The Munchkin Princess Wants to Run Away Chapter 26

“Really, nothing happened between us.”

“Are you sure? Maybe not for you, Lady Ivanna, but I bet it’s different for His Grace.”

Anthony’s smug little chuckle was irritating.

“I’m an adult, too, you know? And the duke isn’t interested in me.”

“I’m sure that’s not true. Besides, Lady Ivanna still looks so young.”

Anthony spoke as he braided Ivanna’s hair.

Her cheeks still retained a trace of baby fat. Her intelligent eyes and delicate features made the princess look even younger than she was.

Our princess is adorable even when she pouts.

Seeing Ivanna behave as though she had regained her usual health, Anthony felt relieved.

Knock, knock.

The two stopped talking and looked toward the door.

“Who is it?”

When they carefully opened the door, they found an attendant of Duke Reynold standing outside with a polite expression.

“His Grace has invited Her Highness to have lunch with him.”

Anthony stepped aside, and the attendant formally delivered his message.

“The duke?”

“Yes. I’m told he has prepared a meal to help restore your strength.”

Ivanna blinked.

Beside her, Anthony beamed and gestured enthusiastically for her to accept.

She had nearly gotten indigestion while dining with the duke yesterday, and now he wanted her to eat with him again today. Wasn’t he being a little too cruel to her?

Ivanna wanted to refuse the invitation, but she couldn’t bring herself to ignore Anthony’s hopeful expression.

“Very well. I’ll get ready.”

What on earth has he been doing all this time without even eating until this late?

Grumbling inwardly, Ivanna instructed Anthony to prepare a new dress.

“I’m sure His Grace considers you special, Lady Ivanna!”

“Who knows?”

Anthony stamped his feet excitedly as he helped her into the dress. Ivanna didn’t care what his intentions were, whatever they might be.

I’ll have to do whatever he wants anyway.

It wasn’t as though she had the right to refuse. She found herself entertaining a rather spiteful thought.

Praying that time would pass quickly, Ivanna dragged her feet as much as possible on her way to the dining room.

 

***

 

“Please sit here.”

What on earth did this man want?

She had been in her bedroom, so when had he changed? He was dressed in an elaborate outfit that looked more suited to a formal banquet.

Of course, she had dressed appropriately for the occasion as well, but compared to this extravagantly dressed man, she looked rather unimpressive.

His face is far too handsome.

Ivanna was once again reminded of just how extraordinary his looks were.

“I heard you stayed by my side and took care of me throughout the night. Thank you.”

Cedric gave a slight nod in response to Ivanna’s gratitude. After taking his seat, he slowly examined the princess.

He felt relieved to see that all traces of her illness from the previous night had disappeared.

If something had happened to the princess, he couldn’t imagine what the imperial family might have demanded of him for violating their contract.

“I didn’t realize your constitution was this frail.”

“Pardon?”

At first, he had thought the imperial family was lying about her health, too. But now he understood why the crown prince had added a clause guaranteeing the princess’s safety to their marriage contract.

After contemplating the matter with a serious expression, he spoke.

“From now on, we’ll have lunch together.”

Ivanna’s fork stopped moving.

“Do I have no right to refuse?”

Meeting her troubled gaze and bewildered expression, Cedric nodded calmly.

He had decided that he needed to pay closer attention to the princess’s health from now on.

At the very least, he needed to make sure she was eating properly by checking for himself.

That was the conclusion Cedric reached.

“All right.”

A faint smile appeared at the corners of Cedric’s mouth when he saw her deeply dissatisfied expression.

“How is the countess?”

Having confirmed that he wouldn’t change his mind, the princess changed the subject.

“I’m told she has regained consciousness.”

“I knew she must have overexerted herself yesterday. I’m sorry. I didn’t realize we would end up talking for so long.”

She seemed to have realized from his answer that the countess had made it through the crisis. The princess looked utterly distressed with guilt.

“There’s no need to apologize to me. The count also expressed his gratitude, saying he hadn’t seen his wife so excited in a long time. Please don’t worry.”

“That’s a relief.”

Her sky-blue eyes were filled with relief. Cedric watched as her expression softened and a brief smile crossed her face.

After the rain stopped and the sun came out, he found himself thirsty. He divided his water intake into small sips, careful not to violate proper etiquette.

“It will take a full day to reach the next territory. We’ll depart early in the morning and camp for the night, so make sure you’re well prepared.”

“Yes.”

That brought their conversation to an end. The princess quietly finished all the food that had been prepared.

Checking on the princess once a day should be enough.

Cedric believed that as long as he could keep track of her health, even without speaking to her, he would be fulfilling his duty.

 

***

 

This is getting rather boring.

Their departure went smoothly.

The rain had stopped the evening before last, so the ground was still muddy, but not enough to prevent the carriages from traveling.

As the duke had said, the party departed early in the morning.

Since they couldn’t stop the carriages for lunch, they ate simple sandwiches inside and continued traveling without a break until the afternoon.

Ivanna had been idly watching the scenery outside while Cedric reviewed documents when she suddenly noticed something was wrong.

“Your Grace! What was that loud sound— Aah!”

CRAAASH!

A tremendous impact struck the carriage. Ivanna felt her body lift into the air and squeezed her eyes shut.

“Your Highness!”

Ivanna curled up tightly, bracing herself against the impact.

She could occasionally hear the duke calling her, but she couldn’t seem to regain her composure.

As her body was violently tossed around, she felt herself being caught by something solid.

“Hah… hah…”

Everything fell silent.

Only her ragged breathing echoed inside the carriage. Ivanna clapped a hand over her mouth, afraid she would otherwise scream.

“It’s all right now.”

Tears seemed to have gathered at the corners of her eyes. The firm tips of his fingers touched them.

Ivanna finally managed to open her eyes. Everything outside the window was pitch-black.

“Move a little closer to me.”

Ivanna grabbed the duke’s hand. He silently held her trembling fingers on his own.

“Are you all r-right, Your Grace?”

“I’m not injured.”

At the calmness of his voice and demeanor, Ivanna struggled to steady her breathing.

Just as he had said, he didn’t appear to have been hurt.

She had known another landslide could occur. She had even made some preparations for that possibility.

But if she had stopped the rain, perhaps this would never have happened in the first place.

The price of ignoring the natural rain simply to keep her divine power hidden struck her painfully.

Her head was still ringing, and she thought she could hear other people screaming in the distance.

“Are the others all right?”

“The carriage is protected by defensive magic, so they should be fine.”

At the careful touch of his hand as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders, Ivanna clasped both his hands tightly.

The continuous rain was a blessing, but it had also caused numerous problems.

A landslide…

“Some people weren’t riding in carriages, though.”

“They’re skilled knights. They should be safe.”

The duke’s voice was low and steady as he answered her concern.

Could knights really be safe in the face of a landslide? Ivanna tried to suppress the cold dread creeping through her.

“The rain was heavier than predicted. That’s why we anticipated the possibility of a landslide, just as we did in the previous territory, and prepared in advance.”

Seeing Ivanna at a loss, Cedric spoke with a troubled expression.

He had never learned how to comfort people.

So instead, he explained the preparations he had made against a landslide.

It was a rational way to minimize casualties.

Since the roads were muddy, they had ensured that as few people as possible would need to walk. They had also equipped the horses with protective artifacts so they could survive the disaster. No one should have to die.

Cedric awkwardly placed a hand on Ivanna’s shoulder. Even as he explained the precautions they had taken against a landslide, her trembling did not stop.

“Your Highness. A distress signal should already have been sent, and we’ll receive reports from the other carriages soon.”

Cedric took a communication stone from his pocket. A red light flickered from its surface.

“Won’t you feel a little calmer once you know everyone else is safe?”

In his composed voice, Ivanna slowly nodded.

Because the duke spoke as though nothing particularly serious had happened, she almost began to believe the situation wasn’t as bad as she had feared.

“Go ahead.”

—It’s Marcel, Your Grace’s aide. Your Grace, are both of you safe?!

“We’re fine. Her Highness is uninjured as well.”

A sigh of relief came from the other side of the communication stone.

—I’m relieved you’re both safe. All the other carriages are safe, too. A few people suffered minor injuries when their carriages overturned, but thanks to the preparations we made beforehand, there doesn’t seem to be any serious damage.

At Marcel’s report, Cedric gave Ivanna a look that seemed to ask, See? Isn’t everything all right?