The tyrant Wants To Live Honestly Chapter 9

“Princess, don’t you really want to go outside?”

 

The nanny asked me quietly.

 

The nanny seemed to be still interested in Ray’s words a while ago.

 

Moreover, after Ray officially started attending Episteme, the number of visits to me has significantly decreased, and the nanny is very concerned about me.

 

Ray was the best friend to me, but that too disappeared or something. Ray was almost the only visitor to the Converta Palace, so it was not that the nanny’s concerns were not understood.

 

‘But I’m thankful that Ray was busy.’

 

It’s comfortable and quiet.

 

“When you go out, you will feel refreshed.”

 

The nanny continued to persuade me. It’s been a week since she talked about going out whenever she had time.

 

“You might find something you like outside, Princess. There are so many fascinating things out there!”

 

‘I’m telling you, I’m not curious.’

 

But the nanny wanted me to see and learn more, saying that I could not see the real world by living in this narrow palace.

 

She went on for days, saying that more experiences would make me a better person.

 

In the end, I gave up.

 

Well… it was a bit much that I’d never once left the imperial palace in the nine years since I was born.

 

I wasn’t some fairytale princess cursed and locked away in a castle.

 

“Okay, nanny.”

 

There was no real reason to stubbornly refuse an outing.

 

Taking my answer as the beginning of a positive change, the nanny beamed and immediately began preparing for my trip.

 

“Just in case, let’s only go out for an hour or two.”

She said that as she draped a cloak over my shoulders.

And that—that was where it all began.

 

* * *

 

“Alright. You made sure the terms were properly delivered to that woman, right?”

 

“Five large notes. To the Red Well within a week.”

 

I was overhearing the conversation with my eyes covered with a towel or something.

 

I could feel the rough straw on the floor and the dry air wrapped in dry dust and sand with every breath I took.

 

So this…

 

“She looked like a pretty rich girl.”

 

kidnapping children.

 

On my first outing, I encountered such a formidable incident.

 

While walking on the street, the nanny collapsed with a terrifying sound as soon as we stepped on a deserted street for a while.

 

Then a handkerchief clamped over my mouth and nose from behind, and I lost consciousness.

 

They seem to have brought me here, kept the nanny until she came to her senses, and sent her to bring the money.

 

They didn’t even seem to know that I was a princess yet.

 

I was awake to a certain extent, but whether it was lingering effects of the drug or not, my head felt hazy and my limbs heavy, so I stayed sprawled on the floor.

 

The kidnappers kept talking, whether they thought I hadn’t come to my senses yet.

 

“She totally freaked out, screaming she’d die if she left the kid behind. So I said, ‘Wanna die together here instead? If you want the kid alive, bring the money.’ She ran off crying. Hah. Maybe we should’ve taken that woman too and sold her.”

 

I could hear the kidnappers giggle among themselves.

 

Seriously—when life decides to get dirty, it really doesn’t hold back.

 

I was angrier than scared. I wanted to live a good life, so why did everyone seem so desperate to mess with me?

 

“When are you going to kill her?”

 

“Once the money’s safely in our hands. Before that, she might still be useful.”

 

“It’s crazy to see a little girl wearing clothes that are more expensive than our house price.”

 

“Right? Trash like that deserves to be burned alive.”

 

A spit was heard nearby.

 

I can’t believe I’m like this, who was once even an emperor.

 

The fact that I had just been kidnapped by that frivolous kidnapper caused ridicule.

 

I’d been careless.

I didn’t usually have a personal escort knight assigned to me. The palace guard was more than enough to ensure my safety, so I’d figured a brief outing nearby didn’t warrant extra protection.

I’d never received death threats. No one had ever tried to harm me. And aside from nobles who frequented the palace, hardly anyone even knew I was a princess.

 

I acknowledged my own carelessness—and that of the imperial family.

But what really infuriated me was the fact that I had no power to fight back.

 

I am nine years old. The physical condition of dealing with an adult man was miserable.

 

And I hadn’t trained with a sword.

 

Before the return, I used to use a sword enough to be called the incarnation of war, but after the return, I purposely avoided the sword.

 

I was afraid that I might use the sword for something bad.

 

As a result, the me of now was nothing more than a frail little girl—a sheltered weakling would fit perfectly.

 

And yet, I’d briefly fooled myself.

 

Because of my memories from before, I’d believed I could handle a certain level of danger.

 

I don’t have any skills right now.

 

‘It doesn’t matter if I die early, but at least I don’t want to die from these guys.’

 

I don’t have a dream of eternal life, but I don’t want to end my second life with being caught and killed by a kidnapper.

 

Even if it’s an unlovable life, since it’s the second time, I want to die gracefully and normally.

 

I waited for my head to clear a little more and began thinking.

Could I get out of this?

“It’s been three days since we sent that woman off, and there’s still no word.”

“It’ll take time to get things ready and make it all the way to the Red Well.”

 

three days? Have I been asleep for three days?

 

Somehow, I felt so weak and thirsty.

 

I vaguely remembered waking up at times, asking for water—and them giving me some.

 

Had that water been drugged too?

 

After thinking for a long time, I have come to the conclusion that I can’t just lie down like this.

 

Plan A: convincingly play the part of a weak, ordinary little girl and make them let their guard down.

 

I knew that being smart would only dig my own grave.

 

“Uuugh…”

 

I rubbed my eyes over the blindfold, then pretended to struggle with it, as if it were bothersome and I wanted to take it off.

 

Fortunately, my hands and feet were free.

 

After starving for three days, the probability of defeating the grown men and escaping was close to zero, that was probably why they hadn’t bothered tying me up.

 

“I think she is awake.”

 

“Kid, are you awake?”

A voice brushed past my ear.

“Mm… I can’t see….”

“Take it off.”

 

Footsteps approached, and the blindfold covering my eyes was removed.

 

I opened my eyes after having them shut for so long— yet there was no blinding light.

 

Only a dark, shabby room.

 

There were no windows, so I couldn’t tell where I was, whether it was night or day.

 

‘So… how many kidnappers are visible right now? Two?’

 

I checked the situation while pretending to open my eyes sullenly.

 

One man was off to the side, killing time by playing cards by himself.

 

The other was sitting on a chair beside me.

 

The person sitting in the chair next to me had a long scar on his forehead and a sword around his waist.

 

From the looks of it, they didn’t seem like a great organization, more like street trash who’d drifted in from some back alley.

 

‘…I really got taken by guys like this?’

 

I’m losing my self-esteem.

 

“Hello, kid.”

 

The man beside me met my eyes and grinned. But the smile wasn’t friendly—it was just stupid.

 

“Hello.”

 

I happily accepted his greeting.

 

I wasn’t scared. More importantly, I needed time to figure them out, so earning their goodwill was the only option.

 

They’d sent the nanny off, so something would probably happen eventually—but if there was one thing that worried me…

 

‘Carnan might give up on me.’

 

He may think it’s better to use it as a card to throw away things like me than to give money.

 

Maybe he thinks it’s good.

 

‘I can’t just trust Carnan.’

 

They said three days had already passed. This means that the imperial family has not been able to find such a thief-like kidnapper for three days.

 

Once the one-week deadline passed, there was no telling what they’d do to me.

 

My trust in Carnan had already punched through rock bottom and was rotting somewhere beneath underground water and lava, so I couldn’t just sit around waiting for his rescue.

 

If there was a problem, it was the condition of my body. I starved for several days and had no energy because I had taken medicine.

 

“Um… mister, who are you?”

 

Helpless, I decided to pretend to be an innocent child. Someone like Idiot Ray, for example.

 

I opened my eyes wide and when I asked, he looked at me for a moment and then smiled.

 

“You are a cute little girl. I am Tutu.”

 

“Is Uncle Tutu the new nanny?”

 

“Nanny? no. Not a nanny.”

 

“Then are you my father’s friend?”

 

I smiled brightly. Like an idiot who can’t understand the situation without notice.

 

‘If anyone had seen Dorothea Milanaire like this, they would laugh at their belly button.’

 

I was angry at my situation where I had to win their favor even with a smile that didn’t fit my personality, but I had to put up with it.

 

“Yeah, I’m your father’s friend.”

 

Perhaps because of my smile, Tutu’s face suddenly loosened, responding to my innocent acting.

 

“Then can I call you Uncle Tutu?”

 

“Uncle Tutu? Huh, yes, Uncle Tutu.”

 

Tutu smiled as if he liked the word “uncle”.

 

“Because you are a member of the Noble family, you look pretty like a doll.”

 

Tutu looked me in the eye and muttered, and I forced a smile on my face.

 

Come on, there used to be a thing a certain blunt-spoken man said to me almost every day.

 

‘If Your Majesty can smile, I can do anything. So, your Majesty, please smile just once.’

 

Setting aside how trustworthy that line was, people had always said I was beautiful—even before becoming emperor.

 

As it was during Ray’s ceremony, people said that I looked just like Empress Alice.

 

My mother, Alice, who had already passed away, was so beautiful that Crown Prince Carnan fell in love at first sight.

 

Furthermore, it was the woman who stole his heart to the extent that he would not remarry until the time of his death.

 

Even after my mother’s death, the nobles occasionally talked about her beauty.

 

I don’t like my looks much, but it doesn’t look terrible in other people’s eyes.

 

“But where are we?”

 

I asked, shaking off my thoughts.

 

“This is my uncle’s house.”

 

Lies. No matter how poor a house was, there should’ve been more signs of someone actually living there.

Still, pretending to believe him was my only option.

Until I understood the situation better, I needed to buy time.

“Wow—but Uncle, what’s that on your face? It’s so cool!”

 

I smiled broadly, pointing to the scar on his forehead.

 

There was no time to get angry or intimidated, and when compliments came in, Tutu scratched his head, pleased.

 

“Hah hah, really? This scar, you see—your uncle once fought 17 scary guys all by himself…”

 

“17 to 1? Did you fight with 17 people by yourself?”

 

Boasting has limits, you know.

 

“That’s right. Uncle alone fought with 17 people!”

 

“Wow! My uncle is the strongest in the world!”

 

I clapped my small hands together enthusiastically, playing along with his ridiculous bragging.

 

If it’s 17 to 1 with a body like his, maybe he is fighting an ant?

 

“The fight was originally a fight we promised to fight with our bare hands. But a man pulled a knife from the inside of his clothes.”

 

Oh, that’s right. It seemed like it.

 

“He was aiming at my heart. It’s a wound from avoiding it.”

 

I don’t know why he got such a scar on his forehead while avoiding a knife that was aimed at his heart, but he seems to have avoided it very loudly.

 

“It must hurt.”

 

“This is nothing.”

 

Before he knew it, he forgot that he had kidnapped me and became an uncle who told his niece the hero story of the past.

 

* * *