Chapter 10

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Well, if it’s a doll, then a doll it is.

Phew, a child’s eyes are surprisingly sharp.

“Princess.”

Oh my god, you scared me.

Why is everyone coming out from all directions today? Ari, who was handing out a bouquet of flowers, froze on the spot, biting her lip. I also froze for a moment while accepting the bouquet.

I didn’t expect to see him again today.

Silver-gray hair glittered under the sunlight. As he strode through the small path between the elegant statues, Izek looked even more sensational with the peaceful scenery around him.

I could feel Ari’s body shaking as she held onto my skirt.

I get why I’m like this, but why are you so scared?

Her cousin brother, Izek, somehow stopped about two meters away from us, and spat it out in a blunt tone without a hint of courtesy, “Your Highness is looking for you. I told you last time that you shouldn’t walk around alone.”

Huh?

The next moment, the little princess threw the bouquet into my hand and quickly ran past him, toward the palace like a scared kitten. I felt like this happened a lot, and Izek didn’t really try to hold on to her either.

My husband stood upright without looking back.

There was an absurd look in his eyes.

“You were playing with each other…”

Ah, is that what he wanted to talk about? I gently straightened myself with the bouquet in my hand. I felt bad about being treated like a six-year-old kid, but I smiled shyly on the outside.

“Were you looking for the princess?”

“No. I was looking for you. I’m not a guard.”

What? Looking for me? You were the one who left me behind. Are you trying to kick me out of here too, now?

I was a little scared, but I didn’t show it, and made my eyes widen.

“Me? Really?”

“……Yes, really.”

Just like before, the one who threw me away strode forward.

God, is he really going to hit me? Well, fine, as long as he’ll let me live later…

“What are you doing?”

“What?”

“Open your eyes.”

I slowly opened my eyes, which had been instinctively closed.

I could see his huge chest right in front of me. When I raised my head up, I saw the face of the man looking down at me with a blank look.

“Did the princess of Romagna grow up accustomed to being beaten up?”

How did you know that? Hey, it’s natural to be scared when a big man like you darts forward. How tall are you? I think, probably over 2 meters.

“I thought you were going to hide and watch me.”

“I-I’m good with just watching.”

“Really? Then why close your eyes? Did you expect a kiss or something like that?”

The way he tilted his head and muttered was very unfamiliar.

If he just stared at me as he always did, I could get used to it, but the way he looked at me with his red eyes open was even more dangerous. If I said that I was expecting a real kiss, he’d notice it was a lie.

Do you think I’ve lived like this for a day or two?

“That’s because, earlier, you seemed upset because of me…”

“So, you thought I’d hit you or something?”

“Not necessarily, but if you did…”

“So… you like me even when you know I’m going to hit you?”

“No? You’re the only one to protect me. I’ll try my best to correct the mistakes, so please don’t hate me.”

There was a short silence. While I clasped a bouquet of flowers with both hands and stared down mournfully, he gazed at me with an indescribable look. Why was he staring at me again?

Rough footsteps sounded.

It was clear that it was coming this way, but neither of us looked away.

“…Sir Izek!” My husband, who had been staring at me, turned his head.

The boy, who gasped and approached us, paused with a slightly puzzled look, and then spoke carefully.

“I think you should come for a while.”

Hmm, was something happening with the Paladins in the palace?

“Wait here for a second.”

These words were spat out by my husband, who turned away.

Ho-oh, did he still have work for me? What now? Should I put the flowers in my hair and wait for him?

I glanced briefly at the giant back of the distant man and sat on a flat rock nearby.

A fresh wind blew.

I was shaken, by the way. I wondered what kind of delusion Freya’s little brother was having.

He showed such hostility simply because of rumors about me. It was hard to say what triggered him.

That was all too much to say just because a senior he admired had a wife like me…maybe it was something to do with Freya?

While I was organizing my thoughts, I suddenly looked down at a bouquet of flowers in my hand.

Now that I see it, they were Rudbeckias.

The same flower as my name. Eternal happiness in the flower language, but it’s ironic.

Cold water splashed on me from behind.

Just as I tried to get up reflexively, something wet and slippery wrapped around my torso and literally pulled me into the water in an instant.

There was not even enough time to scream or struggle.

Splash!

The water was cold to the bone.

My heart seemed to stop for a moment. It was worth thinking about whether I was going to die like this and what kind of empty ending it was, but strangely, I didn’t feel any fear. I was caught up by some crazy pond monster. I felt empty, but the thing that was holding me tight right now, didn’t have the purpose of killing me, it was just…

When I struggled a little, the monster’s arm relaxed a little.

It felt ridiculous, as if it would just let go of it if I just swam up like this.

What was this, kid? Did it just want to play with me… or was I just so terrified that I became delusional? Or was I being attacked by some kind of psychological attack? As the oxygen in my lungs decreased, I instinctively tried to shake off the pond monster and climb up.

I was about to move my hands in the water and grab the arms that twisted around my waist.

As if a torpedo had exploded, a blindingly intense light flashed, sending a tingling feeling everywhere. The arms holding my body completely disappeared, but this time, something held me from the top and pulled me up with strong force.

Poa-ha, my blocked breath burst out at once.

My head was all dizzy and my surroundings were noisy.

“How the hell did this happen here…”

What were they talking about? When I managed to wake up, my husband was in front of me, looking down at me. But, why did he suddenly get shorter?

Oh, he was holding me up. His eyes, which were indescribably complex, stared at me.

I didn’t know what’s going on, but the pond monster was just a monster, and I didn’t call it out on purpose.

Like the last time the torch went out…

“…..Waah!”

I screamed loudly as I clung to Izek’s neck, bursting into tears, thinking that I would be hit.

Regardless, I choked him to death and burst into tears.

“Oh, I was scared! You’ve protected me again, you’re the only one!”

As it became silent everywhere, only the sound of Izek’s sigh rang loudly.

A sigh that sounded very tired.

***

The appearance of a monster in a pond containing the romantic legend of Angvan Palace seemed to have spread to quite a serious disturbance.

Inside the palace, where absolute safety is essential, it was also a case of a sudden attack, a pond that had been free of problems for decades, so everyone was shocked.

Besides, no matter how bad my reputation was as the Pope’s favorite daughter here, it would have been quite embarrassing for Brittany if it had gone wrong.

Looking back on my vague memories, I didn’t think there were any of these things that came out in the original

The heart of Elendale, where the nobles’ sagas, temples, and palaces were close, belonged to a fairly safe clean zone. What happened on the first night of arriving here was strange in many ways.

Of course, Rudbeckia in the original, did not experience the first night of the torch being extinguished or leave the palace banquet and go near the pond, but if this continued to be the case, they’ll misunderstand that I was a witch who attracted the creatures.

“Whoo…”

The annual event had come. I didn’t feel anything until the night I fell into the pond, but I felt a little strange from the next day.

I thought it was just a cold at first, but it wasn’t.

My body was burning hot, as if someone was poking my whole body with a needle. It was a symptom that came twice a year after I possessed this body. I thought it would come back at the end of the year, but it came early at a time like this, damn it.

At first, my family called the physician because I had said I was sick, but he just tilted his head and repeated that he had never seen such symptoms before. The same was true of others.

The next time something similar happened again, everyone started to think I was faking it because I didn’t want to get engaged. So I decided to put up with it.

I was used to holding back my pain anyway. It was a symptom that would disappear in just a few days. It would be the same to call a physician here, but it would be tough to be branded as a “foolish faker”.

Especially my dirty husband, who might think I’m up to something else, haa. What was he trying to tell me at the pond, though?

The conversation wasn’t completed because the monster appeared… Whatever the reason he told me to wait, it was unexpected coming from a man who didn’t bother with annoying people.

So, I had to know what he wanted from me.