.”
At a celebration, even Noel doesn’t need to be so tense…or so it seems. mr bear pats Noel’s back, as if encouraging him.
Hmm? Is Noel’s only goal just to become stronger?
As I finished greeting the others and was about to find a seat, I noticed the glamorous people approaching me.
“Euru-chan, well done! It was very impressive.”
A breathtakingly beautiful woman, tall with a slender waist and alluring curves, came up and gave me a tight hug.
“Queen Camille…”
Yes, this is the queen of the Sigres royal family, the older sister of my father.
How should I put this…she’s enormous. (I’m sure of it)
I can’t even breathe, completely enveloped by her.
“Oh my, how formal. ‘Aunt’ is fine, you know?”
I tap Camille’s arm to be released, then fix my appearance and smile awkwardly.
“May I call you that in unofficial settings?”
“Euru-chan is so well-composed. Just like her father. The resemblance is uncanny.”
Hearing that I resemble my father makes the corners of my mouth turn up.
Given that I’m only eight years old, even if I make some mistakes or try to act mature, the Sigres royalty always kindly forgives me with a smile.
I quickly became close with Camille, but then I remembered an important matter.
“Aunt Camille…where are my ‘sisters’?”
At that moment, Camille’s cheerful smile twisted into a wry half-smile…
What did my sisters do this time!?
My half-sisters had caused quite a scene at my birthday party three years ago, and ended up on long-term study abroad at the Sigres noble academy.
I had been looking forward to reuniting with my wonderful and adorable sisters, but…
Actually, I had felt something was off! The Sigres royal family had been praising my father and me excessively, yet they never brought up the topic of my two sisters.
“Aunt…?”
“……..”
When I narrowed my eyes and asked again, Camille slightly twisted her lips and sighed before speaking.
“I allowed their ‘etiquette training’ study abroad at the request of Fortuna and Eleanore. It had been over a decade since I’d seen those two since their infancy, so I was looking forward to it, despite the odd rumors.”
The length of this preamble is rather ominous.
“But those two hardly attended the academy at all after the initial enrollment, instead spending their time frolicking in the entertainment district. So I replaced the servants and maids with more suitable ones, just so they could properly focus on their etiquette training. But now they’ve started associating with these so-called ‘Heroes’…”
“…Huh?”
My sisters seem to be doing well, but I heard a strange word.
“He-roes?”
“Yes…and let me make it clear, the Sigres royal family has not officially recognized them. But recently, a small mercenary group has started being called ‘Heroes’, and it seems my nieces have been hanging around them.”
Heroes…brave individuals who appear in times of crisis, leading the people and inspiring courage.
My sisters are associating with such people?
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